The Secretary of Ecology of the State, Eduardo Batlori Sampedro, announced that the water levels of the Yucatan ciénega (swamps) are lower due to the high temperatures and some crocodiles could be heading to the maritime zone to look for food.
These animals, that belong to the crocodylus moreletii species, can not spend too much time in the sea, because they are used to the swamp, but they can be venture into the shallow waters by the shore for a few hours. It is not the first time that this situation occurs, every year it has been reported that there are some sightings of crocs in different areas of the Yucatecan coast.
The official stressed that some of these animals leave the ciénega to eat what people throw away on the beaches, and then they return to their habitat. “Crocodiles have a very sensitive smell and therefore they can easily detect food leftovers.”
As mentioned before, the reptiles constantly leave the swamps to get into the ocean, but during the holiday season, as there is more people on the beaches, there is more food consumption, and that’s why the sightings are more frequent near the ports.
Batlori Sampedro recommends that when a crocodile is spotted in the sea, do not disturb or try to scare away the animal, because in the presence of humans, they usually prefer to leave, but if the croc feels threatened, it might try to defend itself. And absolutely for no reason, throw food at them.
TYT Newsroom with information from laverdadnoticias.com
