caiman

cai·man

also cay·man (kā′mən)n. pl. cai·mans also cay·mans Any of various tropical American crocodilians of the genus Caiman and related genera of the family Alligatoridae, differing from the alligators in having bony plates on the belly.

[Spanish caimán, from Carib acayuman.]

caiman

(ˈkeɪmən) n, pl -mans (Animals) a variant spelling of cayman

cai•man

or cay•man

(ˈkeɪ mən)

n., pl. -mans. any of several tropical American crocodilians of the genus Caiman and allied genera. [1570–80; < Sp caimán < Carib]

Thesaurus

Noun

caiman - a semiaquatic reptile of Central and South America that resembles an alligator but has a more heavily armored bellycaymancrocodilian, crocodilian reptile - extant archosaurian reptilegenus Caiman - caimansCaiman sclerops, spectacled caiman - caiman with bony ridges about the eyes; found from southern Mexico to Argentina

Translations

Kaiman

caiman

caiman:

see alligatoralligator,
large aquatic reptile of the genus Alligator, in the same order as the crocodile. There are two species—a large type found in the S United States and a small type found in E China. Alligators differ from crocodiles in several ways.
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Caiman

the common name for three genera of reptiles (Caiman, Melanosuchus, and Paleosuchus) of the family Alligatoridae. They are distinguished from true alligators by the absence of a bony septum in the olfactory cavity and the presence of a bony abdominal shell. There are five species, found in bodies of water in Central and South America.

The largest is the black caiman (Melanosuchus niger), which reaches a length of 4-5 m. It is found in the Amazon River basin. The female lays 30-40 eggs (each up to 9 cm) in a depression in moist soil near water. The black caiman feeds mainly on fish, but also eats waterfowl, marsh birds, and mammals. It will often attack small cattle, particularly during flash floods in semi-inundated pasture lands.

REFERENCE

Wermuth, H., and R. Mertens. Schildkröten, Krokodile, Brückenechsen. Jena, 1961.

caiman

[′kā·mən] (vertebrate zoology) Any of five species of reptiles of the genus Caiman in the family Alligatoridae, differing from alligators principally in having ventral armor and a sharper snout.

cayman

, caiman any tropical American crocodilian of the genus Caiman and related genera, similar to alligators but with a more heavily armoured belly: family Alligatoridae (alligators, etc.)

caiman

cai·man

caiman

cai•man

or cay•man

caiman

caiman:

Caiman

REFERENCE

caiman

cayman

caiman

Synonyms for caiman

noun a semiaquatic reptile of Central and South America that resembles an alligator but has a more heavily armored belly

Synonyms

Related Words