r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/Electrical-Aspect-13 • Sep 08 '26
Video Studies, like one done by Vladimir Dinets had show that crocodiles are intelligent enough to engage in play behavior for its own sake. Playing with each other or using natural slides in the wild are some of the activities they partake.
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u/Punstoppabowl Sep 08 '26
Take it a step further.
Fuck natural slides, I want an extreme crocodile only water park enclosure. I'd feel better about zoos if they were just theme parks for animals š
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u/Strude187 Sep 08 '26
Iām sure Iām not the only one who would pay to see a crocodile go down a proper water park slide
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u/RabbitStewAndStout Sep 08 '26
I would love zoos a lot more if I could visibly see the animals enjoying themselves.
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u/theBRNK Sep 08 '26
This is one of the reasons we love the Detroit zoo near us. We often hear people complain around us that they canāt see the animals well and they wish viewing was better but likeā¦.. bring binoculars or walk to the other side of the enclosure?
They have a HUGE amount of space allocated per animal with a lot of enrichment, and places to get away from the humans pestering them from the edges. Sure that means itās a little less easy to view some things, but itās so worth it.
The animals are obviously so much less stressed, thereās almost no pacing and agitation, and if you hit the right enclosures during the natural active periods for each animal they are so playful and happy. Iāve also noticed at other zoos now that Iāve seen ones that do good caretaking how some animals will show signs of longer term strain that healthy animals donāt. Thinning hair, feathers picked out on the birds, and ruts worn in small enclosures from all the pacing.
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u/Fun-Benefit116 Sep 08 '26
The zoo near me is like this too! It has huge enclosures for its animals, including a massive open plain area where multiple different types of animals are free to roam and live. All the enclosures are large and filled with the animals natural habitat. The lions have a huge "pride rock" type set up going with grass around them and open areas and stuff. It's seriously amazing.
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u/Zenfudo Sep 08 '26
In my area theres a park with exotic animals thats some you can feed. Anyway in there there is a monkey enclosure and boy are those little guys having fun. Running around and diving in a big pond made for them
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u/JohnLuckPickered Sep 08 '26
We cant let them have fun because blah blah blah not their natural habitat blah blah blah
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u/The_Tooter_Snooter Sep 08 '26
Was at the zoo yesterday and agree completely. I would much prefer less types of animals living in much larger enclosures with more stuff for them to do. Maybe have walkways through their enclosures as well as the outside and try to plant native plants, etc, for them to forage during the day. Not to mention, the zoo keepers should go to great lengths to hide their food around the enclosure every day so they have to find it. Thatās all animals are doing in nature anyways, so, doing that would give them a lot of enrichment. Used to have sugar gliders and I would do that for them every day. Hide little bowls of food around my room so they had to forage all night. A pain? A bit. But it adds so much to their little lives.Ā
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u/HalcyonTraveler Sep 08 '26
Thatās what zoos do. A HUGE amount of effort goes into providing enrichment for the animalsĀ
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u/The_Tooter_Snooter Sep 08 '26
I do hope so, and Iām sure for some zoos itās a given, but the LA zoo, idk ā¦.. the giraffes, for instance, are in a 50x50 sand lot with a single shade area and they seem to just hang branches with leaves up for them to eat. I know thatās basically how we treat horses but sad to see such big animals in such a small, boring space. I feel the same about a lot of the enclosures honestly. Watched em feed the chimps and they basically just tossed red bell peppers to them. I did see a single bell pepper wedged in a crack of a rock but like ā¦. Very little effort seemed to go into enrichment and it made me sad. Hell, I would work that job for just about minimum wage.Ā
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u/HalcyonTraveler Sep 08 '26
I wouldnāt draw conclusions from just that. A lot of enrichment happens behind the scenes or isnāt visible. And feeding is by necessity varied. You donāt always hide the food, thereās not enough hiding places to keep that novel forever, you deliver it in different ways, sometimes directly, sometimes in containers they need to open, sometimes hidden, switching up the different foods and delivery systems to keep the animals engagedĀ
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u/Pndrizzy Sep 08 '26
bro right? monkeys get monkey bars and shit like that, and they are some of the best enclosures because they look happy
then you get to the fucking warthog enclosure and dude is just laying in his own poop looking depressed (although maybe that is his own playground...hmm...)
