Philippine crocodile
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The Philippine crocodile (''Crocodylus mindorensis''), also known as the Mindoro crocodile, the Philippine freshwater crocodile, the ''bukarot''"Crocodile Surveys - iucncsg.org"
/ref> in Ilocano, and more generally as a ''buwaya'' in most Filipino lowland cultures, is one of two
species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of
crocodile Crocodiles (family (biology), family Crocodylidae) or true crocodiles are large semiaquatic reptiles that live throughout the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. The term crocodile is sometimes used even more loosely to inclu ...
s found in the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
; the other is the larger
saltwater crocodile The saltwater crocodile (''Crocodylus porosus'') is a crocodilian native to saltwater habitats and brackish wetlands from India's east coast across Southeast Asia and the Sundaic region to northern Australia and Micronesia. It has been listed ...
''(Crocodylus porosus)''. The Philippine crocodile, the species
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
only to the country, went from data deficient to critically endangered in 2008 from exploitation and
unsustainable fishing methods Unsustainable fishing methods refers to the utilization of the various fishing methods in order to capture or harvest fish at a rate which sees the declining of fish populations over time. These methods are observed to facilitate the destructive f ...
, such as
dynamite fishing Blast fishing, fish bombing, dynamite fishing or grenade fishing is a destructive fishing practice using explosives to stun or kill schools of fish for easy collection. This often illegal practice is extremely destructive to the surrounding eco ...
. Conservation methods are being taken by the Dutch/Filipino Mabuwaya foundation,"Philippine Crocodile Comeback"
. cepf.net. Retrieved on 2007-10-22.
the Crocodile Conservation Society and the Zoological Institute of HerpaWorld in
Mindoro Mindoro is the seventh largest and eighth-most populous island in the Philippines. With a total land area of 10,571 km2 ( 4,082 sq.mi ) and has a population of 1,408,454 as of 2020 census. It is located off the southwestern coast of Luz ...
island. It is strictly prohibited to kill a crocodile in the country, and it is punishable by law.


Taxonomy

Until 1989, it was considered a subspecies of the
New Guinea crocodile The New Guinea crocodile (''Crocodylus novaeguineae'') is a small species of crocodile found on the island of New Guinea north of the mountain ridge that runs along the centre of the island. The population found south of the mountain ridge, form ...
''(Crocodylus novaeguineae)''.Van Weerd, Merlij
"Philippine Crocodile (Crocodylus mindorensis)"
Crocodile Specialist Group.
They are now recognized as closely related but separate species.


Evolution

The
genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
'' Crocodylus'' likely originated in Africa and radiated outwards towards Southeast Asia and the Americas, although an Australia/Asia origin has also been considered.
Phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...
evidence supports ''Crocodylus'' diverging from its closest recent relative, the extinct ''
Voay ''Voay'' is an extinct genus of crocodile from Madagascar that lived during the Late Pleistocene to Holocene, containing only one species, ''V. robustus''. Numerous subfossils have been found, including complete skulls, noted for their distinctiv ...
'' of
Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...
, around 25 million years ago, near the
Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but the ...
/
Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...
boundary.


Phylogeny

Below is a
cladogram A cladogram (from Greek ''clados'' "branch" and ''gramma'' "character") is a diagram used in cladistics to show relations among organisms. A cladogram is not, however, an evolutionary tree because it does not show how ancestors are related to d ...
based on a 2018
tip dating Tip dating is a technique used in molecular dating that allows the inference of time-calibrated phylogenetic trees. Its defining feature is that it uses the ages of the samples to provide time information for the analysis, in contrast with traditio ...
study by Lee & Yates simultaneously using morphological, molecular (
DNA sequencing DNA sequencing is the process of determining the nucleic acid sequence – the order of nucleotides in DNA. It includes any method or technology that is used to determine the order of the four bases: adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine. Th ...
), and
stratigraphic Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock layers (strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigraphy has three related subfields: lithostra ...
(
fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
age) data, as revised by the 2021 Hekkala ''et al.''
paleogenomics Paleogenomics is a field of science based on the reconstruction and analysis of genomic information in extinct species. Improved methods for the extraction of ancient DNA (aDNA) from museum artifacts, ice cores, archeological or paleontological site ...
study using DNA extracted from the extinct ''
Voay ''Voay'' is an extinct genus of crocodile from Madagascar that lived during the Late Pleistocene to Holocene, containing only one species, ''V. robustus''. Numerous subfossils have been found, including complete skulls, noted for their distinctiv ...
''.


