What is West African slender-snouted crocodile?
{{Speciesbox | name = West African slender-snouted crocodile | image = Crocodylus_cataphractus_faux-gavial_d'Afrique2.JPG | image_caption = West African slender-snouted crocodile | status = CR | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn |author=Crocodile Specialist Group |year=2014 |page=e.T5660A3044332 |title=''Mecistops cataphractus'' |access-date=18 January 2016 }}</ref> | genus = Mecistops | species = cataphractus | authority = ([[Georges Cuvier|Cuvier]], 1825) | synonyms = *''Crocodylus cataphractus'' <small>Cuvier, 1825</small> *''Mecistops bennettii'' <small>[[John Edward Gray|Gray]], 1844</small> | synonyms_ref = }} The '''West African slender-snouted crocodile''' (''Mecistops cataphractus'') is a [[critically endangered]] type of [[Africa]]n [[crocodile]]. It is one of five species of crocodile in Africa.<ref>{{Cite web|title=West African Slender-snouted Crocodile|url=https://www.edgeofexistence.org/species/west-african-slender-snouted-crocodile/|access-date=2020-08-21|website=EDGE of Existence|language=en-GB}}</ref> ==Distribution== The West African slender-snouted crocodile lives in [[West Africa]] ([[Benin]], [[Burkina Faso]], southern [[Senegal]], [[Gambia]], [[Ghana]], [[Guinea]], [[Guinea-Bissau]], [[Ivory Coast]], [[Liberia]], southern [[Mali]], [[Nigeria]], [[Sierra Leone]], and [[Togo]]) and extends into [[Cameroon]] in [[Central Africa]]. ==Status== The West African slender-snouted crocodile is [[Classified information|classified]] as [[Critically endangered species|critically endangered]]. It no longer exists in many countries, while its numbers have decreased in others. In its native range, it is very rare. It is on the verge of disappearing. [[Captive breeding]] may be important for [[conservation]] of this species. ==References== {{reflist}} {{biology-stub}} [[Category:Crocodilians of Africa]]