The mugger crocodile (Crocodylus palustris) name comes from magar, which translates loosely to “water monster” in the Hindi and Urdu languages. It is a medium-sized broad-snouted crocodile, also known as mugger and marsh crocodile. The mugger crocodile evolved at least 4.19 million years ago, and is native to freshwater habitats from southern Iran to the Indian subcontinent, where it inhabits marshes, lakes, rivers and artificial ponds. In Pakistan's coastal regions of the Makran and delta marshlands of Sindh, it is known as the Indus crocodile. The male mugger crocodiles is typically larger than the female – and the head of a male mugger crocodile is usually larger and broader. It is one of three crocodilians in India, the others are the saltwater crocodile (C. porosus) and gharial (Gavialis gangeticus).
