How to Draw a Black Caiman

In this quick tutorial you'll learn how to draw a Black Caiman in 7 easy steps - great for kids and novice artists.

The images above represent how your finished drawing is going to look and the steps involved.

Below are the individual steps - you can click on each one for a High Resolution printable PDF version.

At the bottom you can read some interesting facts about the Black Caiman.

Make sure you also check out any of the hundreds of drawing tutorials grouped by category.

How to Draw a Black Caiman - Step-by-Step Tutorial

Step 1: First draw the head. Draw a sideways "V" shape with two small bumps at the very tip. This is the snout.

Step 2: Next draw the face. Continue the snout line back to make the mouth line. Just above the end of the mouth line draw a large round eye.

Step 3: Continue the top of the head line back and angled up to the left.

Step 4: At the end of the bottom head line draw the front leg line down and to the right. At the end of the short leg draw four long toes pointing to the right. Draw the back of the leg back up and bend it back to the right.

Step 5: Continue the body line back from the front leg. At the end of that line draw a curved line to make the short hind leg. Don't forget the four long toes at the end of the hind leg. The two legs are the same width and length.

Step 6: Draw the tail. Continue the hind leg line and the back line to the left. Bring them together in a point. Make the top line jagged.

Step 7: Finally, draw the body patterns. There are circles along the body and legs. Draw ovals along the tail.

Interesting Facts about the BLACK CAIMAN

The Black Caiman is a member of the reptile group and the scientific term for them is Melanosuchus niger. This animal is related to the Crocodile and Alligator, but differs from them by a raised spinal ridge on their back, a thicker body, and brownish grey and yellow stripes on the neck and belly. The species differs from other Caimans from its big eyes so that it can see well in the dark, and are brown for camouflage. Another difference is in its wide rounded shape of the head.

Did you know?

  • This animal was first documented in 1825.
  • The body grows to at least 16 feet long.
  • The body grows to over 20 feet long.
  • Their head is almost 2 feet long.
  • This species weighs almost 2,000 pounds.

Its black color helps to seem invisible when hunting at night, and to absorb heat from the sun in the daytime. They live bodies of water with a slow or no current in northern South America and are the largest predator in the Amazon ecosystem. The species can kill almost any animal for food, including humans. These animals have a low population amount due to their commercial value for leather, and are considered to be conservation dependent to the possibility of extinction.

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