By BWALYA KAMPAMBA –
Facts about Crocodiles
THEY are reptiles and are, therefore, cold-blooded, relying on the sun to warm them. They use mud as a sunscreen to prevent dehydration.
Females lay up to 70 eggs in a nest on dry land, which they guard for 90 days. The eggs need to be kept at a temperature of 27-34C to hatch.
The exact temperature determines the sex of the young: males are produced at 31.6C, and females at slightly lower or higher temperatures.
They can produce between 30 and 70 eggs once a year.
There are 23 different species of crocodilians worldwide.
Crocodiles have a ferocious bite – up to 3000 pounds per square inch.
Crocodiles are more closely related to birds and dinosaurs than to most other reptiles.
The three are in the group Archosauria.
The largest reptile in the world is the saltwater crocodile, which can grow to more than 7m in length.
The name crocodile comes from Greek, meaning ‘worm of the stones.
Their diet consists mainly of birds, reptiles, fish and carrion.
Crocodiles can move about on land with great speed particularly when alarmed or angry, but their bodies are mainly adapted for a life in water. The nostrils, eyes and ears lie along the top of the head so that the animal can hear, see, smell and breathe when the rest of the body is submerged.
What is a Crocodile farm?
This is an establishment for breeding and rising of crocodilians in order to produce crocodile meat, leather and many other goods.
Aside from just having a farm it can also make room for wide diversification programmes like a bakery, butchery, tea room and food hall hence providing more employment for people.
Why start up a crocodile farm
This is a good and profitable business because as you are conserving the animal, you can also make good money for yourself by exporting the skin to high fashion markets in France and Singapore.
The meat is served in restaurants and is considered a delicacy, appreciated for its taste and because it is low in cholesterol.
The fat is used for making beauty cream. And the oil is said to help relieve the symptoms of ring worms and respiratory ailments however, these claims have not been tested.
However the demand for crocodile oil is high both locally and internationally.
In Zambia, the crocodile skins are sold twice a year at trade fairs through the Crocodile Farmers Association.
It is important for you to know why you want to start this business, whether you have enough capital as well as the experience to handle crocodiles.
Whether you have the time and facilities for starting the business in your area also if you can sell the products easily from your area.
How to start crocodile farming business.
Licensing; crocodiles are wild animals so you need to be licensed for raising them commercially.
This can be done by Zambia wildlife authority. The licence can be obtained much easier if you have a suitable environment for raising crocodiles commercially.
Training; visit some existing commercial crocodile farms in order to learn more about the raising system or better yet do some volunteer work on those farms.
Select a suitable site; it will be better if you can choose such an area where wild crocodiles are living naturally. Ensure good transportation system, so that you can get all types of help in case of an emergency.
Constructing building; usually an area of about 75m2 cooler, freezer and storage space is suitable enough for housing the incubation room as the grow out building holds the new hatchlings.
A grow out building of about 465m2 is ideal. The grow out can either be concrete, wood or metal. But all are thoroughly insulated and rested on a heated concrete foundation because crocodiles require a constant temperature of 30C to 31C. You can use electric heating coils or hot water pipes running through the concrete for providing a constant temperature.
Construct additional buildings for keeping different aged crocodiles separated from each other.
Feeding; for proper growth, healthy feeding is a must.
So always feed them fresh foods. Keep in stock fresh frozen meats, usually beef, chicken, dear, fish, horse meat e.t.c. for the first year, feeding them 25 per cent food per week according to their body weight. Reduce the amount of feed to 18 percent by their third year of age. Always provide them adequate food, but don’t over feed them because over feeding can cause gout in crocodiles.
Care; always try to keep your crocodiles stress free because stressed crocodiles may develop brown spot disease.
This disease creates discoloured spots on the hides of the crocodile, and it reduces their value. Avoid over crowding the pens and clean the pens on a regular basis.
The future
The mention of the word crocodile makes some people cringe imagining the image of a flesh eating reptile, for crocodiles are among the most dangerous of all living creatures however, crocodiles play an important role in the ecology of their water habitats.
Just like hyenas, jackals and vultures do on land, they too are scavengers keeping the rivers and lakes free of dead animals. They eat large quantities of predatory fish, so helping to preserve suitable fish for humans.
As much as these animals are legally protected in many places like national parks and game management areas, crocodiles continue to be hunted.
The best hope for their survival lies in the setting up of sanctuaries or farms within their existing habitat, where they are protected from hunters.
Share with us your experiences.
Comments:
wildlifemgtsociety@gmail.com or bwalyavk@gmail.com
