Basilisk lizards grow to be around 2 feet in length. The tail of the basilisk is responsible for about half of its length. Basilisk lizards are amazing animals because they can walk on water. As a result, many call them the Jesus Christ lizard. The basilisk lizard has long toes on their rear feet. They also have fringes of skin that unfurl to provide a bigger surface area. They rapidly churn their legs and slap the water hard with their feet. This speed propels them 1.5 meters or 5 feet per second. This creates an air bubble under their feet, which helps them stay afloat. Finally, when gravity takes over the basilisk can swim very fast to escape its prey.
Basilisks live in the tropical rain forest of Central America, south Mexico and Panama. They spend much of their time in trees but always near water. When they are threatened, they drop from the tree to the water and start running. They can run on water for 15 feet before they start swimming.
Basilisks are omnivores. Their diet consists of dead plant material, insects, fruit and also small vertebrates .Their prey consists of snakes and birds. In their habitat, they are very common with no special status. The basilisk lizard is a big player in its ecosystem. If it did not eat insects or fruit these populations would become unregulated. Also, if the basilisks were removed, snakes and birds would struggle finding other food. Clearly, these lizards are a big part of their ecosystem.
