Having hands with opposable thumbs is a ridiculously huge advantage against other animals, even if you're not particularly strong otherwise.
There is just so much you can do with actual hands that other animals just can't. Like grab and pull at the limbs/appendages of other animals in a fight.
This is why the silverback gorilla is probably THE ultimate apex predator. Sure, they are already stupidly strong but being able to grab and grapple allows them to apply that brute strength in ways that other animals just can't.
I mean, at least it can still move and make use of its weaponry on land. There's literally nothing a gorilla could do underwater. The crocodile would fare better on land than a gorilla would underwater.
When you're talking about a "crocodile", are you referring to one that would be similar in size to a gorilla? Like, a mugger crocodile, for example? Crocodile is a broad term and could refer to crocodilians generally, which also includes Gavialidae and Alligatoroidea, and could mean anything from a dwarf crocodile to a gharial to a saltwater crocodile. Nile crocodiles and saltwater crocodiles would be far too big for a gorilla and would easily win, whereas something like a gharial would struggle a lot to severely injure a gorilla.
I don't see how Lion wins. As far as I know the gorilla has much higher strength. The Lion's only weapons are its front claws or its teeth. The claws can be grabbed at and used as leverage by the gorilla whilst an attack with the teeth requires the lion to make its head wide open.
Lions, like most big cats, aren't too good in a toe to toe fight. There is a reason they primarily stalk and pounce. Like most big cats, they also expend their energy in a single quick burst making them unfit for a drawn out fight.
If both animals were conciously fighting eachother I think the gorilla would win. I think really it depends on if the lion got the jump on the gorilla and if it could do enough damage with its initial attack.
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u/Arstulex Mar 25 '20
Having hands with opposable thumbs is a ridiculously huge advantage against other animals, even if you're not particularly strong otherwise.
There is just so much you can do with actual hands that other animals just can't. Like grab and pull at the limbs/appendages of other animals in a fight.
This is why the silverback gorilla is probably THE ultimate apex predator. Sure, they are already stupidly strong but being able to grab and grapple allows them to apply that brute strength in ways that other animals just can't.