Crocodylus novaeguineae

New Guinea crocodile ( Crocodylus Kookaburra )

The New Guinea crocodile ( Crocodylus Kookaburra ) is a kind of genuine crocodile ( Crocodylidae ).

Features

The New Guinea crocodile is very similar to the closely related Australian crocodile ( Crocodylus johnsoni ) and how this a pointed snout, which is somewhat less long and less pointed. The body is brown, orange colored, the tail with dark brown to black stripe is drawn. It is up to 3 meters long and is one of the smaller species.

Dissemination

The New Guinea crocodile actually lives only in New Guinea. It lives mainly in the fresh waters of the island, so the rivers, lakes and swamps in the interior. It is seldom found in brackish water, where rather the saltwater crocodile ( Crocodylus porosus ) is staying. Through genetic analysis, it was found that there are two genetically separated populations of the crocodile, which are spatially separated by the mountain ranges in the center of the island. For this reason, one speaks today of a north coast population in the area of ​​the Sepik and a south coast or Papua population in the south and on the peninsula Jazirah Doberai in the east.

Way of life

The New Guinea crocodile is investigated much specialized his diet and eats what it can catch. Here, a range of prey was determined in gastric analysis, which ranges from insects, amphibians, snakes and fish to water birds and small mammals.

For reproduction time a hill nest from plant materials is built, in which the eggs are deposited. Eggs are laid in the north during the dry season, in the South during the wet season. In both populations, a guard of the nest takes place among representatives in the south could be both male and female crocodiles when you open the nests and the transport of young crocodiles watching the water.