Zoo Atlanta working to save 1 of the world's rarest lizard species
Guatemalan beaded lizard (Zoo Atlanta)
ATLANTA - The population of one of the world's rarest lizards is a little bigger thanks to the work of Zoo Atlanta.
On Jan. 10, 11 endangered Guatemalan beaded lizards that had been hatched at the Atlanta zoo arrived at their new home in Guatemala's Zoológico Nacional La Aurora.
The three males and eight females will be part of a breeding colony to help preserve the species, which is estimated to number only 500 to 600 individuals in the animal's native Motagua Valley.
The lizard, which gets its name from the appearance of its scales, spends most of its life below ground and eats bird and reptile eggs. While they were discovered by modern scientists in the mid-1980s, they had been known to people in the valley for thousands of years.
Sadly, the lizard population is threatened due to habitat loss and humans killing them over fears that they are dangerous, but local landowners are working to protect the rare reptiles and restore their habitat.
Zoo Atlanta has been working with the Guatemalan government for more than 25 years to help the species. The first group of lizards arrived in Atlanta in 2000 from Texas and has led to 41 new offspring.
The lizards picked to head to South America will continue the breeding program. Their offspring will be quarantined and then released into the wild.
You can visit the lizards at Zoo Atlanta's Scaly Slimy Spectacular exhibit, and you can learn more about the species here.