Ecology Summary - Caiman crocodilus

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Ecology of Caiman crocodilus

Main Ref.	Schaller, G.B. and P.G. Crawshaw Jr., 1982
Remarks	Found in mangroves (Ref. 83945). In terms of frequency and bulk food items of this species are in this order: fish, snails, crabs and insects, with fish being the most important food item. Caimans wait for fish to be within snapping distance, using ambush rather than pursuit. They lay motionless in the shallows or on the bottom of ponds and lakes or floating on the surface with either their eyes and nostrils showing or their head completely under water (Ref. 80914).

Main Ref.

Schaller, G.B. and P.G. Crawshaw Jr., 1982

Remarks

Found in mangroves (Ref. 83945). In terms of frequency and bulk food items of this species are in this order: fish, snails, crabs and insects, with fish being the most important food item. Caimans wait for fish to be within snapping distance, using ambush rather than pursuit. They lay motionless in the shallows or on the bottom of ponds and lakes or floating on the surface with either their eyes and nostrils showing or their head completely under water (Ref. 80914).

Aquatic zones / Water bodies

	Marine - Neritic	Marine - Oceanic	Brackishwater	Freshwater
Marine zones / Brackish and freshwater bodies	supra-littoral zone littoral zone sublittoral zone	epipelagic mesopelagic epipelagic abyssopelagic hadopelagic	estuaries/lagoons/brackish seas mangroves marshes/swamps	rivers/streams lakes/ponds caves exclusively in caves

Highighted items on the list are where Caiman crocodilus may be found.

Habitat

Substrate	Benthic: demersal; Soft Bottom: mud;
Substrate Ref.	Schaller, G.B. and P.G. Crawshaw Jr., 1982
Special habitats
Special habitats Ref.

Associations

Ref.
Associations
Associated with
Association remarks
Parasitism

feeding

Feeding type	mainly animals (troph. 2.8 and up)
Feeding type Ref.	Schaller, G.B. and P.G. Crawshaw Jr., 1982
Feeding habit	hunting macrofauna (predator)
Feeding habit Ref.	Schaller, G.B. and P.G. Crawshaw Jr., 1982

Trophic Level(s)

Estimation method	original sample		unfished population		Remark
Estimation method	Troph	s.e.	Troph	s.e.	Remark
From diet composition
From individual food items	4.45	0.75			Trophic level estimated from a number of food items using a randomized resampling routine.
Ref.

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