Bumpy crocodile

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Bumpy crocodile
Morelets.crocodile.arp.jpg

Bumpy crocodile ( Crocodylus moreletii )

Systematics
without rank: Sauropsida
without rank: Archosauria
Order : Crocodiles (crocodylia)
Family : Real crocodiles (Crocodylidae)
Genre : Crocodylus
Type : Bumpy crocodile
Scientific name
Crocodylus moreletii
Duméril & Bibron , 1851

The bumpy crocodile ( Crocodylus moreletii ) is a Central American member of the real crocodile family . His scientific name honors the French naturalist Pierre Marie Arthur Morelet (1809-1892).

features

The bumpy crocodile is a maximum of three to 3.50 meters long and is therefore one of the smaller crocodile species. It is mostly brown and marked by black horizontal stripes and spots on the body and tail. It is usually darker than the sympatric occurring American crocodile ( Crocodylus acutus ). The snout of the animals is relatively wide and has a flat ridge along the nasal bones . The namesake for the German name are the powerful ossified neck shields of the animals, the back armor is unevenly scaled.

distribution

distribution

The distribution area of ​​the bumpy crocodile is limited to Central America and extends from central Tamaulipas ( Mexico ) over the Yucatán peninsula and Chiapas to central Belize and the Peten region in northern Guatemala . It lives mainly in swamps and smaller ponds and lakes in fresh water , but can also occur in the coastal areas of the rivers together with the American crocodile. It's a quick hunter.

Way of life

Bumpy crocodiles lay their eggs in mound nests and guard them. The mothers have also been observed to open the nests and carry the young to the water.

Young bumpy crocodile in Schönbrunn

The young animals mainly feed on insects , slugs and other small animals. Adult bumpy crocodiles also hunt mud turtles , fish, and small mammals .

literature

  • Charles A. Ross (Ed.): Crocodiles and Alligators - Development, Biology and Distribution , Orbis Verlag Niedernhausen 2002
  • Joachim Brock: Crocodiles - A life with armored lizards , Natur und Tier Verlag Münster 1998

Web links

Commons : Crocodylus moreletii  - Collection of images, videos and audio files