Baby Crocodiles Emerging From Eggs In Odisha Marks End Of Breeding Season

They crocodiles will be reared for about a year or two at the captive pond of the hatchery enclosure and then released, according to an official.

Hatchlings of estuarine crocodiles have started emerging from eggs and making their way to water bodies in and around the Bhitarkanika National Park in Odisha, officials said on Monday. The sight of baby crocodiles coming out of the eggshells and loitering before hopping into the water bodies marked the culmination of the annual breeding and nesting season of these reptiles. Ninety-six nesting sites of the estuarine crocodiles were spotted in the national park and adjoining wetland sites this year, Rajnagar Mangrove Divisional Forest Officer Jagyandatt Pati said. Some crocodile eggs were collected from the wild and artificially hatched at the hatchery of the national park, Mr Pati said. Baby crocodiles were also seen coming out of the artificially hatched eggs.