There is a world somewhere between reality and fiction. Although ignored by many, it is very real and so are those living in it. This forum is about the natural world. Here, wild animals will be heard and respected. The forum offers a glimpse into an unknown world as well as a room with a view on the present and the future. Anyone able to speak on behalf of those living in the emerald forest and the deep blue sea is invited to join.
(07-25-2019, 06:37 AM)peter Wrote: BLACK CAIMAN AND JAGUAR
a - Interaction
Not so long ago, researchers found a black caiman of 380 cm. killed by a jaguar. The article, with a photograph, is on the internet, but I also saw it at Carnivora. I also remember an article (with a photograph) of a breeding, and therefore adult, female killed by a jaguar. Both the male and the female were not eaten.
The conclusion is that jaguars are capable of killing adult female black caimans and quite large males, but incidents of this nature are very rare. Jaguars no doubt have been killed by black caimans as well.
b - Video
Here's an interesting video on Melanosuchus niger:
When I was in French Guyana, I saw a large black caiman near a river. The head seemed broader and heavier than in other caimans and crocs of similar length.
They told me to be wary. The stories I heard have some foundation. Here's a report (2018) about a man attacked by a 5-meter black caiman in his canoe when he was fishing. He was saved by his wife:
I saw a few documentaries about the black caiman in French Guyana. Same region I visited. In one of them, they came very close to the boat of the crew. According to the film maker, large males exceeded 20 feet. If we add they have relatively large and massive skulls, the conclusion is adult males of Melanosuchus niger are not on the menu of jaguars. Adult jaguars, however, could be on the list of the black caiman.
The former owner of this skull most probably was about 14 feet in length. Too large for any jaguar, I think:
*This image is copyright of its original author
"Yacare,Spectacled andBlack Caimams in Amazon forest and some parts of the Pantanal;Jaguars take all life-stages of these three species, including large adults and eggs."
"large anacondas and Boa Constrictors ,are also killed by Jaguars" "Wild cats" Luke Hunter
In September 1995, we found the remains of a female C. crocodilus (skull length 18.5 cm, estimated total length 1.3 m) adjacent to a depredated nest with the remains of 12 eggs scattered around the nest. In June 1999, we found a male M. niger 3.8 m TL that apparently had recently been killed by a jaguar. Based on the paw marks around the site, the caiman had been attacked by the jaguar while on a thick mat of floating vegetation in a canal located along the margin of Lago Mamiraua´. In August 2007, a camera trap set along a trail in the Mamiraua´ Reserve captured a photograph of a jaguar with the remains of a C. crocodilus in its mouth. The photograph was taken in low restinga forest habitat, approximately 30 m from the nearest water body, and the estimated size of
the caiman, between 1.2 and 1.5 m TL, is consistent with it being an adult female. "Depredation by Jaguars on Caimans and Importance of Reptiles in the Diet of Jaguar" Ronis Da Silveira , Emiliano E. Ramalho , John B. Thorbjarnarson , and William E. Magnusson
Nice find, I'd still have some skepticism as to if the 3.8m Caiman was actually killed by the Jaguar or if it died of natural causes though.
