Watch These Hungry Crocs Snatch a Swimming Zebra

Continue reading for our analysis...

The scene begins dramatically. Two zebras rush through the river, seeming to flee from danger. Then, a crocodile appears, gliding through the body of water, as a third zebra makes a hasty exit. However, this one wasn’t quite so lucky. The crocodile pulls the zebra underwater, presumably drowning its prey. A large herd of zebras looks on from a distance, agitated by what unfolded. It turns out that this was a young member of the herd.

As the footage continues, we see more crocs appear, and they enjoy a hard-earned feast. The apex predators masterfully tear the foal into bite-sized pieces, ensuring enough goes around for the group. However, one seemed to bite off more than it could chew and struggled to eat its helping. Interestingly, the crocodiles work together to break up the chunk. One rolled around with the piece in its jaws to accomplish this task. This behavior is strange yet fascinating, so keep reading to learn more about this and the natural dynamics between crocodiles.

Are Crocodiles Social Animals?

Crocodiles have essentially gone unchanged over the last 200 million years. An animal species capable of surviving this long was bound to develop many innovative techniques. As you noticed in the video, crocodiles are reptiles that work well in tandem. They are incredibly social animals and often hunt together in groups. One thing that aids their hunts is their ability to communicate. Interestingly, crocodiles vocalize to communicate with each other. Many adult croc species hiss while their offspring emit a squeaking sound to alarm them of danger. Adult male and female crocs can also emit “bellows” during mating or defending their territory.

Why Do Crocodiles Roll?

Fascinatingly, the crocodiles’ social behavior extends to social play. Crocs engage in playful bonding, like wrestling, riding each other’s backs, and rolling around together. As we saw in the footage, their rolling can also be used as a tactic to dismember their kill. In addition, they use what’s known as a “death roll” to kill their prey. This clever maneuver can snap an animal’s neck or be used to hold and drown them. Crocodiles are unable to chew their food, so they must break it down to swallow it. That certainly explains the intriguing behavior we witnessed in the video.