Philippine crocodile
| Philippine crocodile Temporal range: Late Pleistocene–Present,
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|---|---|
| An adult basking on the island of Palawan, Philippines | |
CITES Appendix I
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Archosauria |
| Order: | Crocodilia |
| Superfamily: | Crocodyloidea |
| Family: | Crocodylidae |
| Genus: | Crocodylus |
| Species: | C. mindorensis
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| Binomial name | |
| Crocodylus mindorensis Schmidt, 1935
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| Range of the Philippine crocodile in blue | |
The Philippine crocodile (Crocodylus mindorensis), also known as the Mindoro crocodile, the Philippine freshwater crocodile, the bukarot in Ilocano, and more generally as a buwaya in most Filipino lowland cultures, is endemic to the Philippines. It has been listed as critically endangered since 2008 due to exploitation and unsustainable fishing methods, such as dynamite fishing. Conservation methods are being taken by the Dutch/Filipino Mabuwaya foundation, the Crocodile Conservation Society and the Zoological Institute of HerpaWorld in Mindoro island. It is strictly prohibited to kill a crocodile in the country, and it is punishable by law.