Sticking strictly to a vegetarian diet, green iguanas spend most of their lives in the rain forest's canopy.
Photograph by George Grall
Map
Green Iguana Range
Fast Facts
- Type:
- Reptile
- Diet:
- Herbivore
- Average life span in the wild:
- 20 years
- Size:
- 6.6 ft (2 m)
- Weight:
- 11 lbs (5 kg)
- Did you know?
- In Central America, where iguana meat is frequently consumed, iguanas are referred to as "bamboo chicken" or "chicken of the trees."
- Size relative to a 6-ft (2-m) man:
-
Green, or common, iguanas are among the largest lizards in the Americas, averaging around 6.5 feet (2 meters) long and weighing about 11 pounds (5 kilograms).
They are also among the most popular reptile pets in the United States, despite being quite difficult to care for properly. In fact, most captive iguanas die within the first year, and many are either turned loose by their owners or given to reptile rescue groups.
The green iguana’s extensive range comprises the rain forests of northern Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean Islands, and southern Brazil. They spend most of their lives in the canopy, descending only infrequently to mate, lay eggs, or change trees.
Primarily herbivores, iguanas are active during the day, feeding on leaves, flowers, and fruit. They generally live near water and are excellent swimmers. If threatened, they will leap from a branch, often from great heights, and escape with a splash to the water below. They are also tough enough to land on solid ground from as high as 40 feet (12 meters) and survive.
Iguanas' stout build gives them a clumsy look, but they are fast and agile on land. They have strong jaws with razor-sharp teeth and sharp tails, which make up half their body length and can be used as whips to drive off predators. They can also detach their tails if caught and will grow another without permanent damage.
Other members of the iguana family include the Fiji Island banded iguana, the desert iguana, and the Galápagos Islands marine iguana. Their appearance, behavior, and endangered status vary from species to species.
Reptile Features
-
Snake Pictures
Slither in to meet some of the largest, deadliest, and fastest snakes in the world.
-
Swamp Men" class="">
Swamp Men">Swamp Men
Welcome to Billie Swamp Safari, where things get wild.
-
King Cobra
Come eye-to-eye with the king cobra, the longest venomous snake in the world. Learn why it is the reptile of choice for exotic snake charmers.
-
Alligator and Crocodile Pictures
Take a dip with more of these prehistoric giants. But watch yourself; they do bite.
Animals
-
Aardvark
-
Adélie Penguin
-
African Elephant
-
African Lion
-
African Wild Dog
-
Albatross
-
Alligator Snapping Turtle
-
Amazon Horned Frog
-
American Alligator
-
American Bison
-
American Bullfrog
-
American Crocodile
-
Ammonite
-
Andean Condor
-
Anglerfish
-
Ankylosaurus Magniventris
-
Ant
-
Arabian (Dromedary) Camel
-
Arctic Fox
-
Arctic Hare
-
Arctic Skua
-
Armadillo
-
Asian Elephant
-
Asian Lion
-
Atlantic Bluefin Tuna
-
Atlantic Puffin
-
Aye-Aye
-
Baboon
-
Bactrian Camel
-
Bald Eagle
-
Baltimore Oriole
-
Beaver
-
Beluga Whale
-
Bengal Tiger
-
Bird of Paradise
-
Black Bear
-
Black-Footed Ferret
-
Black Mamba
-
Black Rhinoceros
-
Blacktip Shark
-
Black Widow Spider
-
Bluebird
-
Blue Crab
-
Blue-Footed Booby
-
Blue Jay
-
Blue Marlin
-
Blue Whale
-
Boa Constrictor
-
Bobcat
-
Bottlenose Dolphin
-
Box Jellyfish
-
Brachychampsa Montana
-
Brown Bear
-
Bull Shark
-
Burmese Python
-
Butterflyfish
-
California Condor
-
California Sea Lion
-
Canada Goose
-
Cane Toad
-
Canvasback
-
Caribou
-
Carolina Wren
-
Cheetah
-
Chimpanzee
-
Chipmunk
-
Cicada
-
Clouded Leopard
-
Clown Anemonefish
-
Coelacanth
-
Common Earthworm
-
Common Loon
-
Common Octopus
-
Common Sandpiper
-
Common Vampire Bat
-
Common Wombat
-
Coral
-
Cottontail Rabbit
-
Coyote
-
Cretoxyrhina Mantelli
-
Cuban Screech Owl
-
Cubera Snapper
-
Deer Tick
-
Devil Frog
-
Dingo
-
Dog Snapper
-
Dolichorhynchops Osborni
-
Domestic Cat
-
Domestic Dog
-
Draco Lizard
-
Dugong
-
Eastern Coral Snake
-
Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake
-
Eastern Gray Kangaroo
-
Egyptian Giant Solpugid (Camel Spider)
-
Electric Eel
-
Elephant Seal
-
Elk
-
