The Evolution of Crocodiles

Although they don't look it Crocodiles are actually more closely related to birds then they are to any other reptile. Turn the clock back and they both just look like crocodiles so why did crocodiles not change or have they?

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[Xdrummer]

Cancel the dinner with your parents babe. Tell them Moth Light Media just dropped another instant classic

[theflyingdutchguy]

people are always super suprised that crocodiles and alligators are more distantly related to each other than we are to rodents.

[Colesalad]

They really are the perfect predator. I think the fact that they have stayed in the same niche through multiple mass extinction events is evidence of that as well.

[GlorySnowstar]

Crocs terrify me but in an "I respect your ability to rip me to shreds" kinda way.
Gotta commend their resilience, tactics, and good parenting!

[goldennugget]

The evolution of feathers would be interesting I think

[dimi]

Getting 2 Moth Light Media videos within less than a week? What a treat!

[Zsy]

It was interesting to imagine how the crocodiles might have survived the asteroid impact. Even at that time, the remaining animals would seek out water to drink, making them easy prey, and the lower temperature slowing their metabolisms only helped them to survive. I imagine that the huge numbers of dead and dying animals around meant there was plenty to scavenge too, and their semi-aquatic lifestyle limited their exposure to the contaminated atmosphere. Truly incredible.

[dinosoid]

The radiation and adaptation of the crocodilians is one of my favorite subjects in paleontology. It's amazing the kind of niches they've filled over their couple hundred million years on Earth. Not only that but also the idea that many crocodilians we're in fact warm blooded like mammals and dinosaurs and only reverted to a cold blooded metabolism as a side effect of their semi-aquatic ambush lifestyle.

[bluestone]

Crocodiles, or that niche anyway, is so ancient that I sometimes forget they ever evolved. In that respect, this was really interesting!

[kdev]

Would love a video on giant predators post-dinosaurs, entelodonts for example are fascinating

[captainireland]

I think the evolution of grass would be interesting

[KrazyKaiser]

I love how, just because of the way time works, we have to name things in kind of a backwards way. We call them "Bird ankles" even though they are the ankles inherited by birds and not from birds.

[Tacos]

I know this may be out of your usual realm, but I’d love for an evolution video on coral polyps and how they evolved to what they are today.

[scvnthorpe__]

What's funny about the whole "crocodiles are so old" thing is that birds aren't exactly *that* much younger
Evolution is just weird

Sharks though? Older than trees

[dweebteambuilderjones]

3:15 Pterosaurs also survived the Triassic extinction event.

[daniell]

When I was a kid growing up, Jurassic Park was all the rage, and of course I was a big fan of dinosaurs. As I've grown up though, I've gotten a renewed appreciation for crocodilians. They are almost like dinosaurs, but also kinda different. Their lineage if fascinating and I wish we got to see more of their family members that weren't just ambush predators at water supplies. The many famous "land crocs" for example would have been amazing to get to see in action.

[lucasivanov]

Correction: Baurusuchus lived in Brazil around 80 million years ago, not Madagascar, though the island also terrestrial crocodiles present in its fauna during that time.

[OmegaWolf]

Crocs were very diverse in the Mesozoic. There were long legged crocs that could run on land and even one that looked rather like a duck!

[__-begk]

now I need to know how turtles are more bird than lizard

[Zveebo]

Wait, *two* Moth Light Media videos within the space of a week??? What the heck is happening!