Nile Crocodiles Found in Florida
Florida, Invasive Species, Nile Crocodile
Researchers have confirmed that three Nile crocodiles were captured near Miami, and they say it’s possible more of the man-eating reptiles are still out there, although no one can say for sure.
The big question now: How did they get to Florida?
“They didn’t swim from Africa,” University of Florida herpetologist Kenneth Krysko said. “But we really don’t know how they got into the wild.”
Krysko and his co-authors just published a paper showing that DNA testing proved the three animals captured in 2009, 2011 and 2014 are Nile crocs, a species whose males grow to over 16 feet long and weigh upward of 1,600 pounds.
Nile crocs are believed to be responsible for up to 200 fatalities annually in their native sub-Saharan Africa.
Maybe they’ll eat those Burmese Pythons.
