Coastal and estuarine shores of the Caribbean, Central America, Mexico, and extreme Southern Florida. Prefers quiet waters of coastal mangrove swamps, rather than open bays. Adult crocodiles feed at night on schooling fish, crabs, birds, turtles, snakes, and small mammals.
Hatchlings feed on small fish, and crustaceans.
Thirty-five to fifty eggs are laid in a hole dug in a sand bank. Eggs incubate for about 85 days, hatching in late July or early August. The female guards the nest and will help dig it open when the young hatch. She also may carry the newly hatched crocodiles in her mouth to the water where they are released. The number of crocodiles in Florida has never been large, and has never approached that of alligators.