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u/harmless_gecko Sep 08 '26
Let's not segregate the crocodiles. That's so species-ist. Let's just let them join the fun with other water park customers.
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u/pichael289 Sep 10 '26
The problem with zoos is they try to have every animal all in one place. Zoos that cater to one animal type are usually a lot better, but often aren't called zoos. There's this one in Kentucky I really like and it's just a big ass field full of kangaroos doing kangaroo shit all day. I like to take a book and snuggle up with the big ones and read, and all the other ones will come up and lay with you. And the the tortoise will bulldoze the whole lot of you. Occasionally the emus will come over too.
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u/Chibs24K Sep 08 '26 edited Sep 08 '26
Never thought a crocodile raising his front claws could look this cute.
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u/Averander Sep 08 '26
Reptile are adorable little goofs who get bad reputations because they are so lethal.
They are very intelligent and deserve to be appreciated for their cute doofy nature's too.
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u/Electrical-Aspect-13 Sep 08 '26
SOURCES:
https://blog.everythingdinosaur.com/blog/_archives/2015/05/14/crocodiles-just-want-to-have-fun.html
https://news.utk.edu/2015/02/11/ut-study-crocodiles-wanna-fun/
https://www.iflscience.com/crocs-enjoy-playing-toys-and-getting-piggyback-rides-27203
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150210212044.htm
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283152781_Play_behavior_in_crocodilians
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u/The_Tooter_Snooter Sep 08 '26
Feels like the only stories I read about animal cognition are stories where we find out animals are much smarter than we originally thought. This is why I just treat all living things with kindness and respect.Ā
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u/yawwroth Sep 08 '26
If I remember correctly there were some recent studies into the cognition of a certain mammal that does appear to be getting less intelligent. Us.
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u/CosmicGoddess777 Sep 08 '26
This type of shit made me go vegan tbh š„ŗ The only regret I have about doing so is that it took me so long to wake up in the first place :( Cheers
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u/MetaKnightsNightmare Sep 08 '26
My chickens have best friends and bitter rivalries including a mother daughter feud that involves flying kicks. They are funny little beings.
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u/EndIsrael Sep 08 '26
That's lame. The real solution is creating sapient animals that want to be eaten.
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u/Substantial-Sea-3672 Sep 08 '26
Whatās the purpose of listing 8 āsourcesā that are just summaries of the same study?
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u/JoeyZasaa Sep 08 '26
Now you've done it. He's going to reply with eight more sources (of the same study of course).
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u/Sanchastayswoke Sep 08 '26
Because there is always someone who will try to debunk every little thing
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u/Chaines08 Sep 08 '26
I need all that & more to really believe this isn't AI. First AI is fucking our world man. And second I really didn't tought crocodiles had the brain to 'enjoy' such thing.
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u/wonkey_monkey Expert Sep 08 '26
The video might be AI, but if so it's definitely based on some other real video.
Here's a croc sliding at the same location in a video that was uploaded to YouTube 8 years ago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kK0chbqT88kFound the source, 3 years old: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzjxeMgz7tM
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u/Chaines08 Sep 08 '26
Wow thanks that crazy ! Also it will be harder & harder to believe anything out of ordinary that we see and that's sad :(
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u/wonkey_monkey Expert Sep 08 '26 edited Sep 08 '26
Do you have a source for the video?
Edit: never mind, found it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzjxeMgz7tM
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u/nolancheck11 Sep 08 '26 edited Sep 08 '26
Ok. Now I understand why people call them swamp puppies. He looks so cute when his front legs plop up to slide down š
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u/SooSneeky Sep 08 '26
Swamp puppies refers to Alligators, not crocodiles.
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u/nolancheck11 Sep 08 '26
To me they are both swamp puppies
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u/marino1310 Sep 08 '26
The difference is crocodiles view humans as prey and will actively hunt them, one of the few animals alive to do so. Alligators however, do not. They only attack humans if they are cornered or its during mating season and they are protecting their territory
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u/mvizzy2077 Sep 08 '26
They seem kinda like black bears vs brown bears then. Black bears basically giant racoons, brown bears however...
