Authors
Mathias Behangana, Richard Magala, Raymond Katumba, David Ochanda, Stephen Kigoolo, Samuel Mutebi, Daniele Dendi, Luca Luiselli, Daniel F Hughes
Publication date
2020/12/1
Journal
Journal of Great Lakes Research
Volume
46
Issue
6
Pages
1776-1782
Publisher
Elsevier
Description
Crocodiles play important roles in many ecosystems, but their populations worldwide are threatened by human exploitation and habitat destruction. We studied ontogenetic changes in habitat use and seasonal activity patterns in a population of Nile crocodiles (Crocodylus niloticus) inhabiting the Lake Albert Delta Wetland System, a Ramsar Site of international importance in Murchison Falls National Park of western Uganda. A total of 186 crocodile observations were made from monthly surveys of five transects during October 2017 to September 2018. Crocodiles exhibited a marginally bi-modal seasonal pattern, with the fewest observations from July to August and October to November, and the highest observations from January to February and April to May. Crocodiles were most frequently encountered along the north shore of the delta, especially on riverbanks with woody vegetation, followed by Cyperus …
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