In Grave Danger: A Brief Environmental History of the Cuban Crocodile (Crocodylus rhombifer)

摘要

Faunal extinctions in the Cuban archipelago preceded the first human inhabitants. According to paleontological studies, many species that existed during the Pleistocene perished as a result of glacial melting following the so-called Ice Age. Among the survivors of this massive extinction are two Crocodylidae: the Cuban crocodile (Crocodylus rhombifer), whose ancestor arrived more than 1.5 million years ago; and the American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus), with fewer than thirty-five thousand years of presence.