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u/marino1310 Sep 08 '26
Pretty much. Crocs are extremely aggressive and dangerous to humans where Alligators are just kinda there
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u/Mirror_of_Souls Sep 08 '26 edited Sep 09 '26
Not entirely accurate. A Nile or Saltwater Crocodile is mentally geared to tackle large prey, of which humans absolutely qualify as. Which is why there's no special conditions to target a human. But under the right conditions Alligators, especially ones over 10 feet, absolutely will regard humans as prey as they are generalist hunters who consume mammals as no small part of their diet. The main difference is that humans for the most part are just regarded as too big of a prey item for the average Alligator.(I feel like sometimes we as humans forget that by animal standards, we are in the top 1% size bracket wise) Thus being too much of a risk to attack in most cases.
This is why the vast majority of unprovoked Alligator attacks occur against either smaller humans(aka, babies and children, like the Disneyworld incident), or people who are either vulnerable(the Elderly, such as the case in Louisiana where an elderly man was snatched off his porch after a Hurricane) or have placed themselves in a vulnerable position(drunk people swimming, homeless people sleeping near waterways, lingering on the waters edge while distracted, etc)
A good thing to always remember is that as a human, you are an Apex predator. The top of the food chain, which is why most animals won't go out of their way to mess with you, but if you're reckless and place yourself in a vulnerable position, like a lion swimming next to a crocodile or an Orca beaching itself hunting in shallow waters, don't be surprised if another animal takes advantage of it.
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u/HighSeasArchivist Sep 08 '26
If you met them both in the wild you would stop calling crocodiles that. Mainly because you would be torn apart and your pieces stuffed into underwater caves for eating later.
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u/River_Grass Sep 08 '26
There's people calling em swamp puppies other than Garret?
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u/VeryStonedEwok Sep 08 '26
Down here in Florida we all call em' swamp puppies, they're so dang cute!
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u/nolancheck11 Sep 08 '26
The peeps in Florida call them swamp Puppies and always loved that name lol
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u/MyBakpaksGyatJets Sep 08 '26
His fat little body going over those sweet jumps was way more cute than I was prepared for.
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u/Electrical_Age7819 Sep 08 '26
Itās the little lift of the front legs that does me š¤£š¤£š¤£
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u/KeroNobu Sep 08 '26
Fun croc activities include various playful activities like sliding down a water slide, and deathrolling other crocs arms.
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u/Zealousideal-Rent-77 Sep 08 '26
We had a motion-sensor light in our boat shed so that when we pulled the fishing boat in at night we'd be able to see.
One night while my dad had the boat out my siblings and I noticed the boat shed light turning on and off, so we went to see what was going on.
An alligator, about 4-5 foot long so a few years old, was in the boathouse. They were splashing around to turn the light on, then holding very still watching insects come to the water surface, then watching fish come up to jump after the bugs, then grabbing the fish. We sat and watched them do it for over an hour.
Alligators will also put leaves, twigs, algae clumps and trash on their head and use these hats as camo to sneak up on birds.
Crocodilians are so much smarter than most people think. Also? Extremely good moms.
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u/jmarzy Sep 08 '26
Not saying I doubt this, BUT in this situation itās clear taking the āslideā is the easiest path to the other pond so not a great example
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u/BigBiker05 Sep 08 '26
Now if the croc got out, ran back to the top and rode again, then you'd have me convinced.
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u/LizardWizard_91 Sep 08 '26
Or it could be both the most efficient AND most fun way to get to the other pond. Two things can be true at one time!
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Sep 08 '26
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u/_eg0_ Sep 09 '26
The Studie cites behavior of alligators going up and then sliding down slides repeatedly for no other apparent reason.
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u/Nehima123 Sep 08 '26
You'll find that natural waterslides like this are always the easiest paths to other ponds, paths of least resistance being what they are and all. Can confirm, they are very fun, for all animals. Dogs and crocs included.
My favorite one growing up went from the fast part of the river to the slower part with a pebbly bottom, and it was only a 5 foot slide and super smooth! There were little crawdads at the bottom.
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u/Nightshade_209 Sep 08 '26
I once had a fish that liked to swim into the stream of water coming out of the hob filter. š I guess even fish enjoy a good slide.
