Over 65,000,000 years ago, the dinosaurs populations were devastated, but some survived; the crocodilians. Now many crocodile species are endangered or on the brink of extinction. Once, crocodiles ancestors were almost 40 feet in length and up to 8 tonnes. The Orinoco crocodiles are descendants of those prehistoric monsters, but are facing a similar situation now.
(This photo is from the Newport Aquarium)
In the wild, between 250-1000 Orinoco crocodiles exist. They are the largest predators found in South America, having once grown up to 23 feet. Over hunting and habitat loss has caused a drastic decline in these once numerous animals. Due to all of these impacts, the IUCN Redlist has listed them as critically endangered. One reason for this is because of an extreme lack of information on this species, the last time that it was updated on IUCN was the late 1990's.
Between 1930 and the mid 1960, hunters almost caused these crocodiles to become extinct. By the time that they decided that these reptiles needed to be protected, so few were in the wild that many of the ones found had once been in captivity. Many efforts have been made to release these crocodiles back into their habitats, and most have been successful. In some recent surveys it was predicted that there are are 180 individuals in Colombia, down from almost 800 in 1974-1975.
Found mainly in Columbia and Venezuela, Orinocos are found in terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems due to being cold blooded and basking most of the time. Their common ecosystem is called freshwater riverine which is on the Orinoco river which has seasonal floods and droughts. Being ambush predators, they do not move much unless they need to eat. This is why whenever you see an alligator or crocodile at a zoo or aquarium, they barely move.
During droughts these crocs can burrow into the mud or find deeper water somewhere else. On rare occasions these crocodiles have been found over 150 miles away on Trinidad. This not only says that the can travel very long distances either on their own, due to a storm, or floating on debris, but that they can also tolerate some degree of salt water.
This is a young Orinoco found near the shore. These banks are at the perfect consistency between January and February, and the females will dig a hole for her eggs. Laying and hatching goes along with the dry and wet seasons, so they incubate for around 70 days. For the following 1 to 3 years the mother will protect her young. The only problem with the eggs is that some species prey on the eggs, which lowers their chances for survival.
This is just a quick reminder to the difference between crocodiles and alligators. The above drawing is of an Orinoco crocodiles head. Crocodiles have a very thin snout with teeth protruding from the sides of its jaws from the top and the bottom. Alligators have a thick snout with only teeth from the top of their jaw protruding from their mouth.
These crocodiles are the largest predator in South America which means that they have a very important role in the surrounding ecosystems. They eat smaller fish and invertebrates when young but as larger adults will eat most things that come too close to the edge of the water. Though there have not been any definitive attacks on humans, these instances must be very rare due to the rarity of this reptile.
Crocodile skin is an item of luxury in many countries, used for boots and bags or whatever else someone can think of. This is a problem for the Orinocos because they are so rare now. One way to help this species is to NEVER buy any type of crocodile skin unless it is from a species that is not endangered if you need to. Also avoiding shops that sell any type of crocodile skin will slow the rate of at least one place which can make a big difference in the end. With so few individuals in the wild, this poaching and hunting just for skin needs to stop for the sake of the crocodiles.
There is conservation and there are other projects going on which are raising money to help protect their habitats and promote the protection of the species. Orinoco crocodiles are a keystone species which are vital to the health and balance of the ecosystem they thrive in. Other ways to help these crocodiles is to try and avoid paper and wood products that use trees from forests in South America. We can help save this species, or watch them die and have their ecosystem fail at our hands.
