Intra- and interspecific agonistic behaviour in hatchling Australian freshwater crocodiles (Crocodylus johnstoni) and saltwater crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus)

We examined agonistic behaviour in hatchling Australian freshwater crocodiles (Crocodylus johnstoni) at 2 weeks, 13 weeks, and 50 weeks after hatching, and between C. johnstoni and saltwater crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus) at 40-50 weeks of age. Among C. johnstoni, agonistic interactions (15-23 s duration) were well established by two weeks old and typically involved two and occasionally three individuals, mostly between 17 : 00 and 24 : 00 hours in open-water areas of enclosures. A range of discrete postures, non-contact and contact movements are described. The head is rarely targeted in contact movements with C. johnstoni because they exhibit a unique 'head raised high' posture, and engage in 'push downs'. In contrast with C. porosus of a similar age, agonistic interactions between C. johnstoni were conducted with relatively low intensity and showed limited ontogenetic change; there was also no evidence of a dominance hierarchy among hatchlings by 50 weeks of age, when the frequency of agonistic interactions was lowest. Agonistic interactions between C. johnstoni and C. porosus at 40-50 weeks of age were mostly low level, with no real exclusion or dominance observed. However, smaller individuals of both species moved slowly out of the way when a larger individual of either species approached. When medium-or high-level interspecific interactions did occur, it was between similar-sized individuals, and each displayed species-specific behaviours that appeared difficult for contestants to interpret: there was no clear winner or loser. The nature of agonistic interactions between the two species suggests that dominance may be governed more strongly by size rather than by species-specific aggressiveness.