Overview
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Crocodylus is one of three genera from the Crocodylinae subfamily extending from the Crocodylidae family.
Established species include three extinct species:
- ? Crocodylus acer - probably represents a distinct genus.
- ? Crocodylus affinis - probably represents a distinct genus.
- ? Crocodylus anthropophagus, an extinct crocodile from Plio-Pleistocene of Tanzania.
There are thirteen living species:
- American Crocodile, Crocodylus acutus
- Slender-snouted Crocodile, Crocodylus cataphractus - studies in DNA and morphology suggest this species may be more basal than Crocodylus and therefore belongs in its own genus, Mecistops.1][2][3]
- Orinoco Crocodile, Crocodylus intermedius
- Freshwater Crocodile, Crocodylus johnsoni
- Philippine Crocodile, Crocodylus mindorensis
- Morelet's Crocodile or Mexican Crocodile, Crocodylus moreletii
- Nile Crocodile or African Crocodile, Crocodylus niloticus (the subspecies found in Madagascar is sometimes called the )
- New Guinea Crocodile, Crocodylus novaeguineae
- Mugger Crocodile, Marsh Crocodile, or Indian Crocodile, Crocodylus palustris
- Saltwater Crocodile or Estuarine Crocodile, Crocodylus porosus
- Cuban Crocodile, Crocodylus rhombifer
- Siamese Crocodile, Crocodylus siamensis
- Desert Crocodile, Crocodylus suchus
- Crocodylus raninus (Has been considered as a synonym of Crocodylus porosus. Its status remains unclear.[4])
Phylogeny
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The cladogram below follows the topology from a 2011 analysis of mitochondrial DNA sequences by Robert W. Meredith, Evon R. Hekkala, George Amato and John Gatesy.[3]
ollows the topology from a 2011 analysis of mitochondrial DNA sequences by Robert W. Meredith, Evon R. Hekkala, George Amato and John Gatesy.[3]References
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- ^ McAliley, Willis, Ray, White, Brochu & Densmore (2006). Are crocodiles really monophyletic??Evidence for subdivisions from sequence and morphological data. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 39: 16-32.
- ^ Brochu, C. A.; Njau, J.; Blumenschine, R. J.; Densmore, L. D. (2010). "A New Horned Crocodile from the Plio-Pleistocene Hominid Sites at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania". PLoS ONE 5 (2): e9333. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0009333. PMC 2827537. PMID 20195356. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=2827537.
- ^ a b Robert W. Meredith, Evon R. Hekkala, George Amato and John Gatesy (2011). "A phylogenetic hypothesis for Crocodylus (Crocodylia) based on mitochondrial DNA: Evidence for a trans-Atlantic voyage from Africa to the New World". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 60: 183?191. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2011.03.026.
- ^ http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Crocodylus&species=raninus
Taxonomy
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The Genus Crocodylus is further organized into finer groupings including:
- Species: ZipcodeZoo has pages for 41 species and subspecies in the Genus Crocodylus: C. acer · C. acutus (Central American Alligator) · C. acutus acutus (Central American Alligator) · C. affinis · C. americanus · C. biporcatus · C. cataphractus (Long-Snouted West-African Crocodile) · C. intermedius (Orinoco Crocodile) · C. johnsoni (Australian Freshwater Crocodile) · C. johnstoni · C. lloidi · C. lloydi · C. mindorensis (Philippine Freshwater Crocodile) · C. moreleti · C. moreletii (Central American Crocodile) · C. natans · C. nilocticus · C. niloticus (African Crocodile) · C. niloticus africanus (Nile Crocodile) · C. niloticus chamses (Nile Crocodile) · C. niloticus corviei · C. niloticus cowiei · C. niloticus madagascariensi · C. niloticus madagascariensis · C. niloticus niloticus (African Crocodile) · C. niloticus pauciscutatus · C. niloticus suchus · C. novaeguineae (New Guinea Freshwater Crocodile) · C. novaeguineae novaeguineae (New Guinea Freshwater Crocodile) · C. novaguineae · C. palaeindicus · C. palustris (Broad-Snouted Crocodile) · C. palustris kimbula · C. palustris palustris (Broad-Snouted Crocodile) · C. pigotti · C. porosus (Australian Saltwater Crocodile) · C. porosus porosus (Australian Saltwater Crocodile) · C. raninus · C. rhombifer (Cuban Crocodile) · C. siamensis (Siamese Freshwater Crocodile) · C. suchus
References
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- ^ McAliley, Willis, Ray, White, Brochu & Densmore (2006). Are crocodiles really monophyletic??Evidence for subdivisions from sequence and morphological data. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 39: 16-32.
- ^ Brochu, C. A.; Njau, J.; Blumenschine, R. J.; Densmore, L. D. (2010). "A New Horned Crocodile from the Plio-Pleistocene Hominid Sites at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania". PLoS ONE 5 (2): e9333. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0009333. PMC 2827537. PMID 2019 5356. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=2827537.
- ^ a b Robert W. Meredith, Evon R. Hekkala, George Amato and John Gatesy (2011). "A phylogenetic hypothesis for Crocodylus (Crocodylia) based on mitochondrial DNA: Evidence for a trans-Atlantic voyage from Africa to the New World". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 60: 183?191. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2011.03.026.
- ^ http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Crocodylus&a mp;species=raninus
Sources
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- The distribution map on the Distribution tab comes from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and is used with permission.
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