For several years now, there have been many disputes as to which animal has the strongest bite force in the animal kingdom. Out of all the proposed animals, I am convinced that the Nile crocodile outclasses every other animal that has been recorded so far in terms of bite force, and after reading this post, I am sure you will be a firm believer as well.
Reason(s):
(A): According to two highly reputable films from National Geographic, the Nile crocodile's paramount status as the world's most powerful biter is acknowledged and defended with anatomical evidence by world-class experts.
(B): As a result of testing wild Nile Crocodiles, Dr. Brady Barr discovered that a wild, unrestrained adult male Nile crocodile is capable of exerting a bite force of at least 5,000 lbs (22,272.72727 N), the highest reading of any living animal so far.
Explanation: The two shows I was referring to in (A) were "Inside Nature's Giants" and "Ultimate Crocodile." In both films renown experts like Dr. Greg Erickson and Dr. Adam Britton make it very clear that the crocodile is undoubtedly the hardest biting animal so far recorded. Unfortunately the only film I was able to upload completely was "Inside Nature's Giants," however the rest of "Ultimate Crocodile" will be up soon. Continuing on, the videos below will explain why I assert (A) and (B) more fully.
Counterarguments: Even though, I could argue against more counterarguments, I will only do so against the most controversial argument I could find, the Great white shark. The reason I am discarding the arguments of the other animals that people consider candidates for the title is simply because the arguments fail conceptually; either you realize that a Spotted hyena with a bite force of 1,000 lbs. or an American alligator with a bite force of 3,000 lbs. is not capable of biting harder than a Nile crocodile with a bite force of 5,000 lbs. or not.
In the case of the Great white shark, it is by no means competition in this race for biomechanical supremacy. According to Dr. Stephen Wroe of UNSW in his peer-reviewed article from the Journal of Zoology " Three-dimensional computer analysis of white shark jaw mechanics: how hard can a great white bite ?" the Great white shark has a bite force of 18, 216 Newtons or approximately 4,000 pounds (Wroe 340); by the way this document can be accessed and downloaded for free at the following site: http://unsw.academia.edu/StephenWroe/Papers/177703/Three-dimensional_computer_analysis_of_white_shark_jaw_mechanics_how_hard_can_a_great_white_bite. Furthermore in an interview regarding this experiment, Dr. Wroe claims that the Great white shark is the most powerful biter in the world because of is size: "Pound for pound the great whites' bite is not particularly impressive, but the sheer size of the animal means that in absolute terms it tops the scales (http://www.science.unsw.edu.au/news/great-white-s-mighty-bite-revealed/)." According to the aforementioned article, "sheer size" should be taken to mean 7,300 lbs. (Wroe 338). Based on my research, most experts agree the maximal weight for a Great white shark is 4,200 lbs., and anything higher than that is considered unreliable [http://dsc.discovery.com/sharks/largest-great-white-shark.html , http://www.elasmo-research.org/education/white_shark/overview.htm ] At this point, Dr. Wroe's argument is beginning to break down: Here Dr. Wroe is committing a logical fallacy, namely he is begging the question. Basically it makes no logical sense for him to argue that the Great white shark in question would make the species "top the scale" since there is no possible way to adequately support his argument because most experts find no validity in his Great white shark weight figure; in addition since this weight figure is perceived to be dubious to most experts and therefore unreliable, the bite force associated with the weight figure is consequently terribly exaggerated, and the maximal bite force that most experts would agree with for a 4,200 lb. Great white shark would be substantially smaller. Lastly, Wroe's argument fails conceptually -- as is the case with so many others-- in light of Dr. Brady Barr's 5,000-lb. bite force figure.
Final Thoughts: After reading this argument, I hope that you are convinced that the Nile crocodile is the uncontested forerunner for bite force, at the moment. The main reason I decided to post this topic first is because of all of the misinformation I have seen circulating around on randomly visited blogs and on the channels of Youtubers Further to add, I wanted to make a few people take note of the fact that Wroe's argument is based off of obsolete information. For those who may choose to argue against me, I have no problem with you disagreeing with me, and I won't disrespect you whatsoever; nonetheless when you decided to leave a comment, I ask for the same treatment. Furthermore if you decide to argue against me, please leave source information. Please leave your comments below and thanks for reading my post at Integral Discovery.
