A deeply bizarre group of dwarf crocodiles with fiery orange skin lurk in the caves of Central Africa. Immersed in the environment of Gabon’s Abanda cave system, the crocs have developed several strange adaptations that set them apart from their surface-dwelling counterparts. The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.

Dwarf crocodiles ( Osteolaemus tetraspis ) are the world’s smallest living species of crocodile, measuring between 1.5 to 1.9 meters (4.9 to 6.2 feet) from snout to tail. Typically, the species lives in the streams and swampy forests of West Africa and Central Africa, but in 2008, biologists found a group thriving within a cave ecosystem for the very first time.

Why are the crocodiles turning orange?

Their most s

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