Grand Cayman Iguana (Cyclura lewisi) "Blue Iguana"
Photographed at the National Zoo in Washington, DC in January 2010.
Endangered
Also known as the 'blue iguana,' the Grand Cayman iguana can change the color of its skin. When the iguana is resting, it is a blue-gray color, but when it becomes excited, the front half of its body turns turquoise blue. During mating season the males and females turn different colors, with the males becoming electric blue and the females becoming powder blue.
Adult Grand Cayman iguanas can reach five feet in length and weigh as much as 15 to 20 pounds.
In the wild, Grand Cayman iguanas enjoy a diet composed primarily of plant life, but they will occasionally eat some fruits.
Females, once they are fertilized, will burrow into the ground to find the perfect conditions for a nest. After the eggs have been laid, the mother disguises the nest with soil and debris and waits for the young to emerge. It takes quite a while for hatchling Grand Cayman iguanas to open their shells and climb out, but once they are free of their shells and have regained their strength they dig straight out through the soil and begin foraging for food.
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