Adult Siamese Crocodile
Siamese
Crocodile (Crocodylus siamensis) is a freshwater crocodile native to Indonesia (Borneo and possibly Java), Brunei, East Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, Burma, Thailand, and Vietnam.
The species is critically endangered and already extirpated from many regions. Its other common names include: Siamese freshwater crocodile, Singapore small-grain, cocodrilo de Siam, crocodile du Siam, buaja, buaya kodok, jara kaenumchued, and soft-belly.
The historic range of the Siamese
crocodile included most of Southeast Asia. This species is now extinct in the wild or nearly extinct from most countries except Cambodia. Formerly it was found in Cambodia, Indonesia (Borneo and possibly Java), Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei, and Burma
Egg Siamese Crocodile
Despite conservation concerns, many aspects of C. siamensis life history in the wild remain unknown, particularly regarding its reproductive biology.
Adults feed mainly on fish, but also eat amphibians, reptiles and small mammals.
Siamese crocodiles are under threat from human disturbance and habitat occupation, which is forcing remaining populations to the edges of their former range. Extinct from 99% of its original range, the Siamese crocodile is considered one of the least studied and most critically endangered crocodilians in the world. Although few wild populations remain, more than 700,000 C. siamensis are held on commercial crocodile farms in Southeast Asia.