Species of the Day: Philippine Crocodile

The Philippine Crocodile, Crocodylus mindorensis, is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™. Found only in the Philippines, this relatively small crocodile is now reduced to just two viable populations on Luzon and Mindanao Islands, with a few small groups elsewhere.

The species’ initial decline was due to commercial overexploitation, followed by widespread Geographical range habitat destruction. The decline continued as wetlands were converted for other uses, and the www.iucnredlist.org hunting of crocodiles persisted. www.iucncsg.org Help Save Species Recommended by the Crocodile Specialist Group, a successful captive breeding programme www.arkive.org was initiated on Palawan Island in 1987. The Philippine Government is implementing a National Recovery Plan, which was produced in 2000 with extensive community input. Community-based conservation programmes are in place for the Mindanao and Luzon populations. Habitat protection, coupled with regular monitoring and increasing community support, has halted the species’ decline, and the Philippine Crocodile’s future is looking more positive. However, with fragile social environments and an estimated total wild population of perhaps 350 individuals, much work remains in order to enable this species to recover fully.

The production of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ is made possible through the IUCN Red List Partnership: Species of the Day IUCN (including the Species Survival Commission), BirdLife is sponsored by International, Conservation International, NatureServe and Zoological Society of London.