An affinity for warm climes has helped crocs thrive for eons

Crocodilians, including today's crocodiles, alligators, caimans, and gharials, have thrived for over 240 million years and may owe their success to their affinity for warm climates. New research published in the journal Science Advances suggests that this trait may have helped them survive the asteroid strike 66 million years ago that wiped out the dinosaurs.

The study traced the geographic range of crocs throughout their history using an evolutionary tree of more than 400 extinct and living species and 7,000 fossils, along with 52 global paleoclimate reconstructions. While other groups such as dinosaurs and mammals adapted to various climates, crocs consistently remained in warm environments, expanding towards the poles during warmer periods and retreating towards the equator during cooler ones.

Even after the Chicxulub impact, which caused a global environmental catastrophe, tropical and subtropical regions retained suitable climatic conditions for crocs, providing them with geographic refuges where they could survive. Additionally, crocs possess physiological traits that make them well-suited for times of environmental stress, such as the ability to enter states of dormancy, conserve energy, and survive long periods without food.