Photo: U.S. Crocodiles Shed "Endangered" Status

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An American crocodile emerges from the salty waters of Lake Enriquillo in the Dominican Republic's Cabritos Island National Park.

U.S. wildlife officials recently announced that the croc species has been reclassified in Florida from "endangered" to "threatened," meaning that the state's population is no longer in imminent danger of extinction. Worldwide the reptile is considered a vulnerable species throughout its range, which also spans Central and South America as well as the Caribbean.

Photograph by Gianfranco Lanzetti/NGS

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