Why can alligators bite their prey fast?

The tiny, lumpy skin inside the crocodile's jaws helps this carnivorous reptile potentially extremely sensitive to external influences than the sensitivity of human fingertips.

The statement was published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, discovered by biologists at the University of Vanderbil, after using a microscope to observe the function of giant Nile and American alligators. .

According to the study, the tiny, lumpy skin layers emerging inside the crocodile jaw have an extremely tight structure. They are tactile nerve endings capable of detecting vibrations and pressure. These nerve ends from the trigeminal nerve in the fish skull.

Crocodile snatches its prey super-fast due to its skin
extremely sensitive in the jaw. (Photo: Livescience)

To test tactile sensitivity, the researchers exposed this small skin to salt salinity to measure the electrical impulses of nerves and touch the skin with the hair. The results show that the crocodile jaw skin is more sensitive than the human fingertip area.

Thanks to such sensitive skin, alligators can grab jaws around the body of the prey with rapid face speed in just 50 milliseconds, a reaction time can only be obtained thanks to super sensitive skin. its. In addition, this sensitive skin can help the crocodile to suck in the mouth gently without hurting.

Detecting the crocodile's sensitivity also provides more knowledge about the evolutionary ability of this terrifying carnivore.