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Name : Cave - dwelling dwarf crocodiles ( Osteolaemus tetraspis )
Where it lives : Abanda cave system , Ogooue - Maritime Province , Gabon
Image showing an orange cave crocodile on the left, and a forest-dwelling crocodile on the right. The researchers caught individuals from each population and compared them to see if there were physical differences resulting from their habitats.
What it eats : Cave cricket and bats
Why it ’s awe-inspiring : Deep inside one of Gabon ’s cave organization populate an unusual population of orange dwarf crocodile . They live in complete darkness , feast on bats and swim in fluid guano ( aka bat crap . )
It ’s unknown how many crocodiles are living in these cave , or when they adopted this subterranean lifestyle , but they may have been down there for thousands of years — and scientists say they may even be in the process of evolve into a new mintage .
The cave - dwelling crocodiles were only studied for the first time in 2010 , and a2016 studythat compare them to their forest - dwelling counterparts showed a number of difference between the two . Their diet are very unlike , with the cave crocs feed in almost exclusively on the bounty of cricket and bats that cling to the cave walls . They found the cave crocodiles were generally in dear condition than those living in the forest , which the team say is probable due to the teemingness of prey usable and a want of vulture .
They propose the cave crocodiles lay their egg at the mouth of the cave , then the juvenile person stake into the dark . Once they reach adulthood , it ’s think they scarce forget the caves again .
Orange skin and genetic changes
The unusual orangish skin see on adult crocodile may be the result of their time swimming in bat guano , which is rich in urea , lead authorMatthew Shirley , a preservation biologist from Florida International University , told National Geographic in 2018 . Over time , this picture seem to cause chemical bleaching of the crocodiles ' skin , the study source publish .
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Intriguingly , genetic analysis of the crocodiles — which has not been write — paint a picture the orange cave crocodile may be mutating , according to a Guardian article in 2018 . Researchers told the newspaper publisher that one haplotype ( a group of DNA variants inherit from a parent ) found in the cave crocs was n’t present in the forest crocodile . " The [ crocodiles in the ] cave of Abanda stand out as an set-apart genic group , " study co - author Richard Oslisly , a researcher at France ’s Institute of Research for Development , told the Guardian .
This genetic change is evidence that the cave crocodile are evolving into a new mintage . " As a result of that closing off and the fact that few individuals come in or go out , they ’re in the process of [ becoming ] a fresh mintage , " Shirley severalise National Geographic . " Whether that chance soon or not is anyone ’s speculation . "
Crocodile quiz
