saltie

noun

1. (Australia, informal)A saltwater crocodile.

   “1998, Romulus Whitaker, Zai Whitaker, Crocodile Fever: Wildlife Adventures in New Guinea, Orient Longman, India, page 8, ‘Salties’ typically live in and around the coastal mangroves but are not uncommon hundreds of kilometres inland. A saltie grows to around seven metres in length and is the main Asian crocodile responsible for attacks on humans.”

   “They like to spend their time in freshwater rivers in coastal waters. Saltwater crocodiles are fiercely territorial and fully mature male salties force younger and smaller salties into the ocean where they have to search for river systems.”

   “It is feared by those who live near it. For its part, the saltie fears nothing — except a larger crocodile.”

   “For their part, the others had been earnestly pointing out that there were in fact two types of crocodiles, saltwater and freshwater, and that only the salties were dangerous.”

2. (Canada, US)An ocean-going ship that enters the Great Lakes via the St. Lawrence Seaway.

   “Ah, but when will the first oceangoing boat arrive [in Duluth, Minnesota]? . . . In 2015, the first saltie to arrive was the Malta-flagged Kom, which arrived April 13 with a Bulgarian crew to load durum wheat headed for Italy.”

3. The saltwater fluke or dab.