Cambodia’s Siamese crocodiles are making a slow but hopeful recovery

Once thought extinct, Cambodia’s Siamese crocodiles are slowly returning to the wild thanks to conservation efforts, although challenges remain.

Aniruddha Ghosal and Anton L. Delgado report for the Associated Press.

In short:

• Conservationists discovered a remnant population of Siamese crocodiles in Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains in 2000, sparking efforts to save the species.
• Captive breeding programs, which ensure purebred crocodiles, have led to reintroductions in the wild, but habitat loss and hybridization remain threats.
• Cambodia’s vast rainforests, crucial for carbon sequestration, are key to the crocodiles' survival, but deforestation has been rampant.

Key quote:

“Protecting habitat is the most important part of this whole project.”

— Pablo Sinovas, Fauna and Flora

Why this matters:

The sprawling rainforests that are home to these crocs aren’t just important for the species but are also critical to the planet's health, serving as massive carbon sinks. As Cambodia’s forests fall to logging and development, the future of the crocodiles—and the fight against climate change—grows ever more challenging. Read more: The health of wildlife is inseparable from our own.