Reptile Cayman

Many people are confused about what is a reptile Cayman; some people think they are alligators or crocodiles. It is because Cayman bear a close resemblance to alligator and crocodile except for the bony scales on their bellies. Reptile Caymans are crocodilian. They are neither alligator nor crocodile. Crocodilians are of four types – crocodiles, alligator, Caymans and Gharials. Caymans are mostly found in south and Central America. Cayman are also spelled as caiman. Reptile caiman is a member of alligatoridae family.

Caymans are amphibious carnivores. They mostly reside along the edges of river and other bodies of water. The average length of caiman is 1.2 to 2.1 meters. The largest type of caiman is black caiman with a maximum length of about 4.5.metres.The maximum length of other caimans is about 2.7 meters.

Reptiles Caymans are of different types such as – Cuvier’s dwarf, yacare, spectacled, broad sanouted and black. The most common type of reptile Cayman is spectacled Cayman. They are known as spectacled caiman because they have ridge between their eyes. The different types of caimans are explained here.

Types of reptile Cayman:

• Cuvier’s dwarf caiman: Cuvier’s dwarf caimans are mostly found in freshwater forested rivers and mostly distributed in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru and Venezuela. It has very unusual head shapes. Its head is small, smooth and concave in looks with a distinct overlapping of the lower jaw by the upper.
• Yacare caiman: It is commonly known as Piranha caiman. They are mostly found in wetlands, rivers and lakes and mostly distributed in Argentine, Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay. This caiman has distinct characteristics they mostly like aquatic invertebrates in their food.
• Spectacled caiman: they are also known as common caiman. They are mostly found in lowland wetland and river. Generally they prefer still water area. They are mostly distributed in Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Puerto, Mexico, Tobago, United States, Nicaragua and Venezuela. They require good environment to reside as harsh environment will burrow them in mud to rest. They mostly eat variety of invertebrates such as insects, crustaceans, mollusks.
• Broad sanouted caiman: they are quiet aquatic type which is mostly found in marshes, mangroves and swamps and mostly distributed in Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay. They are also found in slow moving water in dense forest. They have great tolerance for colder conditions. They have dark colored skin which helps them to adopt more radiated heat. They mostly eat aquatic snails and can also eat wide range of invertebrates.
• Black caiman: Black caimans are mostly found in freshwater habitats such as – slow moving rivers, streams, lakes, wetlands and flooded savannahs in and mostly distributed in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru and Venezuela. They mostly look like to the American alligators and have black colorization.

The above mentioned types will help you to choose best reptile caiman for your home. It is significant for one to care and maintain their reptile caiman properly in order to maintain their longevity.