Lizard Lifespans Explained: How Long Do Lizards Live?

A lizards' lifespan is greatly influenced and dependent on its habitat and the space given to them.

Living among the wild will give them a lifespan of not more than three years. However, if lizards live in captivity, they are blessed with an age of 20 years or more.

Different kinds of species have different lifespans. Lizards are considered to be cute pets. These pets create curiosity among people who observe them. When small kids keep a check on their location, they start thinking about their life in captivity. They have several questions in their mind and one of them includes that how long do lizards live? If you like these aspects of the life of this wild animal, do check why do lizards do push-ups and what do lizards eat?

How long can lizards live in captivity?

They belong to the alligator family. This tiny alligator has tiny feet, and their feet consist of five toes each. If you are planning to buy a lizard as your pet, you should first decide how long you are willing to keep it. If we talk about lifespan, it is not fixed; it depends. Different animal species have different lifespans. For example, a bearded dragon lives for 10 years, whereas a crested gecko has a lifespan of 17 years. However, it is amusing to know that according to a report, a bearded dragon has a lifespan of 20 years.

Proper care and food will always keep a lizard active and healthy, just like it helps humans. It will be one such good friend whom you will always have at your place. While you sleep on your bed, you can admire it spreading and relaxing over the walls in your room. If you want your lizard to trust you, always keep sharp objects away from it. All these small points will get you this tiny cute pet for longer years.

How long do regular lizards live?

A house lizard lives for around five years. It often happens that they do not find an adequate amount of food in a particular house. With their power to shift from one place to another at any time, they readily change the house to fulfill their hunger. Lizards such as crested geckos, bearded dragons, and leopard geckos are commonly found in houses. It is easy to take care of these species. Proper housing increases their lifespan naturally.

A chameleon is a lizard that has the shortest lifespan of one to three years. At the same time, the average lifespan of other species falls between 10-20 years. Iguanas and geckos are common species found. Lizards such as Mexican Beaded Lizards have a long span of three years.

However, have you ever thought that lizards are bad for your home? These little reptiles are responsible for keeping the insect population down. The insects must be afraid. You should not be afraid of these house lizards as they are non-venomous and harmless. They are included in the category of creepy crawlies and are good companions at your home. It is very important for you to know that these tiny reptiles make your garden ecologically friendly.

How long does a lizard live without food?

If you have a small house lizard, you must definitely be wondering how long it will survive without food? There are chances when a lizard is not provided with good food. Also, you must not be free to feed the small gecko properly. Well, you should have this knowledge that a lizard can survive without food for two weeks or more. This also varies with the kind of lizard species you are talking about. Some can sustain only for two to three weeks, whereas others can go longer, up to two months.

Lizards that are used to dry habitats can manage without water for long. Whereas those lizards coming from tropical regions find it difficult to live without water. If you want a self-observation, keep a notice on the lizard's skin. If you find that it is looking smaller, it means it is dehydrated. Baby lizards need more food to have enough potential to adapt to a new environment. Do you know that lizards store their extra fat in their tails? Whenever they require more energy, they break down the fat stored in their tails and can survive for the day.

For example, leopard geckos can live for more than a month without eating. Whereas an adult bearded dragon fails to live for more than three weeks in cases of food scarcity. In all, it is important to keep your lizard healthy.

What determines how long a lizard will live?

There are more than 6000 lizard species found by humans. All these are different with different structures and suitability. Therefore, the lifespan of all kinds of species differs. Not only this. As we read earlier, that habitat also makes a major difference in their lives. When they are prone to wildlife, they have to fight with predators. There are very few chances of their long existence. However, with your kind love and care, captivity blesses them with a long life.

Captivity provides a safe place for their existence. They are not threatened by any harmful animal. They are off predators and have some caring people around them. They also become playful when children treat them properly. You will be astonished to know that these lizards understand human language. They are able to connect with humans through eye contact. The harmless environment gives them a happy life which increases their lifespan. Also, you should remember the different lifespans of different species. Few species have short lifespans, as discussed above and a few of them live even up to 50 years.

There is also a case study on lizards lifespan which states that it decreases with a decline in elevation. It means that at higher altitudes, lizards live longer. Whereas the lizard population at intermediate levels had a shorter lifespan. This is a fact, based on history.

The Best Pet Lizard Species Based On Lifespan

Now, you may be very interested in getting yourself a tiny, friendly pet lizard at your home. This article will help you understand which lizard species will be the best pets for you. A house gecko or an iguana is best for beginners. They require minimal care and will become your constant companion. Not only are they interactive, but also can be fed easily. To name them, they are Gila monster, leopard gecko, bearded dragon, blue-tongued skink, a crested gecko, and a green iguana.

Leopard geckos. Firstly to know about the lifespan, a leopard gecko can live for up to 20 years in optimum conditions. It is one of the longest living lizard species and also the best one to make your small pet. It is very attractive and beautiful. It is lovely to watch its movements. It is active in its interaction, therefore, becomes a good friend easily. You should also know about some essentials required by them, such as UVB light to boost its immune system and calcium and multivitamin supplements.

Bearded dragons. If you preserve your bearded dragons well, they will stay with you for up to 15 years. Though it has a dangerous name, it is an oxymoron. It is harmless and friendly in nature. It also requires UVB light and lukewarm water.

Blue-tongued skinks. Blue-tongued skinks have a lifespan of more than 20 years. Its blue tongue makes it very beautiful and admirable. Also, it is very frequent in dropping its tail to guard itself against predators. A blue-tongued skink is a very friendly and intelligent species. Skinks are lizards that belong to the Scincidae family, which is part of the Scincomorpha infraorder.

Crested geckos. They can also live for more than 20 years and is another harmless pet on your list.

The green iguana, often known as the American iguana or common green iguana, is a big, arboreal, primarily herbivorous lizard belonging to the genus Iguana. This animal is commonly referred to as an iguana. The green iguana has a wide range of habitats; it is native to southern Brazil and Paraguay, as well as northern Mexico. Green iguanas live for roughly 20 years in the wild. Captivity can be difficult, and many iguanas die in their first few years of life owing to malnutrition and poor husbandry.

How To Extend A Lizard's Lifespan?

If you keep your lizard healthy, it is automatically going to be a long companion. There are different ways in which you can take care of your pets and further increase their lifespan.

A decorated piece of a glass tank with captivity space is not enough for a baby lizard to live a happy life. You need to build a house with beautiful lighting, heating, and humidity conditions for your lizard. This will give it a feeling of natural habitat.

As you clean your house, keep your lizard's place clean too.

Every creature has its own liking for food. Feed your lizard within its liking. Insects will not help your lizard last longer.

Like humans, lizards are also required to intake sufficient amounts of calcium and vitamins in forms they like. Therefore, you should take care of all these things well for your pets.

The body of these crawling creatures cannot be found on the ground. Their lifestyle may nearly vary depending on their habitat and the temperature around them. They are not warm-blooded. They do not even like warm weather. Belonging to the cold blood family, they enjoy a rather cold temperature. They even enjoy cold water. The owners must make sure that even the key water temperature is also maintained.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for how long do lizards live, then why not take a look at best pet lizards, or lizard facts.