Gharial

Gharial
インドガビアル
Character Data
Romaji		Indogabiaru
Debut		Kemono Friends (2015 Game)
Animal Data
Scientific Name		Gavialis gangeticus
Distribution		Indian subcontinent
Diet		Carnivore
Avg. Lifespan		40—60 years
Read More		Gharial
Conservation

Gharial

Nexon Game

The Gharial is a crocodilian Friend that appeared in the original Kemono Friends mobile game.

Appearance

Gharial has short muddy-green hair with two braids and a short ponytail, with franges that fade into a paler green. In homage to the gharial's native India, the Gharial Friend has the Hinduist tilaka mark on her forehead. She wears a short-sleeved black outfit under an orange and green sari decorated with embroidered plants. Finally, she sports orange moccasins on her feet and a pair of golden bracelets around her wrists and heels, and a matching gold necklace. Like the real animal, she bears a large muddy-green tail.

She carries an orange staff with a green-gray end resembling a gharial's head; in the Nexon game, she can be seen making its jaws open and shut.

Series Appearances

Appearances In Kemono Friends Media

Media		Role
2015	Nexon Game	↪ Minor character, playable

In Real Life

Gharial (Gavialis gangeticus)

The gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) is a massive crocodilian, exceeded in size among extant crocodilians only by the saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus). The species is characterized by its slender, elongated snout, adorned by a bulbous growth on the tip of a male’s snout—called a “ghara”, after the Indian word meaning “pot"—which is present in mature individuals. They are also known for their many needle-like teeth and their well-developed, laterally-flattened tails; these traits make the gharial amazingly adapted to an aquatic lifestyle, and renders them highly distinctive among the order Crocodilia.

The gharial is highly adapted to an aquatic lifestyle, and spends the majority of its time in the water. Unlike most other crocodilians, the gharial is unable to raise its body and “high walk” for terrestrial locomotion; when moving on land, they are forced to sluggishly drag their bodies across the ground; they seldom leave the water outside of basking and nesting. Indian gharials live in clear freshwater rivers with fast flowing currents. They congregate at sections of river where the water is deep and the current is gentler, such as at bends.

The gharial appears to be primarily a fish-eating species, but very large individuals are reported to eat other prey. There are several hunting strategies observed among gharials; for example, the "sit-and wait-approach" has the gharial float almost completely submerged underwater, remaining motionless until their prey passes right by them, at which point they snatch it in their nimble jaws; it is a typical hunting strategy among aquatic ambush hunters. Meanwhile, the "sweeping search" involves a sensory organ in the animal's integumentary which allows it to sense vibrations in the water while slowly feeling through the water for prey. Despite its immense size, the gharial's specialized jaws make it physically incapable of devouring any large mammal, including human beings; this does not mean that an adult gharial is not a threat to a human, nor does it detract from the fact that humans are still the greatest threat to the gharial as a species.

Like other crocodilians, the gharial is cold-blooded and spends a lot of time basking in the sun near water, spending additional time basking in the winter when temperatures drop. Individuals tend to revisit the same basking spots. Like other crocodilians, Indian gharials also "gape" during basking, leaving their jaws wide open to cool the blood running through their mouths and dissipate excess heat. Gaping is usually done in intervals of ten to twenty minutes, tilting the head at a 20 degree angle. On very hot days, gharials may completely submerge their bodies, leaving only their heads out of the water at a 20 to 30 degree angle. While typically solitary, gharials do congregate at ideal basking and nesting sites.

Trivia

Gharial at Indira Gandhi Zoological Park, Visakhapatnam

• The male gharial utilizes its ghara to modify hisses snorted through the underlying nostrils. The resultant sound can be heard for nearly a kilometer on a still day.

• In the 1970s, the gharial came to the brink of extinction and even now remains critically endangered. While conservation efforts are ongoing, such as captive breeding programs courtesy of the National Chambal Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh and the Gharial Breeding Centre in Nepal's Chitwan National Park—where the eggs are hatched and hatchlings are reared for two to three years before being released—populations will continue to be threatened by issues such as climate change and human expansion. Further reading can be found via the Gharial Conservation Alliance's official website.

References

1. Whitaker, R.; Members of the Gharial Multi-Task Force; Madras Crocodile Bank (2007). "The Gharial: Going Extinct Again" (PDF). Volume. 14

2. "Gavialis gangeticus". ADW (Animal Diversity Web).