Slender Snouted Crocodile
Mecistops cataphractus
Status: critically endangered - 1000-20000 population - hunted for bushmeat and for skin
A Namibian folktale:
crocodile was once a beautiful creature. He had a glorious golden and smooth skin, and it was kept in this lovely state by his habit of diving into the muddy waters in the daytime where he was protected from the harsh sunlight. He only came out of the water at night when the mild moonlight shone upon the world.
The other animals heard of crocodile's lovely skin, for he was not shy. He wished to show off, and so he began to emerge from his murky haunts in the daytime to bask in the envious gaze of the other creatures. As their admiration grew, so too did his vanity. He wanted them to look upon him more and more, and so he came up from the murky waters more often in the daytime. He spent longer periods of time under the burning sunlight. His attitude became unpleasant as knowledge of his beauty went to his head, and the other animals grew tired of being bossed around and eventually abandoned him.
But by now, crocodile's skin had been exposed to the brutal sunlight for quite some time as he continued to seek admiring eyes. Each day that he did so made his skin uglier, coarser, bumpier, and darker, until he became as you see him today, armored in thick scales, and humiliated that no one wishes to look upon him any longer.
References:
Namibian Oral Tradition Project, "Secret of the crocodile and Other Animal Stories from Namibia", New Namibia Books, 1987.