Growth Rates of Crocodylus Porosus (Reptilia: Crocodilia) From Arnhem Land, Northern Australia.

Abstract

In C. porosus < 80 cm SVL (snout-vent length), growth rate decreases as body size increases; males grow faster than females, and both sexes grow faster in the wet season than in the dry season. If the exponential growth curve for specimens < 80cm SVL is extrapolated, it underestimates the maximum size of C. porosus. A second growth curve for specimens > 80cm SVL has been derived separately, and the two curves intersect in the vicinity of 70 cm SVL. The size at which C. porosus cease growing seems quite variable and some data indicate a range of 3.9-6.0 m total length for males. The twocurve growth model is thought to reflect an energetic advantage in feeding on large rather than small prey.