One of the neatest lizards at Lilok Farm is one of the most difficult to find. Way up in the treetops, crawling around branches with a body as green as the leaves, is the Green Crested Lizard.

The beautiful color of this lizard is what we call “camouflage”. Camouflage is any coloration that makes it more difficult for the animal to be seen – in this case, by blending into its forest environment.

These lizards are active during the day, but their home high in the trees and the well-camouflaged green body make them so difficult to find in the daytime. Instead, I tend to see them at night, when they come down a little lower to sleep and their bodies light up in the beam of the flashlight.

One neat thing about Green Crested Lizards is that despite their name, they’re not always green. When stressed or threatened, they will change color to a dark brown!