Page 62 - World of Animals - Issue #41

21

Amazing

facts
Iguanas

What has three eyes and can survive underwater? Sound
like a creature from the deep? No, it’s the iguana family

The blue iguana is They can be big headed
The dewlap is the flap of skin

the biggest underneath the jawbone. When
threatened, an iguana’s dewlap
They can measure up to 1.5 metres will extend its full length with the

(five feet) from nose to tail, and help of the hyoid bone to make
weigh up to 14 kilograms (31 their head look bigger. When
wanting to show it’s submissive
pounds). They are the heaviest nature, it will pull it closer to its
species of iguana and the biggest chin to make it look smaller.
lizard in the Western Hemisphere.

They like to sleep
Iguanas like to sleep at night
and be active in the day time.
The average amount of sleep
for an iguana is 12 hours in the
wild, leaving them with 12 hours
of daylight in which to be active.

The rock iguana grows Their skin keeps
much more slowly in
comparison to the green them hydrated
iguana, but they live for The outer layer of an iguana’s skin is
twice as long. made of keratin – the same protein

as human hair and fingernails. This
They will often sunbathe near
water, allowing them to make layer is thick and hard in order to
prevent cuts and abrasions to their
a quick getaway from any skin. It is also waterproof, stopping
approaching predators.
iguanas from losing moisture and
Iguanas are robustly built, drying out.
and are able to survive
falls from heights of up to Shedding is a
around 12 metres (39 feet).
They have a third eye slow process
Iguanas tend to stick to Known as the pineal eye, it is in fact a small,
Unlike other scaly animals, such as
crowds. They are rarely found transparent scale on the top of the iguana’s head snakes, iguanas shed their skin in
that is almost impossible to see. The lens of this
alone, and will often live eye is unable to make out actual images as regular
patches as they grow, and therefore
alongside other iguanas that eyes do, but is used to detect light and dark. This outgrow their skins. To remove the
are of a similar size and age ‘third eye’ is a vital survival tool as it allows iguanas skin, iguanas will rub up against
to themselves. to be aware of aerial predators, such as birds.
trees, or use their toes to peel it off.
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