Characteristics

The Philippine crocodile is a
crocodilian Crocodilia (or Crocodylia, both ) is an order of mostly large, predatory, semiaquatic reptiles, known as crocodilians. They first appeared 95 million years ago in the Late Cretaceous period ( Cenomanian stage) and are the closest living ...
endemic to the Philippines. It is a relatively small, freshwater crocodile. It has a relatively broad snout and thick bony plates on its back (heavy dorsal armor). This is a fairly small species, reaching breeding maturity at and in both sexes. One mature specimen measured in total length and in weight. Adults rarely exceed and , and only the largest males attain record maximum size of up to , perhaps reaching the maximum weight of in exceptional individuals.Michael Vincent F. Cruz, Alfonso G. Biñan, Jr. and Pedro G. Mendoza"

IUCNSSC Crocodile Specialist Group.
Females are slightly smaller than males. Philippine crocodiles are golden-brown in color, which darkens as they mature.


Distribution and habitat

The Philippine crocodile has been extirpated in
Samar Samar ( ) is the third-largest and seventh-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 1,909,537 as of the 2020 census. It is located in the eastern Visayas, which are in the central Philippines. The island is divided in ...
,
Jolo Jolo ( tsg, Sūg) is a volcanic island in the southwest Philippines and the primary island of the province of Sulu, on which the capital of the same name is situated. It is located in the Sulu Archipelago, between Borneo and Mindanao, and has ...
,
Negros Negros is the fourth largest and third most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of . Negros is one of the many islands of the Visayas, in the central part of the country. The predominant inhabitants of the island region a ...
,
Masbate Masbate, officially the Province of Masbate ( Masbateño: ''Probinsya san Masbate''; tl, Lalawigan ng Masbate), is an island province in the Philippines located near the midsection of the nation's archipelago. Its provincial capital is Masbate C ...
, and
Busuanga Busuanga, officially the Municipality of Busuanga ( tgl, Bayan ng Busuanga), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 25,617 people. History Oral tradition has it ...
. Populations still survive in the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park within the
Luzon rainforest The Luzon rain forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion on the island of Luzon. Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines, and the Luzon rain forests is the most extensive rainforest ecoregion of the country. The ecoregion incl ...
,
San Mariano, Isabela San Mariano, officially the Municipality of San Mariano ( ilo, Ili ti San Mariano; tl, Bayan ng San Mariano), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Isabela, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 60,124 pe ...
,
Dalupiri island Dalupiri Island may refer to any of the following islands in the Philippines: * Dalupiri Island (Samar) in Northern Samar province *Dalupiri Island (Cagayan) Dalupiri Island is an island in the Babuyan Islands in Luzon Strait north of Luzon Isla ...
in the
Babuyan Islands The Babuyan Islands ( ), also known as the Babuyan Group of Islands, is an archipelago in the Philippines, located in the Luzon Strait north of the main island of Luzon and south of Taiwan via Bashi Channel to Luzon Strait. The archipelago consi ...
,
Abra (province) Abra, officially the Province of Abra ( ilo, Probinsia ti Abra; tl, Lalawigan ng Abra), is a 3rd class province in the Cordillera Administrative Region of the Philippines. Its capital is the municipality of Bangued. It is bordered by Ilocos N ...
in Luzon and the Ligawasan Marsh,
Lake Sebu Lake Sebu ( Tboli: ''Lanaw Sbù'', ; Hiligaynon: ''Linaw sg Sëbu'', ; Filipino: ''Lawa ng Sëbu'') is a natural lake located in the municipality of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato within the Alah Valley region. The Philippine government has recogn ...
in
South Cotabato South Cotabato ( hil, Bagatnan Cotabato; ceb, Habagatang Cotabato; Maguindanaon: ''Pagabagatan Kutawatu'', Jawi: ڤاڬابڬتن كوتاواتو; tl, Timog Cotabato), officially the Province of South Cotabato, is a province in the Philippine ...
,
Pulangi River The Pulangi River ( Cebuano pronunciation IPA uˈlaŋi, also spelled Pulangui, is one of the major tributaries of the Rio Grande de Mindanao, an extensive river system in Mindanao, Philippines. With a length of , it is the longest river in Buk ...
in Bukidnon, Paghungawan Marsh in Siargao Island, and possibly in the
Agusan Marsh Wildlife Sanctuary The Agusan Marsh Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area in Agusan del Sur, Philippines declared by President Fidel V. Ramos. The marshland acts like a sponge, as it is nestled in the midwaters of the Agusan River drainage basin. Within its lakes, ...
in
Mindanao Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...
. The Philippine crocodile wildlife populations that reside in these locations live geographically isolated from each other, which ultimately impacts their population level differentiation and decreases genetic diversity. It was historically found in parts of Visayas and until the numbers were drastically cut by, mainly, habitat destruction. These Crocodiles eat ailing fish in a significantly higher proportion than healthy fish, thus improving the common health of the fish stock. By preying on the most common fish, they balance the fish population; any species which suddenly becomes dominant is put back in its proper proportion. Crocodile droppings are nutritious for the fish and contain critically important chemicals.


