Research
and Publications
This page highlights the Foundation's ongoing scientific work focused on mugger crocodile conservation, ecology, and behavior.
Through peer-reviewed research papers, field observations, and conservation articles, the Foundation contributes to advancing knowledge on crocodile biology, stress physiology, habitat monitoring, reproductive behavior, and population conservation across India and neighboring regions. The page also showcases novel observations and emerging conservation concerns, reflecting the Foundation's commitment to evidence-based wildlife research and long-term ecological stewardship.
We have had the privilege to discover ground-breaking new discoveries through our research and conservation activities.
Articles & Notes
First record of galloping in a free-ranging adult mugger crocodile
Crocodylus palustris
The Herpetological Bulletin 176, 2026: 45-46
Dax Pandhi, Brinky Desai
DOI
Status of Crocodylus palustris in Kutch District, Gujarat, India
Crocodile Specialist Group Newsletter 41(2): 4-8
Dax Pandhi, Parvez Ansari, Himani Shah
Conservation status of the mugger
(Crocodylus palustris): Establishing a working group for a poster species of climate change
Crocodile Specialist Group Newsletter 41(2): 4-8
Asghar Mobaraki, Lonnie McCaskill, Ulrich Schepp,Elham Abtin, Rafaqat Masroor, Dax Pandhi, Brinky Desai,Soham Muckerjee, Tahir Rasheed, Shoaib Abdul Razzaque, Anslem de Silva, Colin Stevenson, Anna Rauhaus, Minh
D. Le, Dennis Rödder and Thomas Ziegler
Research Papers
Identification of free-ranging mugger crocodiles by applying deep learning methods on UAV imagery
Brinky Desai, Arpitkumar Patel, Vaishwi Patel, Supan Shah, Mehul S. Raval, Ratna Ghosal
Investigating reproductive biology of female mugger crocodiles (Crocodylus palustris) by using behaviour and endocrine measures
Brinky Desai, Tathagata Bhowmik, Aditya Wadekar, Urjit Bhatt, Ratna Ghosal
Monitoring the stress physiology of free-ranging mugger crocodiles (Crocodylus palustris) across diverse habitats within Central Gujarat, India
Brinky Desai, Tathagatha Bhowmik, Rohith Srinivasan, Nikhil Whitaker, Ratna Ghosal
Anecdotal observations of ‘double clutching' behaviour in captive Mugger crocodiles (Crocodylus palustris)
Brinky Desai, Soham Mukherjee, Nikhil Whitaker, Ratna Ghosal
Nuchal scalation patterns in
Iranian Mugger crocodiles point to an overlooked conservation unit
Journal of Wildlife and Biology
Malihe Erfani, Elham Abtin, Asghar Mobaraki, Haji Gholi Kami, Dax Pandhi, Colin Stevenson, Thomas Ziegler, Dennis Rödder, Anslem De Silva, Nikhil Whitaker, Minh D. Le, Dinal Samarasinghe, Anirudh Vasava, Suranjan
Karunarathna
DOI
Join the adventure
Researchers
We are looking for like-minded people in the fields of herpetology, zoology, and paleontology - who are interested in collaborating with the DesertCrocs project, and beyond. You will get to work with a team of specialists with decades of experience under their belt, and have access to cutting edge technologies.
Students
Are you an undergraduate or postgraduate student? You can gain valuable work experience in the field by joining our projects on a short-term basis. Get in touch with us for details.