Cuvier's Dwarf Caiman
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| Cuvier's Dwarf Caiman | ||||||||||||||
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| Paleosuchus palpebrosus (Cuvier, 1807) |
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The Cuvier's Dwarf Caiman (Paleosuchus palpebrosus) is a crocodilian reptile from northern South America. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam and Venezuela. It lives primarily near fast stretches of stream, but also lives in nutrient-deficient waters.
It is also the smallest species of the alligatoridae family reaching up to 1.5 meters of length. Juvenile dwarf caimans eat invertebrates, while adult caimans eat both fish and invertebrates. It uses burrows as shelter during the day, and lays eggs on a mounded nest which hatch in about three months.
