%0 Journal Article %T Temperature variation in nests of Caiman crocodilus (Crocodylia: Alligatoridae) %A Armando H. Escobedo Galv¨˘n %J Acta Herpetologica %D 2006 %I Firenze University Press %X Caiman crocodilus is a widely distributed species in the Neotropics; however, studies of incubation temperatures in wildlife are uncommon. Incubation temperature in four nests of Caiman crocodilus were measured with a digital thermometer, in the National Wildlife Refuge Ca o Negro, Costa Rica. Average temperatures in these four nests (no. 1-4) were 32.13 + 0.92 ˇăC (no. 1), 32.46 + 0.77 ˇăC (no. 2), 33.60 + 0.95 ˇăC (no. 3), and 31.78 + 2.30 ˇăC (no. 4). Temperature variations recorded showed higher temperatures than those reported from other studies in Ca o Negro. The temperatures registered in this study will lead to a higher proportion of males within the caiman population, reducing the number of future reproducing females and, therefore, in the population viability. %U http://www.fupress.net/index.php/ah/article/view/1298