Iconic Crocodile Henry Celebrates 124th Birthday with Photoshoot

World’s Oldest Crocodile

The world’s old­est croc­o­dile, Hen­ry, has posed for a spe­cial pho­to­shoot as he cel­e­brates turn­ing 124 years old this year. 

The mas­sive Nile croc­o­dile, known for his six “girl­friends” and over 10,000 off­spring, is the main attrac­tion at the Croc­world Con­ser­va­tion Cen­tre in Scot­tburgh, South Africa.

Hen­ry was born on Decem­ber 16, 1900, in the Oka­van­go Delta in Botswana, a UNESCO World Her­itage Site. In the ear­ly 20th cen­tu­ry, he gained noto­ri­ety among local tribes for feast­ing on young chil­dren, until renowned British explor­er and hunter Sir Hen­ry Neu­mann cap­tured the beast and had it named after him.

Henry’s Impressive Stats

The 16-foot-long, 700kg croc­o­dile has now spent the last 30 years resid­ing at the Croc­world Con­ser­va­tion Cen­tre. While he may not be the largest croc­o­dile in the world (that title belongs to the 17-foot-long Cas­sius in Aus­tralia), Hen­ry is undis­put­ed­ly the oldest.

Through­out his long life, Hen­ry has fathered an astound­ing 10,000 hatch­lings and boasts six female com­pan­ions. Nile croc­o­diles are known for their car­ing parental nature, fero­cious­ly guard­ing their nests until the eggs hatch.

Nile Crocodiles and Conservation

Nile croc­o­diles are found across 26 coun­tries in Sub-Saha­ran Africa and are con­sid­ered apex preda­tors. They are esti­mat­ed to be respon­si­ble for around 200 human deaths per year, with the largest spec­i­mens reach­ing up to 20 feet in length and 1,650 pounds in weight.

From the 1940s to the 1960s, Nile croc­o­diles were hunt­ed close to extinc­tion, but their num­bers have since rebound­ed in most areas thanks to local and inter­na­tion­al pro­tec­tions. How­ev­er, in some regions, their pop­u­la­tions have been deplet­ed due to pol­lu­tion, hunt­ing, and habi­tat loss.