Arrival of crocodilians to São Tomé Island, Gulf of Guinea, Western Africa, highlights the role of sea currents to the natural colonization of islands

Abstract

Abstract Historical and recent arrivals of crocodilians to the Gulf of Guinean Oceanic Island of São Tomé have intrigued naturalists for several centuries. Here we present the revision of the historical records, and present data regarding the recent arrival of a single specimen in 2021. After being killed by the local authorities, the specimen was preserved and studied both through morphological and molecular methods. Our findings suggest that the specimen was a sub-adult Nile crocodile, Crocodylus niloticus Laurenti, 1768, which most likely drifted from the Congo or Ogooué river mouths in West Africa by the oceanic current acting on the Gulf of Guinea. The story of this individual highlights the dispersion paths that have contributed by the past biological colonization of São Tomé Island.