00:00 (explosion booms)
00:01 By water's edge, a battle royale ignites.
00:04 In Northern Australia, saltwater crocodiles are king.
00:09 The continent's largest land-based predators,
00:14 they've come across a large feral pig by the shore.
00:17 An easy meal, it would appear,
00:21 but with multiple crocs in the kitchen, tempers flare.
00:28 Okay, before we dive into the mechanics
00:30 of how these gnarly beasts tend to feast,
00:33 let's scale things back a bit.
00:34 Crocodile fossils have been found
00:37 that date back 200 million years.
00:40 These dudes predate the dinosaurs
00:43 and have outlived them by millions of years,
00:46 and it wasn't by accident.
00:48 Salties are hyper-carnivores.
00:51 That means they kill a lot.
00:54 They'll eat just about any animal
00:56 they can catch and overpower,
00:58 including fish, birds, even humans.
01:02 But there's more to them than just chowing down.
01:06 We'd like to introduce you to our friend, Ted.
01:09 The dominant male of the area,
01:12 he's also somewhere around 100 years old, and it shows.
01:16 Check out those battle scars.
01:19 Those deformities,
01:21 they're a result of a lifetime of fighting.
01:25 He's blind and has lost all his teeth.
01:29 That happens, crocs lose teeth constantly,
01:32 and they can grow new ones up to 45 times.
01:35 But at this stage of the game, Ted's officially toothless.
01:39 It's all good, he can still eat.
01:43 Crocs swallow their prey whole,
01:45 but his reign on top is nearing its end.
01:47 Meet Boris.
01:50 Boris is a big guy, measuring over 15 feet long
01:54 and weighing over 1,500 pounds.
01:57 He's got a big appetite.
01:59 It's an ideal time for him to go to work.
02:03 He gets into position along the riverbank
02:06 to watch for anything that comes within striking distance.
02:09 Sweeps of that powerful tail
02:12 propel him silently through the water.
02:14 His short limbs with clawed, webbed feet
02:17 are ideal for swimming.
02:19 His eyes, ears, and nostrils
02:23 are located on top of his head,
02:25 allowing him to lie low while keeping an eye on his prey.
02:28 The eyes of a ninja.
02:30 Beyond that, Boris has sensory pits along his entire body
02:35 which pick up vibrations.
02:37 From across the way, he senses even the slightest movement.
02:40 Diving down, he slithers over.
02:43 When Boris is underwater, those bumpy scales he wears
02:48 create a low pressure system around him,
02:51 resulting in a counter-current around his body.
02:54 The water's surface will not ripple
02:56 as he glides through the deep.
02:58 He is invisible.
03:00 Aqua Ninja.
03:01 Oh, what's this?
03:04 An unsuspecting wallaby has come to the water to drink,
03:08 completely unaware of the danger that approaches.
03:10 A crocodile can lunge incredibly fast.
03:14 (water splashing)
03:19 (water splashing)
03:21 Salties pack arguably the strongest bite force in the world,
03:25 so this may actually be the worst spot to find yourself in.
03:28 Boris can put down almost a quarter of his own weight
03:32 in one sitting.
03:33 How?
03:35 Well, he can secrete gastric acid
03:37 faster than any other animal,
03:39 liquefying bone matter in just a few hours.
03:42 The one thing he can't digest is keratin,
03:46 so he'll cough up the fur later.
03:48 Even crocs get hairballs.
03:50 Crocodiles are prehistoric marvels.
03:54 They've made it this far, and now you know why.
03:58 Jaguar versus caiman.
04:04 Fight!
04:07 (bell ringing)
04:09 These two predators are battling to the death.
04:13 Who will emerge victorious?
04:16 (water splashing)
04:18 In the heart of Brazil,
04:20 the world's largest tropical wetland
04:22 is known as the Pantanal.
04:24 These 81,000 square miles are home
04:32 to a wild variety of creatures.
04:34 Some cute, and some--
04:40 (water splashing)
04:43 (water splashing)
04:47 Not so cute.
04:48 Close relatives of the alligator,
04:53 caimans are aplenty in these parts.
04:55 During the dry season,
05:00 an estimated five to 10 million jacari caimans
05:03 crowd the riverbanks.
05:04 It actually might be the largest population
05:08 of crocodilians on Earth.
05:09 (water splashing)
05:12 Male caimans can grow to eight feet long
05:19 and weigh 130 pounds.
05:22 But to be king of the swamp,
05:25 they've got competition.
05:26 From the third largest cat in the world,
05:30 roughly 100 jaguars roam the Pantanal.
05:34 With such thick coverage,
05:38 this dense rainforest is an ambush predator's dream.
05:41 Oh, and one more thing.
05:45 Jaguars are superb swimmers.
05:49 This young male could groat away more than 200 pounds.
05:55 To rule this land, a kid's meal won't cut it.
05:59 Enter the caiman.
06:02 Tangling with such a foe could spell doom for the cat.
06:07 And yet, hunger outweighs his concern.
06:09 The time to strike is now.
06:13 Let's rumble.
06:17 An experienced jaguar would unleash
06:25 a deadly bite to the brain.
06:27 But the rookie is struggling to maintain a firm grip.
06:35 Desperate to escape, the caiman tries to roll over.
06:39 But the jaguar's powerful jaw
06:41 clamps down on the reptile's throat.
06:43 The caiman does have one advantage.
06:49 He can hold his breath underwater for an hour.
06:51 If he can stay afloat and alive just long enough,
06:55 he might be able to surprise the jaguar with another roll.
07:02 It's now a contest of pure strength and stamina.
07:05 Both animals are exhausted, but surrender is not an option.
07:11 The stress of the tussle takes its toll,
07:18 and the caiman's body goes limp.
07:20 With water in the lungs, it's all over.
07:24 Well, almost over.
07:32 The jaguar still has to haul that carcass out of the river.
07:35 But, here we go, and, ah, made it.
07:39 And there you have it.
07:42 In a land loaded with armored reptiles,
07:45 this ferocious feline reigns supreme.
07:49 (birds chirping)
07:52 (upbeat music)
07:54 (upbeat music)
07:57 (upbeat music)
07:59 (upbeat music)
08:02 (sighs)
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