Crocodylia

Order of the class Reptilia that includes crocodiles, alligators, gavials, and caimans.

There are about 20 living species in three families. The Gavialidae family includes only the gavial, a fish-eating reptile found in India. The Alligatoridae family includes two living species of alligators and several caimans.The Crocodylidae family contains the true crocodiles, comprising rather less than a dozen species ranging over Africa, Asia, northern Australia, and tropical America. The Indian crocodile, known as the mugger and erroneously as the alligator, ranges over India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Malaysia. It is a freshwater variety inhabiting only rivers, lakes, and marshes, and in its characteristics most nearly approaches the caiman and the alligator.