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Double-Crested Basilisk

Basiliscus plumifrons

Description:

This is a medium size reptile, about 1 meter in length the biggest, (the tail is about 2/3), Is only found in Central America, from Honduras to north-west of Panama. The males of this species, develops a crest along the back and on their head. These lizards have the ability to walk on water, which is why they are sometimes called "lizards Jesus Christ." This ability is due to the presence of folds of the skin along the digits, which, when making contact with the water, open like ailerons and allow, for fractions of a second, the weight of the lizard to be held on the surface of the Water. They also have the characteristic of being optional bipeds, because when they run they lift the anterior half of the body, so that they end up running on the hind legs. Another characteristic of this lizard is a light blue dots throughout the body; from the sides to the belly and the jowls the green color gradually changes to yellow. The female is similar, but does not show great crest development.

Habitat:

Along bodies of waters, rivers Lagoons, streams

Notes:

Emerald basilisks are omnivorous, they feed on insects, small mammals such as rodents, and even some smaller species of lizards. Their diet also includes fruits and flowers. Their most common predators are birds of prey, opossums and snakes. Notice a dragonfly on the lizards head, it could easily be a snack for the basilisk.

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30 Comments (1–25)

Ornithoptera80
Ornithoptera80 3 years ago

Congrats Jonathan Sequeira, well deserved.

Machi
Machi 3 years ago

Congratulations Jonathan Sequeira, your spotting won First Place in our 2019 Best Wildlife Photo Competition - Reptiles category!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projectnoah/pho...

Twitter: https://twitter.com/projectnoah/status/1...

Leonardo Castro
Leonardo Castro 4 years ago

Congratulations!

Neil Ross
Neil Ross 4 years ago

Awesome. Congratulations, Jonathan.

Fantastic series Jonathan,congrats on the well deserved SOTW and thanks for sharing

DanielePralong
DanielePralong 4 years ago

Congratulations Jonathan! On the PN Facebook post someone is asking a question similar to mine below regarding the dragonfly drinking from the eyes. You want want to check it out. Here's a link to the post:
https://www.facebook.com/projectnoah/pho...

SukanyaDatta
SukanyaDatta 4 years ago

Truly a great shot...wonderfully timed.congratulations.

Ornithoptera80
Ornithoptera80 4 years ago

congrats

Michael Strydom
Michael Strydom 4 years ago

Great shot. Congrats on well earned SOTW!!

Thanks a lot. I hope you all enjoy this spooting as much as I do

Machi
Machi 4 years ago

Congratulations! Amazing spotting!

MichaelS
MichaelS 4 years ago

Congratulations, Jonathan, this spotting has been voted Spotting of the Week!

DanielePralong
DanielePralong 4 years ago

Thanks for your reply Jonathan!

Hi Daniele, I know dragonflies can drink water and obtain liquids from. What they eat, but I am not sure about liquids or posible minerals from reptiles, but it is a possibility.

DanielePralong
DanielePralong 4 years ago

Great catch Jonathan! Do you happen to know whether dragonflies drink from reptile tears, as butterflies do?

Gracias por la nominación y todos los comentarios . siempre es un placer contribuir en el proyecto.

Maria dB
Maria dB 4 years ago

That first photo is very cool indeed!

DrNamgyalT.Sherpa
DrNamgyalT.Sherpa 4 years ago

That's an extraordinary!

Michael Strydom
Michael Strydom 4 years ago

Congrats on nomination!! Best of luck!!

Leuba Ridgway
Leuba Ridgway 4 years ago

Beautiful and informative spotting - thanks Jonathan !

AshleyT
AshleyT 4 years ago

Your spotting has been nominated for the Spotting of the Week. The winner will be chosen by the Project Noah Rangers based on a combination of factors including: uniqueness of the shot, status of the organism (for example, rare or endangered), quality of the information provided in the habitat and description sections. There is a subjective element, of course; the spotting with the highest number of Ranger votes is chosen. Congratulations on being nominated!

That's right Mark I forgot to mention the dragonfly, I just edited and add a little on the notes, actually, long ago I saw a basilisk that try to catch a dragonfly at the time that the lizard was running on top of the water.

Beautiful shot! Congratulations !

Yes Ava. It is a dragon fly on the head. Thanks for all your comments.

Mark Ridgway
Mark Ridgway 4 years ago

Ava T-B I think it is.. and he didn't even mention it. That's what I call focus. 😀

Jonathan Sequeira
Spotted by
Jonathan Sequeira

Provincia Alajuela, Costa Rica

Spotted on Sep 17, 2019
Submitted on Sep 17, 2019

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