This is an image captured by American wildlife photographer Patrick Castleberry: a six-foot-long (about 1.8 meters) American alligator tries to pry open a donut turtle shell and eat it.
He thought the battle would end up winning for the crocodile, but after 15 minutes of hard work, including constantly throwing the turtle into the air like a ball, spitting it out and swallowing it back into his mouth, and biting hard at various angles, he still didn't bite the shell.
It may be that the mouth muscles are too sour after biting for too long, and finally the crocodile gives up and is unwilling to leave.
Leaving the eastern donut turtle motionless, the photographer thought the turtle was dead, and when he stepped forward to check, he found that the turtle was still alive, but it couldn't turn over on all fours.
Scientists have long believed that the turtle's hard shell is meant to avoid being eaten, but now it seems that this strategy really works.
Turtle shells are more than just houses
The shell of the turtle is not a simple armor, let alone the cartoon, which can be put on and taken off, it is part of the turtle's skeleton.
The tortoise shell is divided into two parts, the dorsal carapace and the ventral carapace, which are connected by side (also called carapace).
From a material point of view, the shell is divided into two layers, the top layer of the shield is keratin, which resembles our fingernails, and the lower layer is closely connected to its ribs and skeleton.
These two layers of structure, like a shield, protect the vital organs and body in the middle of the turtle shell.
If in danger, the turtle shrinks to avoid being eaten by predators.
But that doesn't mean crocodiles can't do turtles.
Crocodile teeth, turtle shell, who is harder?
If you look purely at the data, it must be that the crocodile has a higher bite force.
Studies have shown that crocodiles can have a bite force of up to 2,900 pounds, while turtle shells can withstand pressures of only 1,000 pounds.
But this is not absolute, because the bearing capacity of the turtle shell is related to the size, bite part, species, etc., and the crocodile is also related to the type and size.
The design of the shell is also interesting, as many species have a rounded arch at the top and a smooth surface, which means that even if the crocodile has a good tooth, it is difficult to hold the turtle to exert its bite power.
The crocodile's forelimbs are still very short, and the turtle is in the crocodile's mouth, and if it keeps struggling, it will be difficult for the crocodile to deliver the fatal blow.
That is, because of the risk of failure, in general, crocodiles do not take the initiative to attack turtles.
The crocodile at the beginning is the best example, after 15 minutes of snorting like a "snail", it still did not remove the meat from the turtle shell, wasting a lot of energy.
But if you are unlucky and encounter a powerful crocodile, then the best result for the turtle is that it will crunch and die happily in one bite; The worst result is that the crocodile grinds its teeth for more than ten minutes, and the turtle shell is crushed under the weight of the weight, and then dies in despair.
At last
When it comes to preying on turtles, the strongest skill is still the jaguar.
It is always at night, aiming at turtles that come to shore to lay eggs.
Due to physical limitations, sea turtles cannot shrink into their shells like tortoises, so jaguars can eat turtles by biting the head of the turtle and then pulling out the turtle's flesh with brute force.
Some crocodiles will also do this trick, biting their heads directly to end this tug-of-war.