What Does lizard Mean
From the Latin lacartus , a lizard is a terrestrial reptile that belongs to the Saurian order . It has an oval head, a large mouth full of sharp teeth, a long body, four short and thin legs and skin covered with lamellae like scales.
Lizards are usually between five and eight centimeters long, they are very agile and, in most cases, they feed on insects. As they are harmless to humans , it is a very valuable animal for agriculture as it helps fight pests.
The notion of lizard can be understood as the clade of reptiles that includes species such as iguanas , chameleons , lizards and geckos . Lizards, snakes, and blind shingles make up the order of the Scaly ( Squamata ).
For example: "My son went to the zoo and came back fascinated with lizards" , "My neighbor has a huge lizard as a pet" , "I love animals, but I must admit that lizards disgust me . "
The chameleon is one of the most surprising lizards since it has the ability to change color according to circumstances. In this way it manages to blend in with the environment and can go unnoticed in the presence of a predator. Another notable feature of the chameleon is that it can move its eyes independently of each other.
The Komodo dragon is the largest lizard in the world: it can measure up to three meters and weigh about 70 kilograms. This size allows them to feed on small mammals and birds.
The lizard's tail
The lizard's tail is usually quite long, as well as its body, but unlike its legs. One of the most fascinating characteristics of this group of animals is their ability to leave their tails behind, a very effective resource to defend themselves from other species in times of danger.
The utilities of the lizard's tail are many, as it allows it to maintain balance while running, escape from predators, climb, hang, and swim. During times when food is scarce, on the other hand, some of these animals have been known to eat their own tails to cope with death, as it gives them the energy they need to stay on their feet.
The lizard's tail, in general, is more striking and shiny than the other parts of its body, so its natural predators focus on it so as not to lose track of them; In the face of a threat, detaching the tail can serve to lighten the pace and confuse its hungry hunters long enough to escape.
Each species of lizard has particular restrictions regarding this defense mechanism : some can only shed their tails during youth and others throughout their entire lives; certain species have the ability to leave the entire tail, unlike those that can only lose a part of it. It is believed that the larger and slower the lizard, the longer the length of tail it can lose.
Two mechanisms of tail loss are known to be used by the lizard:
* intravertebral autonomy : given the presence of certain weak areas in its vertebrae that reach the connective tissue that surrounds the tail and its muscles, if a predator catches the lizard's tail, it contracts the muscle that surrounds it with enough force to break the vertebra and being able to escape;
* intervertebral autonomy : the lizard breaks its tail inside the vertebrae, which reduces the chances of it regenerating.