Lizards are a cold blood animal that belong to the genus of Agamidae. They regulate their body temperatures to suit the warmth of their environment using their metabolism. The reptile species is commonly known for its long tail, two pairs of legs that jut outward from the body, and their scale-like bodies. When they come in contact with humans they are not usually welcome. However they have beautiful skin colors and many people find them fascinating as they skitter about with their dazzling colors. There are different types of lizards all over the world, with each one having characteristics that are interesting to study.
Lizards like any other animal are build uniquely adapted for survival and their body structures helps them adapt to specific environments. Records show that about 6000 species of lizards live across the world except the freezing Antarctica and oceanic islands. Some of them look eye poppingly beautiful due to their bright markings and eyes of varying different colors.
Below is our list of the 6 most beautiful lizards in the world.
1. Parson’s Chameleon
This species is commonly found in the rain forest of Madagascar. They are the largest chameleon in the world, with a large triangular head and independently moving eyes. It has a Pinnochio like appearance with a protruding snout and exceeds 60cm in length at maturity. Their eyes are very noticeable due to their bright orange color against their green skin. They have a distinct front and two back legs with zygodactylous toes (that means two toes point forward and two toes point backward). Like other reptiles, the parson’s chameleon has a strong sense of smell and regulates its body by not staying in one spot for a long time. These species are omnivorous, eating plants, insects, and small birds.
2. Cnemidophorus Senectus
of the Island of Margarita, Venezuela the largest and most biologically diverse Venezuelan island on the Caribbean. This lizard is very common. The beautiful creature lives aside beaches in dune areas. Colored a dazzling green, the lizard is hard to miss among sandy trails and places away from human crowds Adult males are scaled with pale grayish heads and arms and have green bodies and tails.
3. Thorny Dragon
The thorny dragon lizard is commonly found in the Australian deserts. It has a desert brown color. This lizard species is eye-catching and sometimes camouflages during cold weather to form a darker shade of its desert brown hue. As mentioned above each of the lizard species is build for survival and the thorny dragon lizard is no different ideally mixing with its surroundings
They have spikes on their body just like that of a fantastical dragon for defense. This species grows up to 20cm and lives between 15 to 16 years. The lizard has soft tissues located on top of the neck. These tissues allow the thorny dragon to insert, withdrawing its head when it senses danger. The lizard has a dragon-like appearance which has captivated story tellers for generations. For survival, the throng dragon feeds on ants and draws water from the ground to the mouth via the skin by capillarity. They have a sensitive body that can detect enemies from afar.
4. Reticulate Gila Monster
This is another beautiful species found in Mexico and the USA, around rocky areas and deserts. The males are bigger than the Females, and their strong sense of smell and hearing helps them hunt out prey. The reticulate Gila has a flattened, triangular-shaped head and a long, flat, and cylindrical torso. Although the males are bigger than the females, the females have a broader torso than the males. This species has a black and pink or orange-reticulated dorsal coloration with broken patterns. They feed on reptile eggs, birds and rodents. Their strong sense of smell can help them smell eggs that are buried.
Their large torso and tails are designed to store fat and water, helping them survive in the desert region. They have dry and flaky scales, which prevent excessive loss of water from their body. The reticulate Gila monster has also enlarged grooved teeth in their lower jaw, allowing them to inject venom into their prey after securing hold of them.
5. Flying Gecko
The flying Gecko has flaps on the sides of their body which helps them glide. They live in trees and hop from branch to branch to escape from danger or catch prey. These species are stunning, and their color varies through a wide range of browns, grays, and tans. Their body is marked with an array of blotches and stripes in a smooth pattern, making them uniquely attractive. They are commonly found on the Asian continent, especially in India, Indonesia, southern Thailand, and Singapore. They can camouflage with trees’ bark, making them difficult to spot and helping them escape from danger. The body is designed with intricate shades of camel browns, which matches their eye color and is fascinating to behold.
6. Rhinoceros Iguana
Like their name, the Rhinoceroses Iguanas have a horn-like extension from their snout, just like a rhinoceros. Their colors range from grayish, dark green, and brown, which adorns their entire bodies and head. They grow up to 60-136 cm in length for full maturity and weigh between 4.5 kg to 9 kg. Their body color is evenly spread with a mixture of lighter scale-like body spots. Their female lays up to 34 eggs in 40 days. Their vertically flattened and muscular tail gives them balance and makes them more beautiful. Their males are larger than their females, and their eggs are among the largest lizard eggs. it is an endangered species of iguana that mostly inhabits the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, Haiti and the Dominican Republic but can be found as pets in most Latin American countries.