Conservation status

''Crocodylus mindorensis'' is considered to be the most severely threatened crocodile species in the world, listed as critically endangered by the
IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
. A population estimate of 100 non-hatchling individuals underlines the critical status of the species. Although this species was once found over the whole of the Philippines, it is now critically endangered. In addition, very little is known about the natural history or ecology of the species, or its relationship with ''
Crocodylus porosus The saltwater crocodile (''Crocodylus porosus'') is a crocodilian native to saltwater habitats and brackish wetlands from India's east coast across Southeast Asia and the Sundaic region to northern Australia and Micronesia. It has been listed ...
'', whose range it overlaps. More surveys are required to determine the present range. Initial population reduction was through commercial exploitation, although the current threat is mainly from removal of suitable habitat for agricultural purposes to satisfy a rapidly expanding human population. Governmental support for any conservation measures is limited, and the crocodiles are often killed by the local populace. Long-term captive breeding and release (through PWRCC, Silliman University, and international breeding centres) is judged to be the best course to take at present, although a management program is imperative for the remainder of the wild population (most of which reside in only one protected area). In 1992, fewer than 1000 animals were estimated to remain in the wild. In 1995, that estimate was revised to be no more than 100 nonhatchlings (hatchlings are rarely counted in surveys because their survival rate is so low). One of the threats to the diminishing population of Philippine crocodile is because it is misunderstood. In mainstream Filipino society, crocodiles are considered dangerous man-eaters and compared to corrupt government officials and law enforcers. They are respected by the indigenous community: in research conducted among permanent residents of Lake Panlabuhan, a tributary of the famous Agusan Marsh, the acceptance of the crocodiles among these residents is very high and their risk perception is very low. However, the crocodile have an image problem with outsiders. To many, they are viewed as man-eaters. In reality, the crocodile is small and will not attack people unless provoked. Since October 2021, ''C. mindorensis'' has been classified as Critically Depleted by the
IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
. The killing of crocodiles seems to be the major cause of the decreasing number of this species. In northeast Luzon, a community-based conservation approach developed under the Crocodile Rehabilitation Observance and Conservation (CROC) project was adopted with the aim of reaching sustainable co-habitation of crocodiles and local people. In 2007, a specialist group was founded by several people within the Philippines, involved in crocodilian conservation. The Crocodile Conservation Society Philippines and the Zoological Institute of HerpaWorld are working on conservation breeding and release programs. ''C. mindorensis'' was considered locally extinct in part of its former range in northern Luzon until a live specimen was caught in
San Mariano, Isabela San Mariano, officially the Municipality of San Mariano ( ilo, Ili ti San Mariano; tl, Bayan ng San Mariano), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Isabela, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 60,124 pe ...
, in 1999. That individual, nicknamed 'Isabela' by its captors, was given to the care of the Crocodile Rehabilitation Observance and Conservation until it was released in August 2007. The specimen was 1.6 m long at the time of its release. The Philippine crocodile became nationally protected by law in 2001 with the enactment of Republic Act 9147 known as the Wildlife Act. It is punishable to kill a crocodile, with a maximum penalty of ₱100,000 (equivalent to about $2,500). The
Philippine Senate The Senate of the Philippines (Filipino language, Filipino: ''Senado ng Pilipinas'', also ''Mataas na Kapulungan ng Pilipinas'' or "upper chamber") is the upper house of Congress of the Philippines, Congress of the bicameral legislature of the ...
introduced resolution no. 790 on May 31, 2012, to further strengthen and augment existing laws for the protection of the Philippine crocodile and the saltwater crocodile.


