United States

Northern Mariana Islands

Puerto Rico

American Samoa

Guam

U.S. Virgin Islands

U.S. Minor Outlying Islands

US & Territories

<p><b>(This program is no longer streaming). </b>Sixty-six million years ago, an asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs in a fiery global catastrophe. But we know little about how their successors, the mammals, recovered and took over the world. Now, hidden inside ordinary-looking rocks, an astonishing trove of fossils reveals a dramatic new picture of how rat-sized creatures ballooned in size and began to evolve into the vast array of species—from cheetahs to bats to whales to humans—that rule our planet today.</p>

<p>Amazing fossils reveal how mammals took over after an asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs.</p>

Rise of the Mammals

<p>Explore the intimate connections between the landscape, the colonizing of the continent, and the emergence of our industrial world. Beginning with Native American ancestors who crafted hunting weapons from stone traded across hundreds of miles, the program shows how pre-Columbian civilizations developed an expert knowledge of the landscape and its resources. With the arrival of Europeans, North America’s hidden riches became to key to prosperity, from the gold rush to today’s oil and gas boom. As a result, human activity has transformed the continent on a scale that rivals the geological forces that gave birth to it billions of years before. Yet, scientists warn of sleeping giants like the Cascadia fault, and the earthquake/tsunami one-two punch it could unleash on the Pacific Northwest. Even as we re-mold the continent to suit our needs, geologic processes inexorably continue, and they raise potential risks of catastrophe to our human civilization.</p>

<p>How has the land shaped our lives, from the arrival of the first Americans to today?</p>

Making North America: Human

<p>(This program is no longer available for online streaming.) A seven-mile-wide asteroid collided with Earth 66 million years ago, triggering a chain of events that coincide with the end of the dinosaurs. But experts have long debated exactly what happened when the asteroid struck and how the giant beasts met their end. Now, scientists have uncovered compelling new clues about the catastrophe—from New Jersey to the wilds of Patagonia—and an international expedition of scientists has drilled into the impact crater off the coast of Mexico, recovering crucial direct evidence of the searing energy and giant tsunami unleashed by the asteroid. Join NOVA as scientists piece together a chillingly precise unfolding of the Earth’s biggest cataclysm, moment by moment, and discover how our early mammalian ancestors managed to survive and repopulate the Earth. (Premiered December 27, 2017)</p>

<p>Experts drill into the impact crater of an asteroid that created a worldwide cataclysm.</p>

Day the Dinosaurs Died

NOVA Science Trust Logo

Evolution Lab

<p>What could you possibly have in common with a mushroom, or a dinosaur, or even a bacterium? More than you might think.</p>

Evolution Lab Game

<p>Create phylogenetic trees and explore genetic relationships between species with NOVA&#x27;s Evolution Lab.</p>

Bones of Contention

<p>In this interactive activity from NOVA, explore one of the challenges that evolutionary scientists face as you attempt to classify 10 &quot;mystery fossils.&quot;</p>

Crocodiles! Clickable Croc

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?><!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
<head>
	<script>var PBS_CHROME_CONFIG = {'api_key': '9c4f76bb-2c2a-44ec-95e2-d878ba8b7a65'};</script>
	<script type="text/javascript" src="https://d2ok2u3bz752mp.cloudfront.net/js/gc.js"></script>
	<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />
	<meta name="description" content="What makes this reptile such a fearsome predator? Explore the anatomy of a croc&amp;mdash;from tail to teeth." />
	<meta name="keywords" content="" />
	<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">

	<meta property="og:url" content="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/nature/clickable-croc.html" />
	<meta property="og:title" content="The Clickable Crocodile â NOVA | PBS" />
	<meta property="og:description" content="What makes this reptile such a fearsome predator? Explore the anatomy of a croc&amp;mdash;from tail to teeth." />
	<meta property="og:image" content="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/assets/img/full-size/clickable-croc-merl.jpg" />
    <meta property="fb:pages" content="29589997195">

	<title>NOVA - Official Website | The Clickable Crocodile</title>

	<link rel="stylesheet" href="/wgbh/nova/css/nova.css" type="text/css" media="screen,print" />
	<link rel="stylesheet" href="/wgbh/nova/css/resource.css" type="text/css" media="screen,print" />
	<link rel="stylesheet" href="/wgbh/nova/css/resource-responsive.css" type="text/css" media="screen,print" />


