Jesus Christ Lizard

news.worldwild.org

In Central and South American rainforests, there lives an amazing lizard that can actually walk on the surface of water. Most of us do know about the Biblical miracle of Jesus walking on water. For this similarity, this lizard is popularly known as Jesus Christ Lizard. It has got another name, 'the Common Basilisk (Basiliscus basiliscus)', derived from the Greek basilískos (βασιλίσκος) meaning "little king".

It runs on water when threatened. It sprints to escape to the nearest edge of water, hence it is most commonly seen along streams and lakes.The lizard runs on only its hind legs in an erect position, holding its arms to its sides. It has got webbed feet which help in distinguishing capability. It has also been known to stay unnderwater for upto half an a hour.Although this lizard stays close to water to escape terrestrial predators, it swims only when necessary because there are aquatic animals that would prey it. It can speed up to 7 mph while running.