Blood-curdling footage reveals how crocodiles’ tails propel them out of water for food

Crocodiles are the world's best hunting animals, and you're about to see why. Terrifying footage shows one of the gigantic reptiles standing vertically on his tail as he lunges for a hunk of meat being dangled above it.

A piece of meat is hanging above the head of a crocodile filmed at the Adelaide River in Northern Territory, Australia. Soon it will be gone in a graceful spiral that is both mesmerizing and frightening – and is probably enough to keep most people away from the Adelaide River for a very long time.

“Crocodiles have incredibly strong tails. Their tails propel them in the water like torpedoes from a submarine. In fact, as you see here, their tails are so strong that they can propel their entire body out of the water,” wrote photographer Trevor Frost, who filmed the video and posted it to Instagram. The footage was taken while Frost was on assignment for Science Magazine.

Although the crocodile's impressive tail action is seen on the video, its first attempt is a failure, as someone moves the meat higher once it begins to lunge. But we're going to assume it finally got what it wanted – because who wants to mess with a crocodile that apparently has no trouble coming out of the water on a whim?