GnathostomataCaimaninae

Melanosuchus niger

Black caiman

Melanosuchus niger skeletal reconstruction, left lateral view, length ~6 m.
Scale bar = 1 meter
Taxon
Melanosuchus niger (Spix, 1825)
Reconstructed length
~6 m (20 feet)
View
Left lateral
Drawing
© Scott Hartman
Drawn
2010, revised 2018
Clade
  1. Gnathostomata
  2. Tetrapoda
  3. Amniota
  4. Sauropsida
  5. Archosauromorpha
  6. Archosauria
  7. Pseudosuchia
  8. Crocodylomorpha
  9. Neosuchia
  10. Crocodylia
  11. Alligatoroidea
  12. Alligatoridae
  13. Caimaninae

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Melanosuchus niger is more commonly known as the living black caiman, found in the Amazon basin. The largest member of the caiman group and one of the apex predators of its wetlands, Melanosuchus grows to five meters (16 feet) or more in length, with dark, near-black armored hide and large eyes suited to hunting after dark.

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