Dwarf Caiman

Dwarf Caiman

scientific name

Paleosuchus palpebrosus

size

Length: males 4.9-5.2 ft, females 3.9 f

characteristics

Color: Skin heavily armored with bone on back and stomach, protection from predators and reduces injury in fast-flowing rivers and while walking on land • short smooth head with high skull and upturned snout, upper jaw overlaps lower jaw • juveniles brown with blank banding ,adults darker head chocolate brown • eye iris chocolate brown • lower jaw has white bands
Face: teeth 78-82 short backward curved

Behavior: burrows for long periods in day • travels over land at night • lives singly or in pairs

reproduction/life span

Nesting. females nest in mounds of vegetation and mud built concealed and under cover • clutch 10-25 eggs
Breeding season: not noted
Incubation: about 90 days
Hatchlings: hatchlings covered with slow-drying mucus • may not enter water until end of first day • mother may open nest and move young to water but no other care following hatching has been noted

diet

Wild: juvenile - small invertebrates • adults – fish, crabs, mollusks, shrimp, terrestrial invertebrates
Zoo:

habitat/range

Habitat: freshwater forest areas • flooded forests • prefers clean, faster flowing river areas
Range: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam, Venezuela

status

Cites II IUCN Low Risk

other

also called Cuvier’s dwarf caiman, Cuvier’s smooth fronted caiman, Cachirré, Jacaré pagua, Coea, Musky caiman

note

smallest living crocodilian species• threatened by habitat destruction and water pollution (from gold mining)