Osteolaemus tetraspis
Silhouette: Smokeybjb · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
The dwarf crocodile (Osteolaemus tetraspis), also known as the African dwarf crocodile, West African dwarf crocodile, broad-snouted crocodile (a name more often used for the Asian mugger crocodile) or bony crocodile, is an African osteolaemine crocodile that is also the smallest extant living species of crocodile.
Dwarf crocodiles attain an adult length of 1.7–1.9 m (5.6–6.2 ft). Adult specimens typically weigh between 18 and 32 kg (40 and 71 lb). This makes it the smallest living crocodile species, although the Cuvier's dwarf caiman (Paleosuchus palpebrosus), a member of the family Alligatoridae, is smaller at up to about 1.7 m (5.6 ft). If the Congo dwarf crocodile (O. osborni) is recognized as a valid species, it would be both the smallest crocodile and the smallest crocodilian since it does not surpass 1.2 m (3.9 ft). Adults are all dark above and on their sides, while the underside is yellowish with black patches.
Some individuals living in the caves of Abanda, Gabon, displayed orange patches, apparently due to alkaline bat guano that erodes the skin of the crocodile. Juveniles have a lighter brown banding on body and tails and yellow patterns on the head.
As... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taï National Park | 🇨🇮 Ivory Coast |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Shedd Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | ZooParc de Beauval | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 4 | Denver Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Aquarium of Genoa | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 6 | Zoo de Doué | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 7 | Arignar Anna Zoological Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Toronto Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 9 | Minnesota Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Bronx Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Kansas City Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Bratislava Zoo | 🇸🇰 Slovakia | |
| 13 | Brookfield Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 14 | Safari Madrid | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 15 | Detroit Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 16 | Wildlife World Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 17 | Parco Natura Viva | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 18 | Zoo La Barben | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 19 | Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 20 | Calgary Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 21 | National Zoo of Malaysia | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 22 | Fort Worth Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 23 | Gatorland | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 24 | Zoo Knoxville | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 25 | Memphis Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 26 | Houston Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 27 | Dudley Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 28 | Riverview Park & Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 29 | San Antonio Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 30 | Abidjan zoo | 🇨🇮 Côte d’Ivoire | |
| 31 | Zoologischer Garten Magdeburg | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 32 | Riga Zoo | 🇱🇻 Latvia | |
| 33 | Osijek Zoo and Aquarium | 🇭🇷 Croatia | |
| 34 | Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 35 | bioparco | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 36 | Turtle Back Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 37 | Valencia Bioparc | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 38 | Bioparque Educativo Quillón | 🇨🇱 Chile | |
| 39 | La Ferme aux crocodiles | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 40 | Reserva Zoológica Oasys MiniHollywood | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 41 | Lincoln Children's Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 42 | National Zoological Gardens of Sri Lanka | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 43 | Five Sisters Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 44 | Buin Zoo | 🇨🇱 Chile | |
| 45 | Zoo di Pistoia | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 46 | Zoo de Córdoba | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 47 | Santillana Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 48 | Crocodile Centre | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 49 | VigoNature | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 50 | Zoo Lagos | 🇵🇹 Portugal |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Dwarf Crocodile sighting in Taï National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 4th most-seen of the 9 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June
In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Dwarf Crocodile in Taï National Park on a given day, against about 10% in March, July and September, the lowest months. That is one of Taï National Park's wettest months, with about 280 mm of rain against 40 mm in December. October and December–February have too few records to rate.
Between 4 and 7 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Dwarf Crocodile sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Taï National Park, in our data
Taï National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Dwarf Crocodile sightings: about 40% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Dwarf Crocodile is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Taï National Park (7 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
