Yacare caiman

Caiman yacare

The Yacare caiman is a species of caiman found in central South America, including northeastern Argentina, Uruguay, southeastern Peru, eastern Bolivia, central/southwest Brazil, and the rivers of Paraguay. About 10 million individual Yacare caimans exist within the Brazilian "pantanal", representing what is quite possibly the largest single crocodilian population on Earth.
Caiman beach 4 The beach of a small pond in the Pantanal is crowded with caiman. Brazil,Caiman,Caiman yacare,Pantanal,Reptiles,Yacare caiman

Appearance

As a medium to small to mid-sized crocodilian, most adult males grow to roughly 2 or 2.5 m in length, with the occasional 3 m individual individuals within the "pantanal" are yet to be verified). Females are rather smaller at an average of 1.4 m. Body mass in this species can range up to 58 kg in males and from 14 to 23 kg in females. Their relatively smaller size makes them a potential prey of the jaguar and anaconda.
Laughing caiman? Saw hundreds of these small crocodiles in the Pantanal.  This one obliged with a toothy grin!                                Caiman yacare,Yacare caiman

Food

This species' diet consists primarily of fish and birds, reptiles, small mammals. With the occasional large mammals being taken by larger adults. In general, due to their size, this species is not considered to be fatally dangerous to humans.

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Status: Unknown
EX EW CR EN VU NT LC
Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionChordata
ClassReptilia
OrderCrocodilia
FamilyAlligatoridae
GenusCaiman
SpeciesC. yacare
Photographed in
Brazil