Rediscovery of relict populations of the Nile crocodile Crocodylus niloticus in south-eastern Mauritania, with observations on their natural history

In 1998 and 1999, relict populations of the Nile crocodile Crocodylus nilot icus were rediscovered in south-eastern Mauritania, 70 years after the last reports of their existence and 6 years after the IUCN Species Survival Com mission listed them as extirpated in that country. Crocodiles were found in four different types of wetlands, herein described. Preliminary observatio ns on their natural history and their interactions with humans are provided , and the main threats and the prerequisites for their protection are discu ssed.