In the damp warmth of a crocodile’s egg, something extraordinary unfolds. The tiny embryo’s face begins to ripple and fold in a pattern that will become the fearsome array of scales we recognize on a ...

Many animals get their external marking—like, feathers, hair or scales-from genetics. But it turns out, the crocodile gets its head patterns differently. Scientists normally explain the spectacular ...

Scientists normally explain the spectacular diversity of animal patterns by pointing to genetics. But a study in Nature suggests that, at least for crocodile heads, different forces might be at play.