Ah, timing...

[saone]

So, I posted my huge, 20,000 + J2 Lake Placid AU yesterday, and today I saw this:

Crocodiles swam the Atlantic to reach America - Millions of years before Vikings crossed the Atlantic, crocodiles swam thousands of kilometres from Africa to colonise the Americas.

The finding comes from the most complete evolutionary tree of the genus Crocodylus, featuring all but one of the living crocodile species. Evon Hekkala of Fordham University in New York and colleagues sequenced mitochondrial genomes of all 11 species, eight of which had not had their mitochondrial DNA sequenced before.

This revealed that all four American species are most closely related to the Nile crocodiles of east Africa, and must have split away roughly 7 million years ago, long after Africa and South America began drifting apart 130 million years ago. By 7 million years ago, over 2800 kilometres of ocean lay between the two continents.

Palaeontologists have long suspected that crocodiles swam the Atlantic, but Hekkala's finding is "strong evidence in support of that scenario", says Christopher Brochu of the University of Iowa in Iowa City.


Ha! See, it could totally happen! ;)

Comments

[aythia.livejournal.com]

Now all we need is an article to confirm that crocodiles grow that big as well!

[saone77.livejournal.com]

I think the biggest ones on record are only between 23 to 27 feet.

Did you like how I put only in there? ;)

[aythia.livejournal.com]

Well obviously, that's just a baby crocodile! :p

[wirrrn.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's one of the points in the film that I DIDN'T scoff at :)

btw- Simmo, the 70 year old Estaurine (aka Salt-Water) Crocodile at Perth Zoo, is 25 feet long :)

[saone77.livejournal.com]

My lizard brain is cringing in horror. Did he grow that big while he's been at the zoo, or did they bring him in that size?

It really makes you wonder about what's lurking out there... *cue creepy music*

[wirrrn.livejournal.com]

He came that size. Australian authorities have the irritating habit of removing large crocs from lakes and billabongs in the Outback on site, whether they pose a viable threat to people or not. He was first put in a reptile park in Darwin, but killed the two males he was housed with. He was then transferred to Perth Zoo to mate with a female, but he killed her too. After that they got the message that he Does Not Play Well With Others.

I've talked to his keeper several times. Quote: "I've been caring for, cleaning and feeding the grumpy old bastard for 30 years. Every single time it comes to feed him once a week, I always hope that somewhere in his tiny brain he'll go 'oh, that's the guy who's responsible for my comfortable station here for the past 3 decades; and every single week for the past thirty years, he's tried to eat me. :affectionately: Old fucker." :)

[kirke-novak.livejournal.com]

Let's face it, the only reason they don't do it now, it's because they are too lazy but if they ever heard a speech motivational enough...