	

	


	<link rel="stylesheet" href="/wgbh/nova/css/resource-print.css" type="text/css" media="print" />

	<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="/wgbh/nova/js/jquery-1.5.1.min.js"></script>
	<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="/wgbh/nova/js/jquery.tools.min.js"></script>
	<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="/wgbh/nova/js/nova.js"></script>
	<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="/wgbh/nova/js/resource.js"></script>
	<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="/wgbh/nova/js/passport.js"></script>

	

	<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="/includes/flash/swfobject.js"></script>
	<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript">
		//load tag dynamically, variable used in site top
		var dartTag = "science_general_NOVA;nova-topic=nature";
		var siteBaseUrl="/wgbh/nova/";

		var GA_customvar = { "UA-3988832-1": [ [ "series", "nova", 3 ], [ "resource-type", "interactive", 3 ] ] };

		var w = window.innerWidth
		|| document.documentElement.clientWidth
		|| document.body.clientWidth;

	</script>

   <script type="text/javascript">
        var _elqQ = _elqQ || [];
        _elqQ.push(['elqSetSiteId', '2531']);
        _elqQ.push(['elqTrackPageView']);
        (function () {
            function async_load() {
                var s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.async = true;
                s.src = '//img.en25.com/i/elqCfg.min.js';
                var x = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; x.parentNode.insertBefore(s, x);
            }
            if (window.addEventListener) window.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', async_load, false);
            else if (window.attachEvent) window.attachEvent('onload', async_load);
        })();
    </script>
</head>

<body id="p-7341" class="nova noscript">

<div id="wrapper" class="nature interactive-wrapper ">

	

	
	
	

	<div id="main">

		<div id="columns">

	    	

		    <div id="resource-col-mask">
		        <div id="resource-col" class="nova interactive  ">
		        	<div id="pbs-share" class="share-bug">
       		        	<div id="share-choices">
       		        		
       		        	</div>
       		        	<div class="text">share</div>
       		        </div>

		           				<h1>The Clickable Crocodile</h1>

				
				<ul id="resource-info">
										<li>By Karen Hartley</li>
					
					<li>Posted 12.01.03</li>

										<li>NOVA</li>
					
				</ul>
				
				<p>
	Crocodiles inspire fear, which may have something to do with their coolly dominating presence. After all, for nearly 100 million years during the Mesozoic era (248-65 million years ago), the crocodilian order ruled the Earth. Today's crocodiles have changed remarkably little since then. They are still the most advanced reptile species, and they still terrify most people. In this feature, we ask that you put aside your fears and get up close and personal with a Nile crocodile.</p>

				<div class="ia-box" >
											<a href="" class="launch">
											<img src="/wgbh/nova/assets/img/posters/clickable-croc-in.jpg" alt=""/>
					</a>
					<span class="btns-2">
						<a href="
						/wgbh/nova/assets/swf/1/clickable-croc/clickable-croc.swf"
													class="button box-btn launch"
												>
						Launch Interactive</a>

						
												<a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/crocs/clickable/anat-nf.html" class="button box-btn sub-btn" target="_blank">Printable Version</a>
											</span>
					<p>
						What makes this reptile such a fearsome predator? Explore the anatomy of a croc&mdash;from tail to teeth.					</p>
				</div>

								<p class="editor-res-note">This feature originally appeared on the site for the NOVA program <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/crocs/">Crocodiles!</a>.</p>
				
				

				
				<div id="accordion">
					
																				<h2>Credits</h2>
					<div id="credits" class="twiddle-body">
						<h3>Photo</h3>
<dl>
<dt>(main crocodile)</dt>
<dd>ÃÂ© John Gerlach/Visuals Unlimited</dd>

<dt>(all others)</dt>
<dd>ÃÂ© WGBH/NOVA</dd>
</dl>

<h3>Sound</h3>
<dl>
<dd>Courtesy of Adam Britton, crocodilian.com</dd>
</dl>
					</div>
					


