These traits probably account for its increasing popularity in the pet trade. Crocodilians will attack in self-defense, to obtain food, and to protect their young up to two years after birth. The psychological orientation of alligators is interesting. It appears that alligators tend to regard humans as animals larger than themselves and thus will not generally attack a human without provocation. However, they will certainly look after their interests as outlined above, and a small number of accidents have occurred when their predatory or protective instincts were inadvertently triggered.
Caimans are generally very agressive animals.
I have seen many other caimans which were some of the meanest animals I've ever encountered. My caiman is now almost four feet long and requires two people to responsibly perform maintenance on his room. All alligators, caimans, gavials, and crocodiles are carnivorous. In the wild, each depends upon a somewhat different selection of prey from its local fauna. For captive specimens, diet should vary with the size of the animal and the availability of prey.