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American crocodile
American Crocodile in Jalisco, Mexico
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Sauropsida Order: Crocodilia Family: Crocodylidae Subfamily: Crocodylinae Genus: Crocodylus Species: C. acutus
Binomial name
Crocodylus acutus (Cuvier, 1807)

The American Crocodile is one of the four species of New World crocodile and the most wide-spread in range. It occurs from the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of southern Mexico and in South America as far as Peru and Venezuela. It also breeds on Cuba, Jamaica, and Hispaniola, and there is a remnant population of approximately 2,000 in Florida, United States. The population in the United States is restricted only to the very southern tip of Florida. The habitat of the American crocodile consists largely of freshwater or brackish water coastal habitats, and mangrove swamps. The American crocodile is larger than some other crocodile species, with males reaching lengths of roughly 5 meters (16.4 feet)^[1], but only 13 feet in Florida^[2]. Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1858x2323, 1877 KB) Summary Phylum : Chordata - Class : Reptilia - Order : Crocodilia - Species : Crocodylus acutus Crocodylus acutus, american crocodile, cocodrilo americano, crocodile d´Amérique, cocodrilo de rio, lagarto amarillo, american saltwater crocodile. ... Location within Mexico Country Capital Municipalities 126 Largest City Guadalajara Government  - Governor Emilio González Márquez (PAN)  - Federal Deputies PAN: 18 PRI: 1  - Federal Senators Eva Contreras (PAN) Héctor Pérez (PAN) Ramiro Hernández (PRI) Area Ranked 6th  - State 30,534. ... The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species remaining extant either in the present day or the near future. ... Image File history File links Status_iucn2. ... This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it. ... The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List and Red Data List), created in 1963, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species and can be found here. ... Scientific classification or biological classification refers to how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation). ... Typical Classes See below Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. ... Reptilia redirects here. ... black: range of Crocodilia Families Gavialidae Alligatoridae Crocodylidae Crocodilia is an order of large reptiles that appeared about 84 million years ago in the Late Cretaceous Period (Campanian stage). ... Genera Crocodylus Osteolaemus Tomistoma A crocodile can be any of the 14 species of large, water-loving reptiles in the family Crocodylidae (sometimes classified instead as the subfamily Crocodylinae). ... Genera Crocodylus Osteolaemus Tomistoma A crocodile can be any of the 14 species of large, water-loving reptiles in the family Crocodylidae (sometimes classified instead as the subfamily Crocodylinae). ... This article needs to be wikified. ... Latin name redirects here. ... Georges Cuvier Baron Georges Léopold Chrétien Frédéric Dagobert Cuvier (August 23, 1769–May 13, 1832) was a French naturalist and zoologist. ... Year 1807 (MDCCCVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar). ... Frontispiece of Peter Martyr dAnghieras De orbe novo (On the New World). Carte dAmérique, Guillaume Delisle, 1722. ... For other uses, see Crocodile (disambiguation). ... The Atlantic Ocean is Earths second-largest ocean, covering approximately one_fifth of its surface. ... For other meanings of Pacific, see Pacific (disambiguation). ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Early map of Hispaniola Hispaniola (from Spanish, La Española) is the second-largest and most populous island of the Antilles, lying between the islands of Cuba to the west, and Puerto Rico to the east. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Florida. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Florida. ... Above and below water view at the edge of the mangal. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Florida. ...

Physical characteristics

Like all crocodiles, the American Crocodile is a quadruped, with four short, splayed legs; a long, powerful tail; a scaly hide with rows of ossified scutes running down its back and tail; and a strong pair of jaws. It has nictitating membranes to protect its eyes, and it does have lachyrmal glands, and can cleanse its eyes with tears. The Zebra is an example of a quadruped. ... Diagram of an insect leg A leg is the part of an animals body that supports the rest of the animal above the ground and is used for locomotion. ... A scorpion tail The tail is the section at the rear end of an animals body; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. ... In this SEM image of a butterfly wing the scales are clearly visible, and the tiny platelets on each individual scale are just barely visible in the striping. ... A scute (Latin scutum, shield) is a horny, chitinous, or bony external plate or scale, as on the shell of a turtle or the underside of a snake. ... Human jaw front view Human jaw left view Human jaw top view The jaw is either of the two opposable structures forming, or near the entrance to, the mouth. ... Many species of land animals have a nictitating membrane, which can move across the eyeball to give the sensitive eye structures additional protection in particular circumstances. ... Tears trickling down the cheeks Lacrimation is the bodys process of producing tears, which are a liquid to clean and lubricate the eyes. ...

