MEET THE LITTLEST LIZARD IN THE WORLD

What animal can curl up on a dime or stretch out on a quarter? A lizard called a dwarf gecko. It is only 3.8 cm long from nose to tail – less than half an inch. This gecko is smaller than all of the 23,000 known types of reptiles, birds, and mammals.

Scientists discovered the tiny lizard on an island while looking for new types of animals. God had created the dwarf gecko, but scientists hadn’t seen it yet. One scientist got down on the ground and stirred through some dead leaves. Hidden under the leaves was the smallest lizard in the world.

The gecko was under the leaves for a reason. Like all lizards, the dwarf gecko is cold-blooded. That means its temperature is near the temperature of the air around it. The tiny creature’s home has a warm climate so its temperature is also warm. Sometimes the dwarf gecko can get too hot in the sun. When this happens, it moves into the shade of the forest or a dark cave. The gecko was cooling off in the shade under the leaves when the scientist found it.

Only 10 percent of the island has trees now, so shade is harder to find. Loggers have cut down most of the forest. Scientists are worried about the dwarf gecko because its home is being destroyed.

The gecko eats tiny ants, spiders, and mites that live in the soil. Larger animals – tarantulas, snakes, centipedes and other lizards – eat the gecko. If they can find it. The dwarf gecko is hard to see among the leaves on the ground because of its dull brown color. This little guy is also an escape artist. If an animal catches it by the tail, the dwarf gecko breaks away and leaves its tail behind. Then a new tail grows in its place.

Lizard Photo Courtesy of:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/theactionitems/7317201266/


Pamela Harrison, a former elementary teacher, loves writing for children. She started writing stories for her own children when they were young. As a teacher she liked to included literature in all subjects, and when she couldn’t find a story to use, she wrote her own.

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