# Black caiman (*Melanosuchus niger*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-caiman  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The black caiman (Melanosuchus niger) is a reptile in the crocodilian subgroup, belonging to the order Crocodylia and the family Alligatoridae. It falls in the large size class, with an adult body mass of 82 kg and a body length of 1.15 m. It reaches sexual maturity at 10 years, lays one clutch per year of 39.3 eggs, and the eggs incubate for 66 days. Its lifespan is 13.1 years, with values up to 15.3 years reported, and the IUCN lists it as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 82 kg |
| Length | 1.15 m |
| Lifespan | 13.1 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 40 years |
| Main food | vertebrates |
| Habitat | wetland |
| Egg incubation | 66 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 30 – 65 |
| Age at maturity | 10 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Reptilia
- order: Crocodylia
- family: Alligatoridae
- genus: Melanosuchus
- species: *Melanosuchus niger* (Spix, 1825)

Synonyms: *Alligator niger*, *Caiman niger*, *Champsa nigra*, *Crocodilus sclerops var. niger*, *Jacare niger*, *Jacare nigra*, *Jacaretinga niger*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the black caiman?

The black caiman is a reptile and a crocodilian in the family Alligatoridae, order Crocodylia.

### How big is the black caiman?

The black caiman is in the large size class, with an adult body mass of 82 kg and a body length of 1.15 m.

### Is the black caiman endangered?

No. The IUCN lists the black caiman as Least Concern (LC), which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the black caiman live?

The black caiman has a lifespan of 13.1 years, and our sources report values up to 15.3 years.

### How many eggs does the black caiman lay?

The black caiman lays 39.3 eggs per clutch and has one clutch per year. The eggs incubate for 66 days.

### When does the black caiman reach sexual maturity?

The black caiman reaches sexual maturity at 10 years (3,652 days).

### Who named the black caiman?

The black caiman, Melanosuchus niger, was named by Spix in 1825, written as (Spix, 1825).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24572683.v4), CC BY 4.0, v1-2. Oskyrko, O., Mi, C., Meiri, S. et al. (2024) ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles. Scientific Data 11: 243. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-03079-5. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24572683.v4
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Black caiman (Melanosuchus niger). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-caiman