Day of the LIZARDS!

This has been a good year for these guys. Wherever I go , the porch, the garden, sitting outside, they are everywhere, I'm practically tripping over them. They're pretty tame too, not that you can pick them up or you want to, but you can get close. If you sit very still they can run over your foot or jump on you. That's a real practice of Zen!

It's a unique experience to be weeding or pruning and have lizards scurrying around hoping to grab a bug I've dislodged, or be fed a worm that's eating my Gladiolus. They like it when I water the plants because the water collects in the leaves which become little bowls for them to drink from.They get very excited hearing the water on the leaves.

I was lucky to happen to have my camera when I walked past this house lizard. He saw me watching him and got an overblown sense of self importance. A lizard will usually do push ups to demonstrate a threat to another lizard.

I don't know the names of these lizards, but these are the common ones I see here every day.  They are a constant part of island life. It's sad when one winds up in the house and you find it's mummified body. They are so full of life!

We have Iguanas here too, but they are elusive and stay to the south side of the island nearer Cruz Bay. Iguanas aren't good animals to have around. They are destructive to gardens and eat bird and lizard eggs. I've seen Skinks too, a squiggly kind of snake + lizard creature, they're also a rare find on STJ.

Typical Green Lizard

I'm Sitting Below Him Looking Straight Up

Look At His Cheeky Little Foot!

Same Type Different Place, He's Lost Part of His Tail

This One Has A Yellow Stripe

The Biggest One at About 10" Is Trying to Catch My Honeybees

LIZARD FACTS 

• The tail of some lizards separate from the body when the lizard is grabbed. The tail that is left behind wriggles, confusing the other animal. This defense gives the lizard time to escape. Another tail will grow back, but it will be shorter and of a different color. 
• Some lizards are legless! They look like snakes. Look closely, if you see ear openings and moveable eyes, it’s really a lizard.
•  Lizards are adaptable. They are found on every continent in the world except Antarctica.
• Lizards shed their skin when they outgrow it. They shed in little pieces. 
• Lizards never stop growing. 
• Not all species of lizard lay eggs.  
• Lizards are cold-blooded.  
• Lizards love to bask in the sun. This makes them sitting targets.  
• Lizards smell with their tongues.
• Most lizards have movable eyelids and can blink (a few can't blink, like geckos)
• Some lizards change color in response to their mood.