Found only on the Galápagos Islands, marine iguanas often have a distinctive white “wig” made of salt secreted from glands near their noses.
The much-maligned marine iguanas of the Galápagos Islands are famously cute, with even Charles Darwin disparaging them, describing them as “hideous-looking” and “the most clumsy, disgusting lizards.”
True, they are not pretty, with their widely spaced eyes, misshapen faces, pointed dorsal scales and salt-covered heads. But what these unusual creatures lack in looks, they make up for in their unique and amazing ecological adaptations.
Population
Scientists believe that the land-dwelling iguana of South America must have drifted out to sea millions of years ago on logs or other debris, eventually washing up on the Galápagos Islands. From there, the marine iguana emerged, spreading to most of the islands in the archipelago. Each island has its own marine iguana, each with its own size, shape, and color.
Aquatic Adaptations
They look fierce, but they are actually gentle herbivores, living only on algae and seaweed in the water. Their short, blunt snouts and small, razor-sharp teeth help them scrape algae off rocks, and their flattened tails help them move like crocodiles in the water. Their claws are long and sharp for gripping rocks on the shore or underwater in strong currents. They are dark gray to better absorb sunlight after entering the cold waters of the Galápagos. And they even have special glands that help clean their blood of excess salt they ingest while foraging.
Threats to their survival
Their population is not well known. They are under constant pressure from non-native predators such as rats, feral cats and dogs, which eat their eggs and young. They are protected throughout the archipelago and are considered vulnerable to extinction.
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