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LOCAL Tuesday 30 sepTember 2025

Sun catchers: The different lizards in Aruba

ORANJESTAD – Colorful or pendix II of the Convention never get gunked up. It is illegal to kill them! in length, have a brown col-
camouflaged, you’re bound on International Trade in En- or with a stripe on each side
to encounter a variety of dangered Species (CITES), They are variable in color- Blue Kododo and typically, several stripes
lizards basking in the sun meaning that international ation, from a mottled dark These are one of the most on the body and tail that
or scurrying on their way in trade is regulated through gray to orange-brown, and striking lizards in Aruba, rec- are lighter in color. It has a
our island. From the charm- the CITES permit system. are capable of chang- ognizable by the male’s dewlap which is orange-
ing, friendly iguanas to the In the past, Arubans used ing color depending on bright blue color. The Aru- yellow – and what’s unique
good-luck gecko Pega- to eat a popular Yuwana their mood and surround- ban whiptail lizard, Cnemi- about this species is that it
Pega, you’re bound to meet soup, as it was believed ings. Mottled and banded dophorus arubensis, is a is the only known species of
a few of these special resi- to give strength and help markings aid in camouflage species endemic to Aruba, anole where the dewlap is
dents during your visit. restore health – probably against tree bark. They are meaning you can only find asymetrically colored, with
due to the protein boost it harmless and fragile; you it here on our One Happy one side being a deeper
Aruba, as a desert island, is delivered. However, it is now can hold one in your hands Island! They are also recog- orange and the other side
home to an incredible va- illegal to catch, kill, buy or as long as you are VERY nized as the most common a lighter yellow. Mostly this
riety of unique and colorful sell Yuwanas in Aruba, and gentle. and populous lizard on the is seen in the males, as it is
species. Among them we this includes eating them! island. While the male is blue almost imperceptible in the
can find different lizards, Never put pressure on its tail with white dots, the female females. If the Toteki shows
most of which have South Turnip-tailed gecko because it will surely drop as is brown with blue dots. you his dewlap, retreat! This
American origins. But there The turnip-tailed gecko is a measure to try to distract is not a friendly greeting!
are a few exceptions. known locally as the Pega- the predator, and they are These charming lizards eat
Pega, meaning sticky-sticky, different from other lizards mostly plants, such as flow- Lizards are wonderful crea-
Iguanas due to the way it sticks to because they’re long-lived, ers, nectar, leaves and fruits, tures that are precious to
Iguanas are easy to spot, walls using the suction in its talkative, lack eyelids, and and occasionally enjoy our fragile, local ecosystem.
as they are larger than little fingers. They are found their small scales are situat- some insects. They are se- Please be mindful of these
most other lizards and when inside houses, and are most- ed next to each other like lective in which plants they residents as you enjoy your
young, have a bright green ly a nocturnal animal. cobblestones rather than eat, because of the toxins stay.q
color that makes them overlapping as is the case present in many available
stand out. According to Etnia Nativa, in most other lizards. plants species. The Kododo Images: Some images are
the local Pega Pega is im- help take care of Aruba’s from Aruba Birdlife Conserva-
The iguanas usually found mediately recognizable by Turnip-tailed Geckos are vegetation by playing a sig- tion.
in Aruba are the Iguana its large size, with a body insectivorous and feed on nificant role in the dispersal
iguana, known as the green length of up to 12 cm, and cockroaches, grasshoppers, of seeds for certain plants:
iguana, or locally as Yuwa- its large, swollen tail, approx- beetles, flies, mosquitoes, when they eat fruit, they ex-
na. The Yuwana are a most- imately the same length or and spiders, which makes crete the seeds in diverse lo-
ly herbivorous species, and slightly shorter than its body; them the best pest con- cations, contributing to the
can grow up to 2 meters in females are larger and trol to have at home! They reproduction cycle of our
size, including the tail, mak- more robust than males. It spend their days concealed local plants.
ing them one of the largest has short, robust legs with in dark tree grooves and
in the iguana family. As you flattened toes and exten- cavities, in narrow crevices Striped anole
will see, despite their name, sive basal webbing. in the walls, or behind paint- The striped anole (Anolis lin-
as they reach adulthood, ings, which provide the per- eatus) that lives in Aruba is
the iguanas can take on a The undersides of its toes are fect shelter for them. Pega known locally as Waltaka
grey or blue tone instead of covered in lamellae, which pega is a gecko endemic to or Toteki. This is a species of
the bright green displayed are used as friction pads to our island, but in time, some lizard in the family Dacty-
by the young ones. In Aruba cling to smooth vertical sur- 4–5 intrusive gecko species loidae, and they are native
– as in the rest of the King- faces. Some can even walk have been observed, some to Aruba and Curaçao. It is
dom of the Netherlands around completely upside of which do not cease to usually found in dry areas,
– the most usual color var- down. Its toes are covered amaze us with the racket commonly where there are
ies from green to lavender, with ridges, which are pep- they make, especially dur- not large trees; rather they
black and sometimes a red- pered with millions of micro- ing the hours of the night. enjoy rocks, walls or tree
dish brown. scopic bristle-like structures trunks, as they prefer to stay
called setae that attach The Pega-pega Phyllodac- close to the ground.
Yuwana is a protected spe- and detach when the ani- tylus Julieni is also a protect-
cies, as it is listed under Ap- mal wills them to, and they ed species in Aruba, by law. These lizards are about 7cm