				</div>

		        </div>
		    </div>

		    
		    

		    		    <div id="picks">
	    			        <h2>Related Links</h2>
							<ul>
										<li  >
												<a href="/wgbh/nova/nature/deadly-crocodiles.html" ><img src="/wgbh/nova/assets/img/19/deadly-crocodiles.jpg"/></a>

						<h3><a href="/wgbh/nova/nature/deadly-crocodiles.html" >Deadly Crocodiles Down Under</a></h3>
						<p>Australians try to live safely with giant saltwater reptiles that will eat just about anything&mdash;including people.</p>
						

					</li>
										<li data-coveid="1300615533" >
												<a href="/wgbh/nova/nature/lizard-kings.html" ><img src="/wgbh/nova/assets/img/2/lizard-king-ic.jpg"/></a>

						<h3><a href="/wgbh/nova/nature/lizard-kings.html" >Lizard Kings</a></h3>
						<p>Meet the monitors, the largest, fiercest, and craftiest lizards on Earth.</p>
						

					</li>
										<li  >
												<a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/secretlife/scientists/mark-siddall/" ><img src="/wgbh/nova/assets/img/13/profile-mark-siddall-ic.jpg"/></a>

						<h3><a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/secretlife/scientists/mark-siddall/" >The Secret Life of Mark Siddall</a></h3>
						<p>Meet Mark Siddall, a leech expert and chef of exotic food.</p>
						

					</li>
										<li  >
												<a href="/wgbh/nova/nature/amazon-leech.html" ><img src="/wgbh/nova/assets/img/4/amazon-leech.jpg"/></a>

						<h3><a href="/wgbh/nova/nature/amazon-leech.html" >Hunt for the Giant Leech</a></h3>
						<p>You suddenly find yourself waist-deep in the swampy home of the giant Amazonian leech. What now?</p>
						

					</li>
									</ul>
		    </div>
		    

		</div>
		<div id="col-end"></div>

		
				<div id="ia-overlay" style="width:550px;">
				<a class="button" id="ia-close">Close</a>
			<p id="flashcontent">
 				You need the Flash Player plug-in to view this content.
			</p>

		</div>
		<script type="text/javascript">
				   var fo = new SWFObject("/wgbh/nova/assets/swf/1/clickable-croc/clickable-croc.swf", "flashcontent", "550", "520", "9", "");
				   fo.addParam("allowScriptAccess", "always");
				   				   PBS_enable_cdn(fo);
				   				   fo.addParam("base", ".");
				   fo.addParam("allowFullScreen","true");
				   fo.addParam("wmode","opaque");
				   				   fo.write("flashcontent");
		</script>

		
	</div>

	<div id="foot" class="foot">

		

		<div class="row inner-foot">

			<div id="sponsor-footer" class="large-8 columns">

				<div id="sponsor-stripe">
										<ul>
											</ul>
										<ul>
						
												<li><img src="/wgbh/nova/assets/img/1/koch_f.png" alt="the David H. Koch Fund for Science" /></li>
						
						
												<li><a href="http://www.cpb.org/" target="_blank"><img src="/wgbh/nova/assets/img/1/11.png" alt="the Corporation for Public Broadcasting" /></a></li>
						
											</ul>
					<p>National corporate funding for NOVA is provided by Draper.
					Major funding for NOVA is provided by the David H. Koch Fund for Science, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and PBS viewers. </p>

				</div>

				
			</div>

			

		</div>

		

	</div>

</div>
<script type="text/javascript" language="JavaScript" src="/wgbh/nova/js/vendor/custom.modernizr.js"></script>

    <script type="text/javascript" src="//use.typekit.net/qkp4hzg.js"></script>
    <script type="text/javascript">try{Typekit.load();}catch(e){}</script>

<script type="text/javascript">document.write(unescape('%3Cscript type="text/javascript" src="'+document.location.protocol+'//dnn506yrbagrg.cloudfront.net/pages/scripts/0011/0349.js"%3E%3C%2Fscript%3E'))</script>
</body>
</html>

<p>What makes this reptile such a fearsome predator? Explore the anatomy of a croc—from tail to teeth.</p>

Topic: Evolution

Hero Feature