What conditions are required for crocodile farming?
To raise crocodiles, you first need to choose a site and build basic facilities such as crocodile ponds and aquaculture ponds according to the scale you intend to farm, and a project report must be submitted to the local fisheries bureau, land and resources bureau, administration for industry and commerce and other relevant departments for approval. After selecting the site, you also need to sign a written agreement with the village committee collective organization whose land is being requisitioned, with the help of the local government department. Only after all the procedures are completed can basic construction begin.
Reproduction. Because of the appearance of the amniotic egg, crocodiles and other reptiles were able to make the transition from aquatic to terrestrial life. The sex of crocodiles can be determined by the shape of the scales and the intromittent organ in the cloaca. Generally, those with thick and small scales are male, and those with thin and large scales are female; crocodiles whose cloaca is triangular and whose rod-shaped intromittent organ inside is long and red are male, while those with a short, small and pale-colored organ are female. Crocodiles reach sexual maturity relatively late, generally at more than 3 years. Crocodiles normally live separately as males and females, and mate once each year during the breeding season, copulating in the water. After mating, the female crocodile builds a nest with weeds, leaves and other materials, and when about to lay, climbs to the top of the nest and digs a hole in the middle, where the eggs are laid. Two to three days before laying, the mother crocodile experiences severe labor pain and tears flow profusely. The number of eggs laid is generally 20—30, and can reach 70; the oval spherical eggs resemble goose eggs and weigh 50—200 grams. The incubation period is 2-3 months.
In terms of crocodile reproductive characteristics, there are two points that are particularly unusual. The first is parental care behavior; the second is that incubation temperature controls the sex of the young crocodiles. According to reports by Niu Cuijuan and others, both female and male crocodiles exhibit parental care behavior, specifically in guarding eggs, digging nests, carrying and luring young crocodiles into the water, and protecting the young. The sex of the young crocodiles is generally determined by the temperature during incubation, and days 30 to 45 of incubation are the thermosensitive period. Within the range of 28°C to 31.5°C, all offspring hatched are female, while at 32°C the proportion of males among the offspring surges to 66%, and young crocodiles hatched within the range of 32.5°C to 33°C are all male.
Several issues that must be noted when carrying out crocodile farming
3.1 In the minds of some people, crocodiles are full of all kinds of mystery, and even arouse fear, with people thinking that crocodiles are cruel and terrifying animals that pose a serious threat to humans, turning pale at the mention of “crocodile.” In fact, crocodiles are not frightening at all; as long as you understand their biological characteristics and raise them scientifically, their economic value and ornamental appeal are endless.
3.2 The crocodile is an animal with extremely strong vitality, but it also has its own physiological characteristics and certain requirements for the environment, and different species of crocodiles also have different ecological requirements. Some decision-makers or farmers often fail to fully understand a certain crocodile species, or fail to make a detailed and accurate assessment of the local farming environment and tourism resources, and blindly introduce and raise them, causing huge economic losses. Crocodile farming is a long-term investment project and requires sufficient funds. In choosing a farming site, in addition to considering suitability for crocodile growth and reproduction, attention must also be paid to whether transportation is convenient. In addition, the supporting crocodile processing industry, food development, medicine and health care, and so on must also be considered.
3.3 Although research on the artificial rearing, domestication and breeding of crocodiles has lasted nearly 50 years, because the climate and ecological conditions of various countries differ, the farmed species vary greatly, and the development of farming technology is extremely uneven, generally speaking, crocodile farming technology is still very immature and reproductive capacity is low, which severely restricts the scale and output of crocodile farming and also keeps the price of crocodile skin products high for a long time.