Family Crocodylia
(Crocodiles)
Crocodylus acutus
- Common Name: American Crocodile
- Distribution: North, Central and South America
- Size: 5- 6m
- Diet: Primarily fish, also turtles, fish and crabs.
- Habitat: Both freshwater (including river, lakes and
reservoirs) and brackish coastal habitats (including tidal estuaries,
coastal lagoons and mangrove swamps)
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus cataphractus
- Common Name: Slender-snouted crocodile
- Distribution: Central and Western Africa
- Size: 2.5m
- Diet: Fish and small aquatic invertebrates.
- Habitat: Heavily forested rivers, also large lakes.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus intermedius
- Common Name: Orinoco Crocodile
- Distribution: South America
- Size: 5m (reports of individuals reaching 6-7m)
- Diet: Fish, invertebrates and vertebrates.
- Habitat: Freshwater riverine
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus johnstoni
- Common Name: Australian Freshwater Crocodile
- Distribution: Australia
- Size: Males 2.5-3m, Females 2.0- 2.1m
- Diet: Mainly fish.
- Habitat: Permanent freshwater areas such as lakes, billabongs
and swamps, plus less saline upstream areas of river systems and
creeks.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus moreletii
- Common Name: Morlet's Crocodile
- Distribution: Central America
- Size: < 3m
- Diet: snails, fish mammals, reptiles, some domesticated
animals.
- Habitat: Freshwater, including swamps and marshes in
forested areas. More recently found in brackish water around coastal
areas.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus mindorensis
- Common Name: Philippine Crocodile
- Distribution: Philippine
- Size: < 3m
- Diet: Aquatic invertebrates and small vertebrates.
- Habitat: freshwater bodies.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus niloticus
- Common Name: Nile Crocodile
- Distribution: Most of Africa and Madagascar.
- Size: 5m
- Diet: Anything they can catch including people.
- Habitat: Varied, very sucessful group.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus novaeguieae
- Common Name: New Guinea Crocodile
- Distribution: Papua New Guinea and Irian Jaya.
- Size: Males max. 3.5m, Females max. 2.7m.
- Diet: Fish, waterbirds and other vertebrates such as
amphibians and reptiles.
- Habitat: Found extensively in freshwater swamps, marshes
and lakes.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus palustris
- Common Name: Mugger.
- Distribution: Indian Subcontinent
- Size: 4- 5m
- Diet: Larger fish, amphibians, reptiles (mainly snakes
and possibly turtles), birds and mammals (e.g monkeys). Large
adults have been known to take deer and buffalo on occasions.
- Habitat: Freshwater rivers, lakes and marshes. Prefer
slow-moving, shallower areas.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus porosus
- Common Name: Saltwater Crocodile
- Distribution: SE Asia, Australia.
- Size: Generally upto 5m but recorded individuals of
6-7m long. Females < 2.5m.
- Diet: Anything they can catch.
- Habitat: Salt tolerant and can live in brackish water
around rivers and coastal areas. It is, however, also present
in freshwater rivers, billabongs and swamps.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus rhombifer
- Common Name: Cuban Crocodile
- Distribution: Cuba
- Size: 3.5m
- Diet: Mainly fish and chelonia, with the occasional
small mammal.
- Habitat: Freshwater swamp.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Crocodylus siamensis
- Common Name: Siamese Crocodile
- Distribution: SE Asia
- Size: 3- 4m
- Diet: Predominantly fish.
- Habitat: Poorly understood but probably slow-moving
areas of freshwater eg. swamps, sheltered parts of rivers and
streams.
- Fossil Record: The genus Crocodylus first appeared
in the Paleocene.
Osteolamus tetraspis
- Common Name: African Dwarf Crocodile
- Distribution: West and West-Central Africa.
- Size: Max recorded size of 1.9m
- Diet: Fish, amphibians, crustaceans, possibly other
terrestrial prey.
- Habitat: Permanent pools in swamps and areas of slow-moving
freshwater in rain forests.
- Fossil Record: The African Dwarf Crocodile is the only
modern crocodile which does not appear in the fossil record.
Tomistoma schlegelii
- Common Name: False Gharial
- Distribution: SE Asia
- Size: < 5m
- Diet: Elongated snout specialised for catching fish.
Is actually a generalist predator feeding on fish, insects, crustaceans
and mammals (Bezuijen pers comm.). It has been reported
in the past to take animals as large as macaque monkeys.
- Habitat: Freshwater lakes, rivers & swamps.
- Fossil Record: The genus Tomistoma has been known
from the Eocene.
