Oh snap!
As the saying goes, you should never smile at a crocodile, but we will let you off just this once as we have some top news to share!
A captive-bred female Siamese crocodile was released into the wild in 2018 and has just nested in Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains.
That means the potential for the species to make a recovery and for us to see some baby crocodiles are suddenly high!
This is fantastic news - not only is it proof that this critically endangered species can survive in the wild but proof that they are ready to breed! This is ground-breaking, especially considering their species was thought to be extinct in the wild until an expedition led by Fauna & Flora International (FFI) rediscovered them 20 years ago.
But the story is far from over.
Sadly, there won’t be any cute baby crocodiles hatching from this particular clutch. Although the female successfully created a nest and laid at least ten eggs, these were, unfortunately, not fertilised. Males are needed to fertilise the eggs, but due to the species’ low overall numbers in the wild, which is around 250 adults, it is possible that males and females don’t often cross paths.
With your help, we need to continue our work with local communities to safeguard the crocodiles’ habitat and ensure that this charismatic species has the best chance of survival in the long term. Let’s give them the best chance to have some tiny webbed feet pattering around soon!
Please help these crocodiles grow their population. If everyone reading this donates just £3, you could help our work with local communities living in the Cardamom Mountains to protect and augment the wild population of these cute crocs.
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