Strongest molariform bite force for a crocodile

The crocodile with the strongest molariform bite force (the bite force exerted by the molariform – molar-like – teeth) recorded is the saltwater or estuarine crocodile (Crocodylus porosus), native to Australia and south-east Asia. In a comprehensive 2012 study of bite force in crocodilians, specimens of all 23 species of living crocodilian were utilized to obtain a range of bite force readings for each species. The strongest molariform bite force recorded was 16,414 N from a saltwater crocodile.

The specimen that yielded the molariform bite force of 16,414 N was 4.59 m (15 ft) long, and its bite force was the strongest ever recorded from any animal measured in the laboratory. It surpassed the previous record of 13,300 N, recorded from a 3.9-m-long (12-ft 9.5-in) American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis).

The research was published on 14 March 2012 in PLOS ONE in a collaborative study by scientists from Florida State University, California State Polytechnic University, the University of Florida, St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park (all USA) and Charles Darwin University (Australia), led by Dr Gregory M Erickson of Florida State University.