Species Hierarchy
Kingdom ANIMAL (ANIMALIA)
Phylum BACKBONED ANIMALS (CHORDATA)
Class REPTILES (REPTILIA)
Order LIZARDS AND SNAKES (SQUAMATA)
Family LIZARDS - ANOLES - PLUS SPINY LIZARDS (IGUANIDAE)
Common name: IGUANA - BLACK
Scentific name: CTENOSAURA SIMILIS

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Species Info:

This lifeform is found in Central America. This lifeform is common in suitable environments.

Ctenosaura similis is found in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Honduras, and some islands belonging to Colombia. This lizard can be found along the Pacific Coast near sandy beaches and in abandoned lots in heavily populated human areas. This is a large lizard and can be up to about four feet long. Its diet consists of both vegetation and animal prey.

Spiny tailed iguanas or false iguanas (Ctenosaura genus) are primarily native to Central America from warmer Mexico south to Panama.  C. pectinata has been introduced into both Texas and Florida in North America.  Members of this genus can be up to about four foot long.  The Enyaliosaurus genus has been merged into this genus by many specialists.

Iguana family is primarily found in the New World with several  species being found in the United States. Madagascar, Fiji, and  the Friendly Islands also have representatives. The American  Chameleon, not related to the Old World Chameleon, is a small,  but typical, example of this family.

Lizards and Snakes (Squamata Order) share many common characteristics and consequently they are grouped in a single order. There are greater differences between some groups of lizards than there are between other groups of lizards and snakes. The same is true of snakes. Lizards and snakes share a common skull shape.

Reptiles (Class Reptilia) are an ancient group of scaled  chordates. These scales may be permanently joined, as in the  turtles, or flexible, as in the snakes. Reptiles are land-based. Their eggs are laid on land and the young are air breathing.

Backboned Animals (Phylum Chordata) are the most advanced group of animals on earth. These animals are characterized by having a spinal cord or backbone. Most members have a clearly defined brain that controls the organism through a spinal cord. Fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals are in this phylum.

Currently, some taxonomists believe that the fish should be divided into two groups (sharks and regular fishes) and that there are some other primitive groups in the phylum such as hagfish or lampreys.

Animal Kingdom contains numerous organisms that feed on other animals or plants. Included in the animal kingdom are the lower marine invertebrates such as sponges and corals, the jointed legged animals such as insects and spiders, and the backboned animals such as fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.

 

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HABITAT



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BASILISK - DOUBLE CRESTED
BASILISCUS PLUMBIFRONS
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IGUANA - FALSE
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