Crocs survived by not being chewsy

CROCODILES' ability to eat almost anything helped their ancestors survive two mass extinctions, research claims.

- BY STEPHEN BEECH

The secret to their longevity could help conservationists better protect species today threatened by extinction, say scientists.

Crocodylians; crocodiles, alligators and gharials, are thought by some to be “living fossils” that have ruled the world’s swamps for millions of years.

But their evolutionary history tells a different story, according to research led by scientists at the University of Central Oklahoma and the University of Utah.