What Do Lizards Eat?
“What do lizards eat” is an interesting question. There can be many different answers because there are many species of lizards. In fact, there are around three thousand different species of lizards. The carnivores eat nothing but meat. The herbivores eat nothing but plants. And, the omnivores eat both plants and animals.
Sometimes people are in such a hurry to get a lizard home from the pet store that they do not sufficiently research “what do lizards eat” before bringing one home. First of all, you can’t be a squeamish sort of person if you want to own a pet lizard. Many of them are indeed carnivores and these eat nothing but insects and small mammals. Some will not touch any meat that has been freeze-dried or frozen, so you have to feel comfortable giving the lizard live insects and worms to devour, most likely right in front of you.
You can get live crickets and various kinds of worms that lizards love at the pet store. If you have a lizard that isn’t fussy and will eat meat that was freshly frozen, it is a little easier to keep up with its supply and demand. When you can buy insects and worms in bulk and freeze them, you won’t have to be running to the pet store every couple of days. People who live rurally may not have immediate access to stores that sell these types of lizard foods. In such cases, crickets, mealworms, and pinkies can be bought online.
Some of the lizards that are carnivores include the geckos. Geckos are very popular because much has been made about them in the media. One of the most popular geckos in the world is the one that people identify with Geico insurance ads. Since they started advertising with a talking gecko, more and more people are wondering exactly what geckos are and whether or not it might not be fun to have a gecko as a pet. Make sure to do your research, however, before purchasing one.
Lizards are tropical creatures and have to have tanks set up with heaters and light sources on a timer. Many geckos only grow to be around five inches long and crickets are their favorite food. The leopard gecko can grow to around nine inches long and is a very good gecko for beginners. In order to get all the right nutrients, you will need to dust your gecko’s crickets with special vitamin powder for lizards. While not as fuzzy or cute as a puppy, a gecko can still make a nice pet.
One of the biggest carnivores of all is the Komodo Dragon, who you really wouldn’t want to meet all by yourself. He is approximately ten feet long and humans have been killed by this species of lizard. They eat almost any kind of meat they can find, including every small mammal. Wild boar, elk, deer, goats, monkeys and water buffalo are not too large to make a good meal either. Because they eat so much, one of these types of lizards only has to eat around a dozen meals each year to be healthy. Komodo Dragons eat all types of eggs, and their young will eat rabbits and other small mammals, little lizards, such as geckos, and all kinds of insects.
When you are talking about iguanas and ask the question, “What do lizards eat,” the answer is plants, as they are herbivores. An exception is the spiny-tailed iguana. Adults are herbivores but babies need extra protein that only comes from meat. So, if you choose to bring home a baby spiny-tailed iguana, feed it mealworms, crickets and pinky mice. All of these can be purchased at pet stores. When this iguana grows up, you will need to switch over his food to a diet of vegetables, fruits and flowers.
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