American crocodiles are saltwater-tolerant, and frequent the waters of mangrove swamps, river mouths, fresh waters, salt lakes, and even oceans.  When water levels are lower, Crocodile will dig a shallow system of burrows, with an underwater or camouflaged entrance.

American Crocodiles live in the coastal regions of south Florida, which is the most northern point of their territory.   They also range from the coasts of southern Mexico down to Venezuela and Ecuador.  They are island residents in Cuba, Jamaica, and Hispaniola.

The adult crocodile is carnivorous (meat eating) and has no natural enemies, thus they are classified as apex predators.  From small insects to adult cattle, any animal that they come across may be considered potential prey for them.  Most of their diet as adults is consumed in the evening when they hunt by remaining completely motionless in the water.  As prey approaches, the crocodile will snap the animal in its strong jaws and drown it using a maneuver called the “death roll.”  To catch fish, Crocodile will regurgitate bits of food to draw them in.

Breeding will begin to take place in late fall or early winter.  Because crocodiles live for a long time, they come into their sexual maturity later (about 10 years old).  It is believed that a male is sexually mature when his snout is over 5 feet long, and the female when her snout is over 3.5 feet long.   Once a male can successfully stake out his territory, he calls to the females by bellowing in a frequency too low for humans to hear and releasing an oily musk upon the water.  Once an attractive female is drawn in he will approach her and they will rub heads, ride one another, or blow bubbles.  The female will then decide if she want to copulate with this particular fellow.  If she is interested she will raise her tail and they will twist around each other while they breed.  They may mate for several days, although most egg clutches will contain DNA from several different fathers.  In March, the female will be ready to build her nest.  She will dig a really big hole (5 feet wide by 6 feet deep) using her strong back legs. Late April or early May, she will lay 30 to 70 eggs and cover them with sand and earth.  This nest is critical because the sex of the eggs is determined by the temperature that they are incubated at, below 86°F most hatchlings are female and above 93°F most hatchlings are male. Similar numbers of both sexes will be hatched in the range between.

Her eggs will incubate for about 75 to 80 days.  During this time the parents will ferociously guard the nest, hiding in the bank nearby.  They eggs are vulnerable to racoons, fox, skunks, crabs, vultures, and bears, although some of those predators become the mother’s dinner.  In July or August the hatchlings will arrive and will call out to their mother.  She will help them emerge from their eggs, scoop them into her mouth, and carry them to the water.  She will continue to care for them for the first month even though they can hunt within a few days. Unsurprisingly, most of them will not survive, but instead become a part of the food chain for raptors, large fish, iguanas, and other reptiles – including crocodiles.

Adult crocodiles have only one predator, humans.  Not only do we prey on crocodiles for food, sport, and their hide, we also negatively impact the water conditions of their habitat.