Tears for Crocodilia: Evolution, Ecology, and the Disappearance of One of the World's Most Ancient Animals

by Zach Fitzner

Seventy million years ago in what would become North America, a monstrous thirty-five-foot-long Cretaceous crocodile lurked on a marshy riverbank. Springing suddenly, its huge jaws trapped and crushed a juvenile hadrosaur. Today, the remains of that ancient crocodile are being painstakingly reconstructed in Colorado, where naturalist Zach Fitzner continues his life-long fascination with this amazing animal family.  In  Tears for Evolution, Ecology, and the Disappearance of One of the World’s Most Ancient Animals , Fitzner tracks the evolution of crocodilians from prehistoric predators to modern endangered wildlife, using his own experiences with these reptiles as a lens to understanding wildlife conservation and our relationship with the natural world. Traveling the world to interact with crocodiles, from observing alligators in a wildlife refuge in Texas and paddling a canoe in the Everglades searching for crocodiles to trekking the jungles in Nepal to find endangered gharials, the author expresses a wonder in exploring these diverse ecosystems, making a connection between crocodilians and the lands they live in. As the story follows crocodilians, it also illuminates their often complicated relationship with humans, from crocodile cults in ancient Egypt to American alligators living on golf courses. Fitzner also closely examines the dark side of this relationship, including habitat destruction and poaching as well as the mechanistic view of traditional conservation that turns these magnificent animals into agricultural products.  Tears for Crocodilia delves deeply into issues of wildlife conservation, ethics, and how we can coexist with other creatures. It is also a tribute to a magnificent group of animals, survivors from the age of dinosaurs. 

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, Science

272 pages, Hardcover

Published May 20, 2022

Reviews

[The Inquisitive Biologist · Rating 5 out of 5]

An impassioned and impressive debut, Tears for Crocodilia is a wide-ranging and balanced book on crocodilians that covers biology, conservation, anthropology, and mythology. Read my full review at https://inquisitivebiologist.com/2022...

[Shrike58 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rather chatty book by a man who makes his living working on fossils and who, over time, has come to appreciate crocodilians in all their verities, and is strongly suggesting that his readers do also. Much of this book is basically a travelogue, as Fitzner has made the effort to view as many varieties of these creatures as possible in their natural habitats.

[ania · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun facts learned:
-in ancient Egypt, sacred crocodiles wore earrings and bracelets
-crocodiles can shut off blood flow to certain parts of their body. if they get their tail bit off, they can stop it from bleeding out
-butterflies are known to drink tears from the eyes of caimans
-adult male gharials have bulbous growths on the end of their snouts
-alligators can regrow teeth and go throw up to 3,000 teeth in a lifetime

[Neha Reddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The future for crocodilians, beyond bare survival, may depend on how well a self-proclaimed ‘clever’ primate can see the world through reptilian eyes.” I love this book and I think everyone should read it. Crocodilians are surprisingly emotional and sentient beings. This book was highly educational and has changed my opinion on Crocodilian conservation. We as humans must do better to rid ourselves of biases that influence us to care more about creatures that we feel are similar to us, and to carry out half-ass conservation efforts for those that aren’t. People fear what they don’t understand and this book is a great example of that. Crocodilians need our help and change starts with us!

[Annabel_Hawkins]

There's a lot of absolutely excellent research in here, as well as some moving passages on the author's first hand travel experience to the environments of various species of crocodile; there's a lot of facts, and also cultural notes on human interaction with crocodiles going back to our earliest stages of evolution ...Then in the last chapter the author also sings the praises of PETA. Take that as you will.

[Quill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, a fine read about one man's thoughts on crocodilia. I love reptiles, and crocodilia remains one of my absolute favorite orders of any animal. I just wasn't a big fan of how casual this book was; I know the author is not an expert on crocodilia, but nonetheless, I just didn't like its conversational tone. But that's just a personal dislike. My real beef with this book is that the author calls rotifers "a nightmare" which is false! They're super cute!