Lizards — creatures may not be the smartest on Earth, but they are one of the most tenacious — that’s for sure. Lightning reaction, cunning, the ability to survive the cold in hibernation — all this makes them well adapted to survive in a variety of conditions.
Interesting facts about lizards
- Most species of lizards can drop their tail to distract a predator and escape, and then the tail will grow back. True, it will grow slowly, and will be shorter than the previous one, and there will be no bones in the new tail.
- Some lizards have eyelids, but they are connected to each other, and when the lizard molts, they are shed together with the rest of the skin.
- Almost all species of lizards change their teeth as they wear down. For life, like humans, teeth grow only once only in agamas and chameleons (interesting facts about chameleons).
- Horned lizards are able to splash their own blood from their eyes into a predator to stun him and in the meantime escape.
- Of all the numerous species of lizards, only two are poisonous. One lives in Mexico, the other — in the USA, Arizona.
- Of all lizards, only geckos have vocal cords.
- Most lizards — creatures are predatory or omnivorous, but there are also vegetarians among them. These include, for example, the green iguana.
- Legless lizards are outwardly indistinguishable from snakes to the inexperienced eye.
- Basilisks and some species of iguanas are able to walk on their hind legs.
- Flying dragons in India glide from tree to tree like flying squirrels (interesting facts about flying squirrels).
- The longest living lizards — poisonous mexican gila teeth. The record belongs to an individual who lived for over 33 years.
- Geckos are able to run on walls and ceilings, although they do not have suction cups on their legs — their role is played by thousands of tiny hairs that cling to any surface.
- Lizards appeared on Earth at about the same time as crocodiles — about two hundred million years ago (interesting facts about crocodiles).
- Basilisks can run on water, standing on their hind legs.
- Geckos are surprisingly strong for their size — A 50-gram gecko is quite capable of holding in its paws an object that exceeds its own weight by 30-40 times.
- One of the Mexican species of lizards consists only of females. They breed on their own without needing males.
- Lizards are found on all continents except Antarctica, as well as on most islands (interesting facts about Antarctica).
- While most species of animals see the world in black and white, lizards see it in orange tones.
- Marine iguanas living in the Galapagos Islands interbreed with land iguanas without any problems, bringing viable offspring.
- Skeleton and blood skink lizards found in New Guinea, green.
- Round-toed geckos from India — the smallest lizards in the world. On average, the weight of an adult is 1 gram, and the length of the body, including the tail — about 3 centimeters.
- Most species of lizards, having laid their eggs, forget about them forever and do not care about their offspring in the future.