Description
The Orinoco Crocodile ranks among the largest living species of crocodilian and reptile. Typical measurements for males are 3.6-4.8 m (13-16 ft), females are from 3 to 3.3 m (9.9-11 ft). Typical weight for mature females is beetween 225-317 kg (500-700 lbs) and 380-635 kg (837-1400 lbs) for males. The largest specimen reported was shot in 1800, and allegedly measured 6.6 m (22 ft). This was unconfirmed, and modern Orinoco crocodiles have not been reported to exceed 5 m (16.5 ft) in length. It is one of the largest crocodiles in the Americas, and while American Crocodiles and Black Caimans approach similar dimensions, the average weight of the Orinoco Crocodile is slightly higher.
The Orinoco crocodile can be recognised by its relatively long snout, which is narrower than the somewhat similar-looking American crocodile's. This species generally has a pale tan hide, though at least three coloration variations are known, with some almost completely yellowish and some a dark brownish-gray. It has been noted that the skin can change colour over long periods of time; this phenomenon has been recorded in other species that can gradually change the amount of melanin in their skin. These crocodiles have dark brown markings, which present as more pronounced bands in younger specimens and as scattered markings on mature ones.
Read more about this topic: Orinoco Crocodile
Famous quotes containing the word description:
“The next Augustan age will dawn on the other side of the Atlantic. There will, perhaps, be a Thucydides at Boston, a Xenophon at New York, and, in time, a Virgil at Mexico, and a Newton at Peru. At last, some curious traveller from Lima will visit England and give a description of the ruins of St Paul’s, like the editions of Balbec and Palmyra.”
—Horace Walpole (1717–1797)
“A sound mind in a sound body, is a short, but full description of a happy state in this World: he that has these two, has little more to wish for; and he that wants either of them, will be little the better for anything else.”
—John Locke (1632–1704)
“Once a child has demonstrated his capacity for independent functioning in any area, his lapses into dependent behavior, even though temporary, make the mother feel that she is being taken advantage of....What only yesterday was a description of the child’s stage in life has become an indictment, a judgment.”
—Elaine Heffner (20th century)