Francesca Capozzi It is not Cassius, the largest crocodile in the world, who is also the longest-lived. The record belongs to Henry, a Nile crocodile. Its estimated age is impressive and well over a century. Fame aside, something ties Henry to Cassius: captivity
@Crocworld Conservation Centre/Facebook
They are a very long-lived animal. This is evidenced by Cassius, being the world’s largest crocodile and among the oldest in captivity. However, Cassius does not hold the record as the oldest on Earth.
It would be Henry, a Nile crocodile, who would take the title for the oldest crocodile; it is an estimated age, and such things should always be taken cautiously. By the name, one would assume, but there are Nile crocodiles in various parts of Africa.
Henry originates from the waters of the Okavango Delta in Botswana. He was born in the wild about 1900 but shortly captured after birth, around 1903. In 1985, he got transferred to the Crocworld Conservation Centre. This at least is part of the story which the centre shares with visitors.
The Scottburgh-based park in South Africa thinks Henry could be an incredible 123 years old, the staff said. Staff have always held an event to celebrate his “birthday,” due to a shortage of proper documents, choosing December 16 as his special day; this year, he will turn 124.
Henry weighs an estimated 1,650 pounds, reaches 16.4 feet in length, and shares his enclosure with a fellow crocodile, Colgate, and six females. The big crocodile has been contributing to the breeding and conservation of his species in this center for the last four decades.
His age is a record for a species that lives between 70 and 100 years in the wild. Of course, captivity does considerably alter the life span of a wild species.
Henry is fed by the caretakers at public shows, and he is closely monitored both by the staff and virtually by fans who are fascinated with him.
Impressing he may be, are we not forgetting perhaps that Henry is still an animal taken from swamps to end up in the space confined by metal fences?