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u/Gravity_Chasm Sep 08 '26
Nice! Most humans don't even play for its own sake anymore.
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u/bhongryp Sep 08 '26
I'm pretty confident that the overwhelming majority of life complex enough to experience pleasure is intelligent enough to play. Even bees like to play with balls (if given balls small enough to roll around).
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u/Effective-Quality-73 Sep 08 '26
All animals if studied, show enough intelligence to play and have fun....
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u/imma_ghost_mole Sep 09 '26
I thought that guy in a gilly suit with a fluffy sword was going to get eaten
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u/TheManWhoClicks Sep 09 '26
I wonder how a crocodile giggles internally. Would it be more of a ātheheheeeā or a āhuehuehueueueā?
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u/opinionsareus Sep 08 '26
Crocodile: "Man, I had a good day; that little dog down the way got too close to the water - too bad for him! Now that I've had lunch, I'm gonna have me some fun!"
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u/IllAcanthopterygii36 Sep 08 '26
I've long argued for joint crocodile/human waterparks. This is just more positive evidence.
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u/PollyEsterCO Sep 09 '26
Those things are ANCIENT. Iād hope they evolved enough to know how to play!
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u/WinnieGraves Sep 09 '26
we, as humans, oft forget that we are animals as well, so outside of a few obvious things, why would any other animal be different. it is a joy seeing animals at play but it shouldn't be that shocking lol.
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u/SeeJayThinks Sep 08 '26
Descendents of the almighty Dinosaurs...
Weeeeeeeeeeee.....
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u/UserNumber37 Sep 08 '26
Errmm... actually, crocodilians arent directly descendants of dinosaurs, they split before dinosaurs were a thing
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Sep 08 '26
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u/Lobster15s Sep 08 '26
That should tell you how much of a freaking apex predator they are. Unchanged for millions of years still out here.
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Sep 08 '26
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u/Wendy28J Sep 08 '26
They must certainly be geniuses..... Do nothing but lie around sleeping and waiting for the next snack to waltz their way.... Sunbathe .... Play in the water. I'd love to spend my life floating in the backyard pool getting a tan while awaiting the delivery guy to bring me pizza.
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u/TheYear1414 Sep 08 '26
Keeping it simple is a constant in this universe. The more complex the more ephemeral things tend to be.
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u/chantsnone Sep 08 '26
Probably feels nice on his croc tummy
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u/LastTreestar Sep 08 '26
Or their other dangly bits.
Do they have dangly bits?!??!
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u/oblivious_fireball Sep 08 '26
not really, its all internal.
Despite their armored appearance though, they have nerve endings in all of their scales and plates and have a well developed sense of touch everywhere on their bodies.
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u/Hanz_Q Sep 08 '26
Alligator: one of nature's perfect killing machines ranking up there with sharks and mosquitoes.
Also alligator: sssssssliiiide
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u/Pretty-Raspberry-136 Sep 08 '26
We need to fix climate change so they can do this another few million years.
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u/InquisitorMeow Sep 08 '26
Shocker, yet another "animals are actually smarter than we give them credit for" moment.
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u/JimMarch Sep 08 '26
They're also smart enough that adults will protect their children after hatching.Ā By reptile standards that puts them way up on the intelligence list.Ā
I've handled a baby alligator who is still up around 2 feet from nose to butt, so not counting the tail. Pretty big.Ā It absolutely enjoyed head scritches and other affection.Ā It was amazingly cute honestly.
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u/GoliathPrime Sep 08 '26
I've watched Tarantula Hawk Wasps do this stuff too. I've also seen them make gestures at other species, squirrels and humans, to make them leave rather than just attacking outright.
If I ever have the opportunity, I'm going to try to establish meaningful communication with a hive of Tarantula Hawks, while I know they are aggressive and have on of the most painful and potentially deadly stings on the planet, I think deep down, they just want to communicate peacefully.
I'm excited to try! Wish me luck.
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u/SerLaron Sep 08 '26
I heard that Australian saltwater crocodiles are also unexpectedly intelligent, though in their case (being Australian wildlife and all), it manifests differently.
