
Oriental Garden Lizard
Binomial name: Calotes versicolor
English:
Oriental
Garden Lizard
Description:
# It is an insectivore and the male
gets a bright red throat in the breeding season.
# It measures over
10 cm (3.9 in) in length snout-to-vent. Total length including the
tail is up to 37 cm (14.5 in).
# The ground-color is generally a
light brownish olive, but the lizard can change it to bright red, to black, and
to a mixture of both. This change is sometimes confined to the head, at other
times diffused over the whole body and tail.
# During the breeding season, the male's head
and shoulders turns bright orange to crimson and his throat black. Males also
turn red-headed after a successful battle with rivals. Both males and females
have a crest from the head to nearly the tail, hence their other common name
"Crested Tree Lizard".
# Changeable Lizards are related to iguanas
(which are found only in the New World). Unlike other lizards, they do not drop
their tails (autotomy), and their tails can be very long, stiff and pointy.
Like other reptiles, they shed their skins. Like chameleons, Changeable Lizards
can move each of their eyes in different directions.
Diet:
#
Changeable Lizards eat mainly insects such as crickets, grasshoppers,
ants and small vertebrates, including rodents and other lizards. Although they
have teeth, these are designed for gripping prey and not tearing it up. So prey
is swallowed whole, after it is stunned by shaking it about. Sometimes, young
inexperienced Changeable Lizards may choke on prey which is too large.
Occasionally changeable lizards also consume vegetable matter.
Reproduction:
# Males
become highly territorial during breeding season. They discourage intruding
males by brightening their red heads and doing "push-ups". Each tries
to attract a female by inflating his throat and drawing attention to his
handsomely colored head.
# Oviparous; about 10—20 eggs are laid, buried in moist soil. The
eggs are long, spindle-shaped and covered with a leathery skin. They hatch in
about 6–7 weeks. They are able to breed at about 1 year old.
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