The Orinoco crocodile (Crocodylus intermedius), is a critically endangered crocodile. Its population is very small, estimated at only 547 in the wild and it can only be found in freshwater environments in Colombia and Venezuela of northern South America, in particular the Orinoco River and its tributaries. Extensively hunted for their skins in the 19th and 20th centuries, this species is one of the most critically endangered species of extant crocodiles. It is a very large species, in fact the largest species of crocodilian and predator in the Americas. Males have been reported up to 6.6 m (22 ft) in the past but such sizes do not exist today, 5.2 m (17 ft) being a more widely accepted maximum size. Males average at 4.1 m (13 ft) in length weighing 380 kg (840 lb), while females are slightly smaller averaging at 225 kg (500 lb). Sexual dimorphism isn't as profound as in some other species. The coloration is light even in adults.
The Orinoco crocodile is highly endangered due to excessive hunting for its hide. During the 1940s to the 1960s, literally thousands of these animals were slaughtered in the Orinoco River and the Llanos wetlands, and the species came very close to extinction. The Orinoco crocodile was given protected status in the 1970s but has yet to recover successfully. Today it is protected both in Venezuela and Colombia, and also included on Appendix I by CITES. In addition to hunting for its hide, more recent threats also include the collection of juveniles for sale in the live animal trade, pollution, and the proposal of a dam in the upper Orinoco River region. Another problem is the increased population of Spectacled caimans, a smaller crocodilian that can outcompete the Orinoco crocodile for fish due to its much larger population and much more accelerated breeding rates.