Media

This crocodile was featured in
National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...
's '' Dangerous Encounters'' hosted by crocodile specialist Dr. Brady Barr. In one of the episodes, Barr sought to be the first person to see all species of crocodiles in the world. Fortunately, he was able to see a Philippine crocodile that was about two weeks old. The hatching of a Philippine crocodile was recorded in
GMA News GMA Integrated News and Public Affairs (formerly known as ''RBS News Department'', ''GMA Radio-Television News'' and ''GMA Rainbow Satellite News''; and commonly GMA (Integrated) News) is the news division of the GMA Network Inc. The division ...
''
Born to Be Wild "Born to Be Wild" is a song written by Mars Bonfire and first performed by the band Steppenwolf. The song is often invoked in both popular and counter culture to denote a biker appearance or attitude. It is most notably featured in the 1969 fi ...
''. They also recorded that tropical
fire ant Fire ants are several species of ants in the genus ''Solenopsis'', which includes over 200 species. ''Solenopsis'' are stinging ants, and most of their common names reflect this, for example, ginger ants and tropical fire ants. Many of the nam ...
s, an
invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...
, eat unhatched endangered ''bukarot'' eggs. The media team saved a nest from a fire ant attack. Also recorded were adult Philippine crocodiles.


Mythology, folklore and cultural significance

The ancient
Tagalog people The Tagalog people ( tl, Mga Tagalog; Baybayin: ᜋᜅ ᜆᜄᜎᜓᜄ᜔) are the largest ethnolinguistic group in the Philippines, numbering at around 30 million. An Austronesian people, the Tagalog have a well developed society due to their ...
believed that the soul of a deceased person is carried from the middle world into either ''Maca'' (place where good spirits go) or ''Kasanaan'' (place were evil spirits go) through the aid of a ''buwaya'', a crocodile monster with lethargic skin and a tomb attached to its back, covered with its skin. Although considered sacred, the ''buwayas'' are also feared as they may also attack living people, encasing them inside its tomb, and descend to the afterlife to bring the person to either ''Maca'' or ''Kasanaan'', effectively bringing only the soul to the lands of the dead as the body has already died. Despite the extremes of the ''buwaya'', it is so sacred to the ancient Tagalogs to the point that killing one (with a tomb or none) is punishable by death. In Philippine Media, the Philippine Crocodile often associated with corruption in the government, specifically the Senate and the House of Representatives.


References


Further reading


Philippine Crocodile: WhoZoo


* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20071007174159/http://www.herpaworld.com/index.php?action=pz_tier_det&id_art=27&topic=Crocodilians "''Crocodylus mindorensis'' - HerpaWorld"


External links

*Mabuwaya Foundation * {{Taxonbar, from=Q272402 Crocodylidae Endemic fauna of the Philippines Reptiles of the Philippines Fauna of Mindanao Critically endangered fauna of Asia Reptiles described in 1935 Crocodilians of Asia