At far-flung Gaffoor Trace, Tableland, in the Princes Town region, Shelly-Ann Williams is known as the woman who regularly feeds the caimans that live on the bank of a 20-feet deep river located opposite her home.
Referred to as the "caiman feeder" in her community, Williams considers herself a lover of the environment and animals, mainly caimans.
Her affection for the baby reptiles started a few years ago when she first noticed them diving in and out of the river and relaxing on the muddy riverbank.
From casually looking at the caimans and then talking to them every day, Williams began throwing leftover foods such as stale sada roti, fry bake, fish guts, chicken skin and fats from various types of meats into the water which they would devour in seconds.
The caiman, which is a carnivore, also eats insects and birds.
It's not unusual to see Williams standing on the roadway at dusk throwing scraps into the water for the grey-coloured reptiles.
"Some people would pass and make jokes when I am feeding them while others would ignore me. They know when they see me on the roadway I am doing what I love best...feeding them. It's one of my daily enjoyments," Williams said.
Her years of feeding has resulted in the reptiles growing from inches to almost four feet in length.
The caimans are fed when the sun goes down. She boasts that the caimans have a keen sense of hearing and is familiar with her voice. They also have sharp eyesight. "If they are close by and they hear my voice they would come out of the water to eat," said Williams, a housewife.
Despite Williams repeatedly calling the caimans before their feeding time on the day the T&T Guardian visited the area, they never came out of the water.
Williams concluded that they went further up the river which spanned almost a kilometre in length.
"When they hear noises they would also go into hiding," Williams said.
Following recent dredging and clearing of the river, Williams said they sometimes stay away.
Of the three reptiles, Williams has a favourite whom she calls Precious.
"I don't know if Precious is male or female," she laughed.
Williams said many times she had to stand in defence of the caimans who are stoned by passers-by and villagers.
"The caimans don't do anybody anything and people do harass and pelt them constantly. This upsets me because they do not pose a threat to anyone. I have never seen them come out of the river. They stay within their habitat. They are part of the animal planet and deserve to live like any other," said Williams.