TRUTNAU, L. (1994)
Krokodile: Alligatoren, Kaimane, echte Krokodile und Gaviale.
Die Neue Brehm Bücherei Bd. 593.
Westarp Wissenschaften Magdeburg. isbn 3-89432-420-1
Verlagstext:
Nur wenige Menschen wissen, daß die heute noch lebenden Krokodile enger mit den ausgestorbenen Dinosauriern oder den Vögeln verwandt sind als mit anderen Reptiliengruppen. Ihre isolierte Stellung ist durch viele Besonderheiten in der Biologie gekennzeichnet. Von den 22 noch lebenden Krokodilarten sind 21 in ihrer Existenz bedroht*. Die Verwendung ihrer Häute als überflüssige Lederwaren, die Zerstörung der Lebensräume und die Jagd auf sie als vermeintlich gefährliche Konkurrenten um Nahrung und Raum haben zu dieser dramatischen Situation geführt. Auf der anderen Seite werden Farmen errichtet, um die kommerziellen Interessen zu steuern und die Wildbestände zu schonen. Der Verfasser greift diese Themenvielfalt auf. Er beschreibt in einem allgemeinen Teil auf der Grundlage der Biologie der Tiere diese Gegensätze und behandelt auch Fragen zu Haltung und Nachzucht. In einem speziellen Teil werden alle Arten mit Abbildungen und Verbreitungskarten vorgestellt. Angaben zu Färbung und Aussehen, Verbreitung und Lebensraum sowie zur Ökologie runden diese Besprechungen ab.
* NB: Das trifft heute nicht mehr zu!
CAMPOS, Z., LLOBET, A., PIÑA, C.I. & MAGNUSSON, W.E. (2010)
Yacare Caiman - Caiman yacare.
In: Crocodiles.Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan: 23-28.
Third Edition, ed. by S.C. Manolis and C. Stevenson. Crocodile Specialist Group: Darwin
Aus dem Inhalt:
The Yacare caiman is found in the lowlands of northern and eastern Bolivia and western Brazil, from the Amazon southwards through the Guaporé/Madeira and Paraguay/Paraná River systems and into northern Argentina. Morphologically and ecologically, this species is similar to
the common caiman (Caiman crocodilus crocodilus), and integrates with that subspecies along a large area (probably more than 1000 km) of the Madeira River in Amazonia. As with the common caiman, C. yacare is found in a wide spectrum of habitat types. Most ecological studies have been carried out in the Pantanal region of southern Brazil.
Resolution of the systematic relationships within the very widespread C. crocodilus complex is needed. Extensive surveys and specimen collection in southern Brazil, northern Bolivia and Paraguay suggest a ery complex gradient of morphological features between C. c. crocodilus and the C. yacare. As there are no fixed differences between the two taxa, they have to be defined geographically, rather than morphologically, which obviously poses legal difficulties if an individual crosses the hypothetical line and changes “species”.
Morphological and genetic analyses to resolve the relationships between these taxa are incomplete and inconclusive, mainly because data from the zone of hybridization between the two taxa was not included.
Caiman yacare is still, and always has been, listed technically as a full species. Some authors do not recognize it as being distinct from the common caiman and use the subspecies C. c. yacare. Recent molecular data provide evidence for long-term biological separation of large populations of caimans in Central and South America.
WIDHOLZER, F.L., BORNE, B. & TESCHE, T. (1986)
Breeding the Broad-nosed caiman, Caiman latirostris, in captivity.
Int. Zoo Yearb. 24/25: 226-230. ISSN 0074-9664.
Conclusions:
From our observations, Broad-nosed caimans are easily bred in captivity as long as adequate materials for nest building are provided together with a relatively secluded area close to a reasonably large body of water. Co-operative nest building commences some days before the start of mating, which takes place under water, and eggs are laid just over a month later; incubation has been found to last 70 days. There appear to be four well-defined phases in the behaviour of the adults during incubation an rearing:
- although both adults build the nest, the male plays no part in guarding it and ignores or avoids the female who becomes increasingly aggressive;
- when the young hatch, only the female carries them to the water where they are guarded by the male; either adult will attack anything, apart from their own young, which approaches too closely;
- both adults watch the neonates which do not move far from the nest site, and protect them for several months;
- once a new clutch has hatched the adults lose all interest in the previous year's young, although they are never aggressive towards them.
widholzer-biblio