DIETARY ASSESSMENT OF Crocodylus acutus ON COZUMEL ISLAND, MEXICO

Pierre Charruau; José Rodolfo Mañon-González; Giovany Arturo González-Desales; Diana Marcela Caro-Martínez; Hector González-Cortés

doi:10.22201/fc.25942158e.2026.2.1562

Autores/as

Pierre Charruau El Colegio de la Frontera Sur https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7829-9469
José Rodolfo Mañon-González
Giovany Arturo González-Desales
Diana Marcela Caro-Martínez
Hector González-Cortés

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22201/fc.25942158e.2026.2.1562

Palabras clave:

American crocodile, diet, island, plastic residues, stomach contents

Resumen

Crocodylus acutus is considered one of the most widely distributed crocodilians in the world and within the Mexican Republic, including Caribbean islands such as Cozumel. In Mexico, there is information on the feeding habits of C. acutus from mainland populations but not from island populations. Thus, we conducted the first evaluation of the diet of C. acutus in the Punta Sur Ecological Reserve, located on the island of Cozumel. Eighteen individuals of five size classes were captured in June 2024, and stomach contents were obtained using the stomach flushing method. The Jacop-II index was used to analyze the use of food resources, categorizing the components into nutritional intake, incidental intake, ecological interactions, and grinding aids. Hatchlings showed a moderate selection towards fish (D = 0.4), juveniles showed a strong selection towards mammals (D = 1) and amphibians (D = 1), while subadults showed indifferent selection with preference towards fish (D = 0.1), and adults showed a strong selection towards birds (D = 0.8) and reptiles (D = 0.6). We recorded 5 new prey species for C. acutus and also found vegetal matter, plastic residues, parasites and gastroliths. Ingestion of vegetation and gastroliths are likely accidental during prey capture or from secondary intake from prey guts. It is important to highlight the presence of plastic residues as a potential threat to the health of crocodiles.

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