Most restricted distribution for a crocodile

The crocodile with the most restricted geographical distribution is the Cuban crocodile Crocodylus rhombifer. It is restricted to Cuba's Zapata Swamp, which has a total area of approximately 1 million acres. It once also existed in Lanier Swamp on a small offshore Cuban island known as the Isle of Youth (Isla de Juventud), but became extinct there, although it has recently been reintroduced.

Although confined solely to Cuba today, in earlier centuries this exceedingly rare species – categorized as Critically Endangered by the IUCN – was also found on certain other Caribbean islands. Fossilized remains have been found on the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands, revealing that this was once a widely distributed species, whose perilous modern-day state is a result of hunting by humans.