Green Iguana (Iguana iguana)
The Green Iguana (Iguana iguana) is a large, arboreal herbivorous species of lizard of the genus iguana native to Central and South America. The Green iguana ranges over a large geographic area, from southern Brazil and Paraguay to as far north as Mexico, the Caribbean Islands; and in the United States as feral populations in South Florida, the Florida Keys, Hawaii and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. The Green iguana is a reptile commonly found in captivity as a pet and grows to meters in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 meters (6 feet) and can weigh upwards of 20 pounds (10 kg). The word Iguana is derived from a Spanish form of the Taino name for the species "Iwana". The species was first officially described by Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus in 1758. In the two centuries since then, no less than 17 species and subspecies have been identified with all but one species(Iguana delicatissima) being found to be invalid. Using nuclear and mitochondrial DNA-sequence data to explore the phylogenic history of the Green iguana, scientists from Utah Valley State College studied animals collected from 17 different countries. The topology of phylogeny indicated that the species originated in South America and eventually radiated through Central America and the study revealed no unique mitochondrial DNA haplotypes for subspecific status but did indicate the deep lineage divergence getween Central and South American populations. In Spanish speaking countries, males of the species are referred to as gorrobo or ministro and juveniles are called iguanita or gorrobito.
Size: 3563px × 4750px
Location: Caracas, Venezuela
Photo credit: © Alicia Gonzalez / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: animal, arboreal, caracas, diversity, ecology, feeding, green, herbivore, iguana, iguanas, iguanidae, lagarto, leaves, pet, pets, primitive, reptile, reptiles, saurio, sauropsida, species, squamata, tropical, venezuela, zoology
