Ancient records confirm wild crocodiles once lived in southern Morocco

Herpetologist Jean Lescure investigated historical records and oral testimonies to confirm that wild crocodiles once inhabited the southern regions of Morocco.

Lescure used ancient texts and naturalist writings to trace the presence of these reptiles. He identified that crocodiles lived in the Saguia el Hamra river during the Carthaginian era around 460 BC.

Records from the reign of Juba II, the king of ancient Mauretania, also mention a crocodile captured from a lake in Morocco and dedicated to the temple of Isis. Greek geographer Pausanias described crocodiles measuring about 1.5 meters in length near the Atlas Mountains, a size consistent with Saharan species. Local memories provide evidence of the animals surviving into the modern era.

Researcher Vincent Monteil recorded accounts from Aït Oussa and Rguibat nomads who claimed crocodiles lived in the Tanzida, Tizgi r-Ramt, and Taffegumt water sources. Later research in 1994 and 2013 confirmed that elderly residents of Tanzida remembered the reptiles from their youth. Some residents believed the animals remained in the guelta until the mid-20th century. The exact date of the crocodiles' disappearance remains uncertain.

Some experts suggest the animals vanished from Tanzida in the 1930s or 1940s, possibly due to grenade fishing destroying aquatic life. Others rely on local memories that place the animals in the region until the 1940s. Today, these reptiles only exist in Morocco within controlled environments like Crocoparc in Agadir.