About:
Can chuckwallas swim? Learn more about chuckwallas.
Care & Wellness:
Chuckwallas are relatively calm, and food motivated which makes them trainable and great ambassador animals. They are curious and changing their habitats helps keep them engaged.
Behavior:
- Solitary, except for the breeding season.
- Diurnal lizards that emerge in the morning and need to bask in the sun until their body temperature reaches 100-105 degrees Fahrenheit before seeking food.
- They spend most of their life on the ground but are excellent swimmers.
Endangered Status
- Extinct in Wild (EW)
- Critically Endangered (CR)
- Endangered (EN)
- Vulnerable (VU)
- Near Threatened (NT)
- Least Concern (LC)
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Fun Facts:
- The oldest known chuckwalla under human care lived to be 65 years old.
- To help them digest material in the cell walls of plants, chuckwallas have a rich gut flora of microorganisms that break down the cellulose, making the ingested plant material digestible.
- Most chuckwallas seek refuge in crevices of rock. A combination of small spiny scales on the dorsal surface and the ability to inflate their bodies renders them extremely difficult to remove once they have wedged themselves in that space.
- After hibernation (October – March), the females secrete a strong scent to let males know they are ready to mate.
