Aldabra Giant Tortoise
Aldabra Atoll is home to about 100,000 giant tortoises, the largest population of giant tortoises in the world.
Reptile
Alligator Snapping Turtle
The alligator snapping turtle lies motionless on the riverbed with its mouth open, wiggling a pink, worm-like lure on its tongue to attract fish.
American Alligator
Alligators dig ‘gator holes’ that hold water through droughts, creating refuges for fish, turtles and birds, which makes them ecosystem engineers.
Black Caiman
The black caiman is the largest predator in the Amazon and the biggest member of the alligator family.
Black Mamba
The black mamba is named not for its olive-grey body but for the inky black inside of its mouth, which it shows when threatened.
Boa Constrictor
A boa constrictor kills its prey by stopping its blood flow as it squeezes, not by suffocation as people long believed.
Burmese Python
After a big meal, a Burmese python’s heart can grow by about 40 percent and its other organs expand to digest its huge meal.
Central Bearded Dragon
In bearded dragons, high nest temperatures can turn genetically male embryos into females, a discovery confirmed in wild populations.
Common Basilisk
The basilisk can run across the surface of water on its hind legs, earning it the nickname ‘Jesus Christ lizard’.
Frilled Lizard
When threatened, the frilled lizard opens a huge frill of skin around its neck, hisses and gapes its bright mouth to scare off predators.