Waltaca (Striped Tree Lizard / Anolis)

The Tree Lizards are endemic to our islands (they are only found on our islands). Aruba and Curaçao both have the Striped Tree Lizard, while Bonaire has the Bonairean Tree Lizard.

Latin name: Anolis lineatus (Aruba, Curaçao)
Length: An adult male can grow up to approximately 18 cm long (including tail).
Weight:
Color: Brown with two black stripes along the sides. On top, it has a lighter brown diamond-shaped pattern. This provides excellent camouflage when sitting in a tree. The male Anolis lineatus or striped tree lizard has a beautiful orange-colored throat fan with a black spot in the middle.
Reproduction: Lizards mate, and the female lizard lays eggs. The eggs have soft shells. They lay only one egg at a time.
Habitat: In the wild, they live in trees.
Defense mechanisms: If an intruder enters its territory, the male displays its throat fan. It is bright orange with a black spot in the middle. He bobs his head up and down to make the throat fan even more noticeable (he does the same to attract the attention of females).
Voedsel: Ze eten vooral insecten die ze in de bomen zoeken. Doordat ze veel schadelijke insecten opruimen, zijn ze zeer nuttig.
Food: They mainly eat insects which they find in the trees. Because they eliminate many harmful insects, they are very useful.

Enemies: Snakes and humans who cut down the “mondi” (natural vegetation) to build on the land.