The Basilisk
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- Appearance
- Water walking
- Sites used: http://www.anywherecostarica.com/flora-fauna/reptile/basilisk http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_basilisk
The Basilisk 
The basilisk is well known for its ability to run on water. It was even named the Jesus Christ lizard for its unique ability. This paper will explain how some of these amazing features of this lizard works. The basilisk lives in central/south America in a warm, humid environment. It is part of the iguana family. You will often find them living near small, shallow ponds. There are 4 species of this lizard, the green/plumed basilisk, the common/brown basilisk, the red-headed basilisk, and the brown/striped basilisk. Diet: This lizard is an omnivore (eats both plant life and animals). It eats things such as insects, flowers, and small vertebrates such as snakes, birds, and fish. It also has been known to eat the eggs of several different animal species. Its hunting grounds are almost always near a small, shallow pond, where they can make a hasty escape across the water from a predator, or make their way to a landed insect feeding on, for example, fallen fruit, at the water’s edge. They hunt in the daytime, in other words, are diurnal. 
The blue morpho butterfly, one of the many insects in the basilisk’s diet. Appearance: The basilisk is found in two basic colors. Normally green, but it can adjust its hue to a brown color, and the in-betweens to become the master of camouflage. They grow up to 2.5 to 3 feet long, although, this lizard’s tail makes up for about 75% of this lizards length. They also have a finlike crest on their head. Males have these crests on the back and tail as well as the head. They are commonly colored green because they spend so much time in tees, or brown when on trunks or on the ground underneath. Male (more
crests) 
Female (less
crests) 
 
Many basilisks also have blue spots running down their body. Water walking: Water walking is an extremely unique ability in the animal kingdom, and only this one lizard possesses the ability to do so. Most adults lose this ability, because they gain weight and then gradually lose the ability to run on water. Several features of the lizard allow it to do so. First and foremost, their large feet are very important. The feet expand when they slap the water and create a “hole” in the water. This hole pushes the foot up. This motion creates 110% to 225% of the force needed to stay up. If the lizard does not pull its foot out of the hole it has created, the lizard will fall into the water. For a human to mimic this effect, someone would have to exert 15 times the amount of energy humanly possible, and run at about 65 mph! The lizard takes 20 steps per second, and the younger the lizard is, the farther it can travel across water. If the lizard does happen to fall into the water, they are good swimmers and can hold their breath for up to 30 minutes! This makes sense since they are a type of iguana, and iguanas use the sea as a refuge when danger comes. Mating: Males are very aggressive during their breeding season. To attract a female, the male bobs his head to show he is “open”. When the female sees this and decides she wants to mate she lowers her head and raises her tail. The female becomes gravid, or pregnant, for about 2 weeks. They then lay about 4-5 clutches of eggs, each containing 10-20 eggs. These eggs are usually laid in soil, instead of sand. It then takes these 40-100 eggs about 3 months to hatch. Predators: Large snakes (emerald tree boa) and large birds are this lizard’s main predator. Its main defense against these attacks (particularly snakes) is to make a quick exit across the water were the snake cannot follow, or not follow quickly enough. If the lizard somehow becomes cornered in open water it can sink below the surface and stay under for long periods of time. Habitat: They prefer to live in forests next to a shallow pond or stream. They can live in lowland dry, moist, and wet forests, even in highly disturbed agricultural areas where humans have invaded and destroyed their natural habitat. Range: Basilisks are normally found below elevation of 600m. Yet in Costa Rica they can be found at an elevation of up to 1200m in some places. The common/brown basilisk (which can also be a green color) can be commonly found on the pacific side, where the green/plumed (which can also be brown) basilisk is more commonly found on the Atlantic side of Costa Rica. Sites used: http://www.anywherecostarica.com/flora-fauna/reptile/basilisk http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_basilisk http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/green-basilisk-lizard/ http://www.lizard-care.com/basilisk_lizard/basilisk_lizard.html http://learnwithtechnolgy.com/basilisk.htm Download 99.53 Kb. Share with your friends:
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