Lizard Overview
Lizards come in a wide variety of sizes, colors, temperaments and food needs. This page will focus primarily on Pet Lizards, not on those in the wild. As most animal hobbyists know, always leave wild animals alone, to thrive in their natural environment.
What is the perfect starter lizard? A bearded dragon or a leopard gecko make the perfect pet for the first-time lizard owner. http://www.greenigsociety.org/kc10.htm
No matter what size of pet lizard you choose, it is extremely important that you handle them frequently. Otherwise, especially in the case of the larger lizards like pet iguanas, you will wind up with a surly animal instead of an amiable pet. Also important with lizards is that they have contact with other either lizards or humans, depending upon the breed of lizard.
Some lizards are vegetarians, but most are omnivores or carnivores. A blue tongue skink will eat mealworms, small pinky or hopper mice and then enjoy a banana. Check the dietary needs of your pet lizard. A healthy lizard in captivity can live for a long while.
Small Lizard - Leopard Gecko
An excellent "starter" lizard it the leopard gecko. Its small size enables its owner to maintain a small habitat. It is not as handleable as a bearded dragon - it'd a bit more flighty. The leopard gecko is more of a "look at" than a "handle" lizard, and has very pretty markings. Its skin is bumpy. Due to its small size, the habitat setup, ]]reptile food]], and other requirements are less than other lizards, so it's less expensive to maintain.
Medium Lizards - Bearded Dragons
This is a mated pair of bearded dragons. The nickname for a bearded dragon is a "beardie." On the left, the female is a flame beardie and her mate an inland bearded dragon.
Larger Lizard - South American Tegu
The South American Tegu, a red tegu in this picture, grows to a good size. Not as small as the leopard gecko or bearded dragon, not as large as the monitor lizard. It is native to Paraguay. Over 30 species of Tegus found throughout South America.
What do tegus eat? Tegus are omnivores, eating meat plus fruits and vegetables. They like bananas a lot.
Really Big Lizard - Water Monitor
A water monitor will eventually grow into a very big lizard. This particular lizard, Sam, measuring 6 feet from nose to tail, was featured on Lemony Snicket’s “A Series of Unfortunate Events.”
"We’re not sure who enjoyed working on Lemony Snicket’s “A Series of Unfortunate Events” more, the The Reptile Family or the reptiles themselves!"
Water Dragons
Chinese water dragons, Australian Water Dragons and Basilisk Lizards all love to climb up into tree branches, and need a water supply large enough to "swim" in. They are omnivores which means they eat insects as well as fresh produce.
References
Fast Facts
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Skin
The skin of some lizards is thick, like a monitor lizard. Some is delicate, like a chameleon.
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Diet
Some lizards are strict vegetarians, some are carnivores. Some, like Tegus, are omnivores.
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Small Lizards
A small lizard that is easy to care for is a leopard gecko.
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Medium Lizards
A bearded dragon is the perfect size lizard for a pet, and the most popular.
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Larger Lizards
South American Tegus and a smaller Monitor Lizard can get fairly sizeable.
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Really Big Lizard
Savannah Monitors can grow to a huge size. So can Blackthroat Monitors.
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Biggest Lizard
