Chuckwalla
Sauromalus ater
LizardsChallenge
A big, pot-bellied desert lizard with loose, baggy skin.
🌍 Where it lives
Rocky deserts in the southwestern United States and Mexico.
🍽️ What it eats
Leaves, flowers and fruit.
📏 How big it gets
Up to about 40 centimetres long — about the size of a school ruler and a bit more.
🔎 How to spot it
Look for a big, pot-bellied lizard basking on sunny desert rocks. If it slips into a crack and puffs up its body, it is almost certainly a chuckwalla.
3 fun facts
- It wedges into rock cracks and inflates so nothing can pull it out.
- It never drinks — it gets water from plants.
- Males have colorful tails.
