The West African crocodile has just recently been recognized as a species separate from the Nile crocodile using varying types of studies, including DNA testing. It was not widely recognized until 2011. It is smaller than the Nile crocodile (16 feet 5 inches compared to 9 feet 10 inches) and has a short and thick muzzle. It is also less aggressive. It is found in West and Central Africa, going as far east as South Sudan and Uganda and south to the DRC. Many of the crocodiles in zoos identified as Nile crocodiles actually turned out to be West African crocodiles.
In Kidepo Valley NP in northern Uganda we crossed a section of road that had a substantial marsh on each side. We saw two small crocodiles which our guide told us was a smaller crocodile than the Nile crocodile. My granddaughter was the first one to see one on the north side of the road and she get a close-up photo of it in the weeds before it turned around and disappeared. She also got a photo of the crocodile on the other side of the road.
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| Close-up, but obstructed, view. It was quite small. |
I got photos of the crocodile on the south side of the road and have had an identifier agree on iNaturalist that it is a West African crocodile.
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| Range of West African crocodile from Wikipedia. |
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