Found only on the Galápagos Islands, marine iguanas often wear
distinctive white "wigs" of salt expelled from glands near their noses.
The much-maligned marine iguanas of the Galápagos Islands are so
famously homely, even Charles Darwin piled on, describing them as
"hideous-looking" and "most disgusting, clumsy lizards."
It's
true, they're not pretty, with their wide-set eyes, smashed-in faces,
spiky dorsal scales, and knotty, salt-encrusted heads. But what these
unusual creatures lack in looks they make up for with their amazing and
unique ecological adaptations.
Scientists figure that
land-dwelling iguanas from South America must have drifted out to sea
millions of years ago on logs or other debris, eventually landing on the
Galápagos. From that species emerged marine iguanas, which spread to
nearly all the islands of the archipelago. Each island hosts marine
iguanas of unique size, shape and color.
They look fierce, but are
actually gentle herbivores, surviving exclusively on underwater algae
and seaweed. Their short, blunt snouts and small, razor-sharp teeth help
them scrape the algae off rocks, and their laterally flattened tails
let them move crocodile-like through the water. Their claws are long and
sharp for clinging to rocks on shore or underwater in heavy currents.
They have dark gray coloring to better absorb sunlight after their
forays into the frigid Galápagos waters. And they even have special
glands that clean their blood of extra salt, which they ingest while
feeding.
Their population is not well known, but estimates are in
the hundreds of thousands. They are under constant pressure from
non-native predators like rats, feral cats, and dogs, who feed on their
eggs and young. They are protected throughout the archipelago and are
considered vulnerable to extinction.
Fast Facts
- Type:
- Reptile
- Diet:
- Herbivore
- Average life span in the wild:
- 5 to 12 years
- Size:
- 4 to 5 ft (1.2 to 1.5 m)
- Weight:
- 1 to 3.3 lbs (.5 to 1.5 kg)
- Protection status:
- Threatened
- Did you know?
- Marine iguanas sneeze frequently to expel salt from glands near their noses. The salt often lands on their heads, giving them a distinctive white wig.
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