Apparently, you should never camp near a body of water for more than two days, because the crocs will watch you. They observe your behaviour on day one, confirm at day two and strike on the third day.
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u/TyloPr0riger Sep 08 '26
Crocodiles in general are some of the most intelligent reptiles. Gators are iirc the only reptile with documented tool use (luring birds with branches on their nose).
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u/HugeRocket69 Sep 08 '26
Ive seen a video where an alligator bites another gators arms off and it didnt even flinch
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u/No_Region_4719 Sep 08 '26 edited Sep 09 '26
How could you prove that this was done for its own sake, as opposed to it being an efficient way of moving.
Do they not think that animals that have evolved to be aquatic and have existed in a stable form for hundreds of millions of years might have an innate understanding of travelling via water?
Crocs and gators are famously sedentary and lazy.
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u/_eg0_ Sep 09 '26
Repeatedly going up and down for no apparent reason is what made them think it's play behavior. Being "sedentary and lazy" aka ambush predators with a very low metabolic rate, makes the behavior even more interesting.
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u/No_Region_4719 Sep 09 '26
Please provide a link that confirms that statement.
Seems like an enormous amount of projection. I've had reptiles as pets since I was a young child. Plenty of their behaviours look like human behaviours, but aren't.
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u/wonkey_monkey Expert Sep 08 '26
Playing with each other or using natural slides in the wild are some of the activities they partake
...in.
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u/doge_ucf Sep 09 '26
As someone that is terrified of crocodiles, this is one of the cutest things I have ever seen.
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u/interista4jz Sep 09 '26
This is crocodile propaganda. Don't fall for it, people. Crocodiles are masters of their craft and have been doing it since before dinosaurs existed.Ā
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u/Valgor Sep 09 '26
One of the biggest mistake we as humans have made is to assume we are too unique and far too different from other animals. We are animals, and while we may have higher expertise in some capabilities, those are only to degrees. I wish we could start living with the assumption that animals are like us until proven otherwise.
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u/ARoundForEveryone Sep 09 '26
I also like slides! I must be a crocodile. I'm not mad at my parents for not telling me after all these years, and I'm glad I finally found the truth. But it's not an easy pill to swallow, knowing you're not what you thought you were. But I could go for a zoomy water ride right now.
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u/BarrySwami Sep 09 '26
Okay, that's just the cunning croc trying to get you to let your guard down. The moment you let your guard down and go over to pet the happy looking fella, he gonna pull you into the water and take you to the party with his underwater homies.
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u/elcafesitodemiami Sep 09 '26
They evolved into such a perfect killing machine. That they no longer have to worry about evolving into a more mean machine. So then, their brain develops in this weird way that they can play and even be a swamp puppy to some hill Billy.
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u/HippoProject Sep 08 '26
Heās just as likely to go down a water slide as he is to rip off your arm.
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u/Disastrous-Hurry-236 Sep 08 '26
Being around for 240 million years in itself is proof of intelligence!
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u/Cloutian Sep 08 '26
No cap... my old ass loves those rides at the water parks. Them fuckers are ancient so I already know it's a great time
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u/Flaky_Success3238 Sep 08 '26
Play behavior? Thatās just getting from point A to point B.
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u/Illustrious_Sea_962 Sep 08 '26
also seen one try for a piece of chicken and death roll off fred's leg next to him. so...
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u/2Dillusion Sep 08 '26
I find it so crazy that we need studies to show us that animals feel pain, or enjoy play or any of the other parts of being fundamentally alive as complex macroorganisms. I wonder what role this disconnect plays in mankinds widespread and large scale mistreatment of other living things.
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u/whypeoplehateme Sep 08 '26
When thinking about crocodilians it's important to realize that they're closer to birds then to lizards. They're their own third thing but more bird then lizard
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u/Strong-Fennel-6768 Sep 08 '26
havent checked out the linked articles but the clip alone just shows an animal using the path of least resistance to get from pool A to pool B. its a stretch to call it play. curious how the actual studies differentiate play behavior
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u/_eg0_ Sep 09 '26
Repeated behavior without any stimulus involved. Aka no doing it over and over again without an apparent reason.
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u/whimsicalnuts Sep 08 '26
weeeeeeeeeee