Watch Scientists Catch Crocodiles—in the Dark
While most people go out of their way to avoid carnivorous reptiles, two Mexican conservationists actively seek them out. Watch in this video as they pilot a small boat through a lagoon in the pitch-black night, searching for their quarry: the Morelet’s crocodile (Crocodylus moreletii).
For the past 25 years Amigos de Sian Ka’an—one of the leading environmental groups in Mexico—has been monitoring the species’ population and habitat with a capture and release program.
At a “mere” 10 feet in length, the Morelet’s crocodile is smaller than its U.S. cousin—but no less aggressive. The animals are most active at night, but the only way to see them in the dark is by spotting light reflecting in their eyes.
Sometimes the crocodiles
