Report of poaching of dwarf caimans Paleosuchus spp. (Alligatoridae: Caimaninae) for meat consumption in northern Brazilian Amazon.

Species of Paleosuchus have small body size and well-developed osteoderms over most of the body and tail, features that make its skin commercially unattractive. Thus, these species are subject to little hunting pressure when compared to the black or the spectacled caimans. However, hunting for bushmeat is not as selective as hunting for skins, andpoaching of Paleosuchus species is widely practiced throughout Amazon. This study presents an overview of poaching of Paleosuchus species in northern Brazilian Amazon by reporting local densities close to urban areas and recording subsistence and commercial hunting events. In this study, very few caimans were counted, only seven individuals along 66.0 km of water bodies surveyed. Ten hunted specimens were also recorded, apparently a large number considering the short time time this survey was conducted. Hunters had to travel long distances to find game, including caiman. This, coupled to the many cases of hunting recorded in the short period of time we surveyed these areas, suggests that the vicinity of settlements is over-hunted which explains the lower than normal densities found in this study.