The nostrils, eyes, and ears are situated on the top of its head, so the rest of the body can remain concealed underwater. Cryptic coloration also helps them prey on food. A nostril is one of the two channels of the nose, from the point where they bifurcate to the external opening. ... For other uses, see Eye (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Ear (disambiguation). ... Cryptic coloration is a type of camouflage that makes potential prey difficult to spot against its background. ...

An American Crocodile on Sanibel Island in Florida.

American crocodiles normally crawl along on their belly, but they can also "high walk". Smaller specimens can gallop, and even larger crocodiles are capable of surprising bursts of speed. They can swim equally fast by moving their body and tail in a sinuous fashion, but they cannot sustain this form of movement for an extended period. Ding Darling reserve, Sanibel Island, Florida, with an American Crocodile. ... Ding Darling reserve, Sanibel Island, Florida, with an American Crocodile. ... J. N. Ding Darling reserve Sanibel Island is an island located on the Gulf coast of Florida, just offshore of Fort Myers. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Florida. ... Horse gaits are the different ways in which a horse can move, either naturally or as a result of specialized training by humans. ... This article is about swimming in animals. ...

Crocodiles have a four-chambered heart, like a bird, which is especially efficient at oxygenating their blood. American crocodiles normally submerge for only a couple of minutes, but can stay underwater for up to 30 minutes if threatened and if they remain inactive they can hold their breath for up to 2 hours.^{[citation needed]} They have an ectothermic metabolism, so they can persist for great periods between meals. When they do eat, the American crocodile can eat up to half their body weight at a time.^{[citation needed]} The heart and lungs, from an older edition of Grays Anatomy. ... For other uses, see Bird (disambiguation). ... Cold-blooded organisms, more technically known as poikilothermic, are animals that have no internal metabolic mechanism for regulating their body temperatures. ...

Due to hide hunting, pollution, loss of habitat, and removal of adults for commercial farming, the American Crocodile is endangered in parts of its range. An endangered species is a species whose population is so small that it is in danger of becoming extinct. ...

This species can be dangerous to humans–--as attacks in areas such as Costa Rica, Mexico and Guatemala are not uncommon. These attacks rarely make international news, and therefore this species is not as well-documented a man-eater as its Nile or Saltwater relatives. In May of 2007, there were two separate instances within one week of children being attacked and killed by this species. One in Mexico just south of Puerto Vallarta [1] and one in Costa Rica [2].

Differentiation from American alligators

Main article: Crocodiles#Differentiation_from_alligators

While alligators are often confused with crocodiles, they belong to two quite separate taxonomic families, and are as distinct from one another as humans are from gorillas. As for appearance, one generally reliable rule is that alligators have U-shaped heads, while crocodiles are V-shaped (which can be remembered by noting that "A" in alligator comes before "C" in crocodile in the alphabet, and "U" comes before "V"). Also, if one compares the snout of the two species, only the upper teeth are visible when an alligator's mouth is closed, while a crocodile's mouth will reveal both lower and upper teeth.^{[citation needed]} Genera Crocodylus Osteolaemus Tomistoma A crocodile can be any of the 14 species of large, water-loving reptiles in the family Crocodylidae (sometimes classified instead as the subfamily Crocodylinae). ... This article refers to the large reptile. ... A snout is the protruding portion of an animals face, consisting of its nose, mouth, and jaw. ...

Habitat

This species prefers habitat similar to that of the Saltwater crocodile of Southeast Asia and Australia. River mouths, brackish waters, salt lakes (specifically, Lake Enriquillo, in the Dominican Republic), and can even be found at sea (hence its wide distribution in the Caribbean). Lake Enriquillo from space, Northeast to Southwest, September 1993 Lake Enriquillo (located at 18°30′N 71°35′W) is the only saltwater lake in the world inhabited by crocodiles. ...

Population

The American crocodile is a vulnerable species. It has an estimated wild population of 500 to 1200 in South Florida[3]. On March 20, 2007 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declassified the American crocodile as an endangered species, downgrading its status to 'threatened'; the reptile remains protected from illegal harassing, poaching or killing under the federal Endangered Species Act. ^[3] One thousand to 2,000 American crocodiles exist in Mexico, Central and South America.^{[citation needed]}

References

1. ^ American crocodile factsheet
2. ^ <http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/american-crocodile.html?nav=A-Z>
3. ^ American Crocodile No Longer Near Extinction. March 21, 2007.

• Crocodile Specialist Group (1996). Crocodylus acutus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Listed as Vulnerable (VU A1ac v2.3)

is the 80th day of the year (81st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (also known as the IUCN Red List and Red Data List), created in 1963, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species and can be found here. ... The World Conservation Union or International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) is an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation. ...

External links

Wikispecies has information related to:

Crocodylus acutus

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Crocodylus acutus

• ARKive images and movies of the American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus)
• University of Florida's crocodile research in Southwest Florida
• National Parks Conservation Association