The art of growth: Body growth models for wild and reintroduced Broad-snouted Caimans (Caiman latirostris)

VIOTTO, EVANGELINA DEL VALLE; NAVARRO, JOAQUÍN L.; PIÑA, CARLOS I.

Santa Fe

Congreso; 25th Working Meeting of the IUCN-SSC Crocodile Specialist Group; 2018

Body growth curves are extremely useful tools to assign ages and to compare the environmental pressures that can condition growth. In ectothermic animals, growth depends on the temperature of the environment and the food resources. Here we describe for the first time functions that best adjust the body growth curves of Broad-snouted Caiman (Caiman latirostris), comparing those of wild individuals vs. reintroduced individuals. Snout-vent-length (SVL, cm) and age (years) of juvenile and adult females belonging to two different experimental groups were recorded. On the one hand, we worked with specimens (Py) that were born from eggs collected from wild populations, which were tagged and reared on a farm in their first year, and then reintroduced to nature, where they were recaptured. On the other hand, we worked with wild caimans (Wy) of Class I (