Emperor Penguin
-
Fennec Fox
-
Firefly (Lightning Bug)
-
Flying Fish
-
Flying Snake
-
Fossa
-
Frilled Lizard
-
Fur Seal
-
Galápagos Tortoise
-
Gelada
-
Gentoo Penguin
-
Geographic Cone Snail
-
Giant Anteater
-
Giant Clam
-
Giant Pacific Octopus
-
Giant Panda
-
Giant River Otter
-
Giant Squid
-
Gibbon
-
Gila Monster
-
Giraffe
-
Golden Cowrie
-
Golden Eagle
-
Golden Jellyfish
-
Golden Lion Tamarin
-
Golden Poison Dart Frog
-
Gray Whale
-
Great Blue Heron
-
Great Egret
-
Greater Flamingo
-
Greater Rhea
-
Great Horned Owl
-
Great White Shark
-
Green Anaconda
-
Green Basilisk Lizard
-
Green-Eyed Tree Frog
-
Green Iguana
-
Green Sea Turtle
-
Grizzly Bear
-
Groundhog
-
Hammerhead Shark
-
Harbor Porpoise
-
Harp Seal
-
Hawaiian Monk Seal
-
Hawksbill Sea Turtle
-
Hedgehog
-
Henodus Chelyops
-
Hesperornis Regalis
-
Hippopotamus
-
Honeybee
-
Horned Toad (Short-Horned Lizard)
-
Hornet
-
Horse
-
Howler Monkey
-
Humpback Whale
-
Impala
-
Indian Rhinoceros
-
Ivory-Billed Woodpecker
-
Jackrabbit
-
Jaguar
-
Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle
-
Killer Whale (Orca)
-
King Cobra
-
King Vulture
-
Kinkajou
-
Koala
-
Komodo Dragon
-
Krill
-
Ladybug
-
Laughing Kookaburra
-
Leafy and Weedy Sea Dragon
-
Leatherback Sea Turtle
-
Leopard
-
Leopard Seal
-
Leptoceratops Gracilis
-
Lesothosaurus Diagnosticus
-
Lionfish
-
Little Red Flying-Fox
-
Llama
-
Lobster
-
Locust
-
Loggerhead Sea Turtle
-
Lynx
-
Macaw
-
Madagascar Hissing Cockroach
-
Mallard Duck
-
Manatee
-
Mandrill
-
Marine Iguana
-
Matschie's Tree Kangaroo
-
Meerkat
-
Meller's Chameleon
-
Mexican Axolotl
-
Mola (Sunfish)
-
Mole Rat
-
Monarch Butterfly
-
Mongoose
-
Mononykus Olecranus
-
Moose
-
Mosquito
-
Mountain Goat
-
Mountain Gorilla
-
Mountain Lion
-
Mouse Lemur
-
Mudpuppy
-
Musk-Ox
-
Narwhal
-
Nile Crocodile
-
North American River Otter
-
Northern Leopard Frog
-
Nudibranch
-
Nurse Shark
-
Nutria
-
Ocelot
-
Olive Ridley Sea Turtle
-
Opossum
-
Orangutan
-
Oriental Fire-Bellied Toad
-
Osprey
-
Ostrich
-
Oyster
-
Ozark Big-Eared Bat
-
Pachycephalosaurus Wyomingensis
-
Parrot
-
Parrot Fish
-
Peacock
-
Pelican
-
Peregrine Falcon
-
Pileated Woodpecker
-
Platecarpus
-
Platypus
-
Poison Dart Frog
-
Polar Bear
-
Porcupine
-
Portuguese Man-of-War
-
Prairie Dog
-
Praying Mantis
-
Proboscis Monkey
-
Pronghorn
-
Protosphyraena
-
Protostega Gigas
-
Przewalski's Horse
-
Pufferfish
-
Queen Angelfish
-
Quetzal
-
Raccoon
-
Rainbow Trout
-
Raven
-
Red Crab
-
Red-Eyed Tree Frog
-
Red-Footed Booby
-
Red Fox
-
Red Kangaroo
-
Red Leaf Monkey
-
Red Panda
-
Red-Tailed Hawk
-
Red Uakari
-
Rhesus Monkey
-
Right Whale
-
Ringed Seal
-
Ring-Necked Pheasant
-
Ring-Tailed Lemur
-
Rockhopper Penguin
-
Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep
-
Ruby-Throated Hummingbird
-
Sailfish
-
Saltwater Crocodile
-
Sandhill Crane
-
Sand Tiger Shark
-
Scarab
-
Scorpion
-
Sea Anemone
-
Sea Cucumber
-
Seahorse
-
Sea Otter
-
Siberian Tiger
-
Sifaka
-
Skunk
-
Sloth Bear
-
Snow Goose
-
Snow Leopard
-
Snowshoe Hare
-
Snowy Owl
-
Sockeye Salmon
-
Spectacled Bear
-
Sperm Whale
-
Spider Monkey
-
Spotted Hyena
-
Spotted Salamander
-
Spring Peeper
-
Squirrel
-
Starfish (Sea Star)
-
Steller Sea Lion
-
Steller's Sea Eagle
-
Stick Insect
-
Stingray
-
Styxosaurus Snowii
-
Sumatran Rhinoceros
-
Sun Bear
-
Tapir
-
Tarantula
-
Tasmanian Devil
-
Thescelosaurus Neglectus
-
Thick-Billed Murre
-
Thomson's Gazelle
-
Three-Toed Sloth
-
Tiger Salamander
-
Tiger Shark
-
Toucan
-
Triceratops Horridus
-
Triggerfish
-
Troodon Formosus
-
Tundra Swan
-
Tusotheuthis Longa
-
Two-Toed Sloth
-
Tylosaurus Proriger
-
Tyrannosaurus Rex
-
Velociraptor Mongoliensis
-
Wallaby
-
Wallace's Flying Frog
-
Walrus
-
Warthog
-
Warty Newt
-
Wasp
-
Water Buffalo
-
Web-Footed Gecko
-
Weddell Seal
-
Western Lowland Gorilla
-
Whale Shark
-
White-Eared Kob
-
White Rhinoceros
-
White-Tailed Deer
-
Whooping Crane
-
Wildebeest
-
Wild Turkey
-
Wolf
-
Wolverine
-
Wood Stork
-
Xiphactinus Audax
-
Zebra
Advertisement
Animal News
Special Ad Section
From the Magazine
-
Gannets Pictures
Champion divers but clumsy landers, doting parents but hostile neighbors—northern gannets abound in contradictions.
-
Estonia's Ural Owls
Photographer Sven Začek provides an intimate view of this large raptor.