The Amazon rainforest caiman is a very large reptile, often reaching four meters long. The name of this species comes from the bony ridges across its snout. The caiman is nocturnal, like many of the animals in the Amazon. It lives in fresh water, such as the lakes and rivers around the Amazon rainforest.

The caiman’s diet consists of fish, reptiles, and mammals, such as the capybara. Juveniles eat mainly invertebrates (crustaceans, terrestrial invertebrates such as coleoptera), whereas adults include a greater proportion of fish in their diets in addition to a variety of aquatic (e.g. crabs, molluscs, shrimps) and terrestrial invertebrates.