Britannica Sources used in this answer

How far can crocodiles travel over land?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Illustration of an estuarine or saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) with its mouth open, showing scaly skin and powerful limbs, alongside a scale bar for size reference. — crocodile Estuarine, or saltwater, crocodile (*Crocodylus porosus*), found in brackish waters from Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar east to the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu and south to Australia.

While crocodiles are primarily aquatic animals, they are capable of making journeys of several kilometers over land.1

When moving on land, crocodiles utilize a unique form of locomotion that allows them to hold their bodies high on all four legs. They achieve this through a characteristic side-to-side, or sinusoidal, flexure of the body, where the movement of a front leg is coordinated with the opposing hind leg during each step. While they typically walk in this manner, they are also capable of galloping for short distances.2