Overview Exploration and Survey Protected Areas Great Cats Program Research Methods Crocodile Conservation Program Chinese Alligator Siamese Crocodile Philippine Crocodile Orinoco Crocodile Crocodile Bushmeat Management Crocodilian Exploration Indian Gharial & Malayan Gharial Cuban Crocodile Management of Crocodiles

Crocodile Bushmeat Management WCS is working in both the Amazon region in South America, and the Congo located in Africa on better understanding the effects of the bushmeat market on crocodile populations.   In two of the last remaining tropical wilderness areas crocodiles are now being hunted extensively for meat. The effects of this “bushmeat” market on crocodile populations is unclear.  WCS is working in both the Amazon and the Congo basins to better understand the impacts of this hunting and how it can be controlled.  We are also looking into more effective management tools, such as alternatives to skin hunting, to generate economic incentives for the conservation of relatively abundant species. African Bushmeat Trade  The African dwarf crocodile (Osteolaemus tetraspis) and African slender-snouted crocodile (Crocodylus cataphractus) are two of the least known crocodilians worldwide. However, both species are widely hunted for meat.  Ecological studies and surveys of these little-known species and analysis of the impact of the bushmeat trade in Congo and Gabon are needed. Some of the work that is underway includes an intial evaluation of the situation in Gabon and Congo, which began in 2003. WCS is also looking into conducting ecological studies of both of these species of crocodiles in Gabon, as well as the monitoring of the bushmeat markets in these two countries.