# Dwarf crocodile (*Osteolaemus tetraspis*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/dwarf-crocodile  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The dwarf crocodile (Osteolaemus tetraspis) is a reptile in the crocodilian family Crocodylidae, order Crocodylia, also called the Broad-nosed crocodile, Orange cave crocodile, African dwarf crocodile or West African dwarf crocodile. It falls in the medium size class, with a representative adult body mass of 18.8 kg. The IUCN Red List classes it as Vulnerable, a threatened category, and its lifespan is given as 42.2 years, with up to 69 years reported.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 18.8 kg |
| Length | up to 1.9 m |
| Lifespan | 42.2 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 69 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Egg incubation | 97.5 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 10 – 20 |
| Age at maturity | 5 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Conservation status | Vulnerable (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Reptilia
- order: Crocodylia
- family: Crocodylidae
- genus: Osteolaemus
- species: *Osteolaemus tetraspis* Cope, 1861

Synonyms: *Crocodilus frontatus*, *Halcrosia afzelii*, *Halcrosia nigra*, *Osteolaemus tetraspis tetraspis*, *Osteolaemus tetraspis tetraspis*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the dwarf crocodile?

The dwarf crocodile is a reptile, a crocodilian in the family Crocodylidae and genus Osteolaemus.

### How heavy is the dwarf crocodile?

Its representative adult body mass is 18.8 kg, placing it in the medium size class.

### Is the dwarf crocodile endangered?

The dwarf crocodile is listed as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List, which is a threatened category.

### How long does the dwarf crocodile live?

Its lifespan is given as 42.2 years, and the highest value reported is 69 years.

### How many eggs does the dwarf crocodile lay?

A clutch holds 11.65 eggs, with 1 clutch per year, and the eggs incubate for 97.5 days.

### When does the dwarf crocodile reach sexual maturity?

It reaches sexual maturity at 5 years (1,825 days).

### Who named the dwarf crocodile?

The scientific name Osteolaemus tetraspis was given by Cope, 1861.

## 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: Dwarf crocodile (Osteolaemus tetraspis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/dwarf-crocodile