Habitat And Lifestyle Of Caiman

The caiman (scientific name: Caiman crocodiles) is a reptile similar to the crocodile that inhabits the South and Central American continent, favoring the river and wetland areas, being able to live in both fresh and salt water. The males range between six to seven feet in length with the females reaching about five feet. One of the common names for the caiman is the spectacled caiman, resulting in the bony ridge between the eyes. Young caiman have yellow coloring with black spots and bands on both the body and tail, these disappear with age, turning a dark olive color as the crocodile ages.

The caiman is a large aquatic reptile found in the swamps and tropical rivers that cover Central and South America. Although the caimans have much narrower bodies, they are most closely related to alligators and crocodiles.

Caimans are found in a variety of habitats throughout Central and South America from marshes and swamps to mangrove rivers and lakes. As with other reptiles, caimans have scaly skin and live a fairly nocturnal existence.

Caimans range in size from the dwarf caiman which measures just over a meter in length, to the black caiman which can to grow to be nearly 5 meters long. The black caiman is the largest caiman species in the world and is found in the slow-moving rivers and lakes that surround the Amazon basin.

There are six different species of caiman found throughout the watery, jungle habitats of Central and Southern America. The average length for most of the other caiman species if about 2.5 meters long.
The caiman is a carnivorous predators and, like the alligator and the crocodile, the caiman has a diet that consists of a great deal of fish. The caiman also hunts insects, birds and small mammals and reptiles.

What They Eat:

The juvenile caiman eat insects, mollusks and small sea and water life such as crawfish and shrimp. The larger the caiman grows; it eats more small animals, birds and fish. Adult caiman feast on animals such as wild pigs and the meat eating piranha that inhabit the streams and rivers. Cannibalism has been observed when the climatic changes force changes in their food supply.

Habitat:

The wetland marshy areas and waterways are the places that the caiman lives in. This provides the concealment and nourishment for them to grow and thrive. The caiman rarely is found outside of the rainforest and wetlands area and their numbers can decline if threatened by drought.What They Eat:
The juvenile caiman eat insects, mollusks and small sea and water life such as crawfish and shrimp. The larger the caiman grows; it eats more small animals, birds and fish. Adult caiman feast on animals such as wild pigs and the meat eating piranha that inhabit the streams and rivers. Cannibalism has been observed when the climatic changes force changes in their food supply.

Breeding Habits:

The female caiman are ready to begin breeding when they reach roughly three and a half feet in size and are somewhere between four and seven years of age; the males mature when about four feet in length and about the same chronological age. The breeding season is begin at the start of the wet season, May to June and lasts until August. The social hierarchy determines the growth rate and chance to mate.

There are generally between fourteen and forty eggs laid in a nest made from a mound of vegetation and soil. The location of the nest is chosen to be hidden from the lizards that destroy the eggs. One nest may have eggs from several different females to increase survivability of the caiman. Once the eggs hatch nearly three months later, the supply of soft food is ready for them in the waters. The young caiman will stay close to the females for protection.

Due to the large size and ferocious nature of the caiman, it has few natural predators within its environment. Humans are the main predators of the caiman as they have been hunted for their meat and skin. Jaguars are the only other predator of the caiman.

Female caimans build a large nest in which to lay their eggs, which can be more than 1.5 meters wide. Female caimans lay between 10 and 50 eggs which hatch within about 6 weeks. Once they have hatched, the mother caiman takes her young to a shallow pool of water where they can learn how to hunt and swim.