Ridged Alligator

The Ridged Alligator is a species of crocodilia native to southwestern Miran. They are known for being very aggressive. Large enough to overturn small boats. Preferably they are an ambush hunter, lying in wait near the shoreline or the surface of a river.

The Ridged Alligator's weight and length averages 400 kg (880 lb) and 5.0 m (16.4 ft), but they can grow to 6.2 m (20.3 ft) and weight over 525 kg (1,157 lb). Females will be slightly larger than males.

Adults have a mottled dark green and brown with gray undersides, while juveniles have bright green tips along the central ridge that disappear with age.

Ridged Alligators live between 50 and 75 years, although the Pah'Shar have tracked specimens beyond a century.

A Ridged Alligator may venture into the Serpente Sea, but it does not stay for long as it freshwater only. When hungry it will the day floating just below the surface of the water hunting for prey. If it has recently fed then it will spend the day sunning itself others of its kind along the shores of a river.

When a female begins her reproductive cycle she will attract males to the nearby waters. They will fight, with the strongest securing his position with the female. Mating is often violent and a male may leave heavily injured, but rarely does it result in death. The female will then swim away to prepare a nest away from the shore. She lays a clutch of six to ten (6-10) eggs and will not leave them until they hatch. Once hatched she will carry the young on her back as she begins hunting again.

When no female is in cycle, males and females will gather when resting. Although they are a solitary hunters, when fed they enjoy a loose social structure.

Encountering a Ridged Alligator on the hunt can be a deadly experience. They seem to display no fear of larger creatures and the scales on their back are strong enough to turn aside many weapons. Anyone that finds the jaws of one around their limbs will be dragged underwater and slammed into the river bottom or spun and torn.