Plumed Basilisk

Facts

IUCN NOT EVALUATED (NE)

Facts about this animal

The Plumed Basilisk reaches a total length of 70 – 75 cm (up to 90cm), whereby the tail is 2,1/2 up to 3 times as long as the body. The colour is a brilliant green, but also dark-green and blue-green. From the neck to the tail base there is a row of white-yellow to bluish spots. On the flanks there is a second row of such spots. The belly is yellow. The males have a very conspicuous double helmet and a toothed crest on their back and tail. They eat insects, snails, frogs, fish, smaller lizards, but also flowers and fruit. Females reach their sexual maturity with 15 – 18 months. Several times per year the female lays up to 15 eggs after a gestation period of app. 50 days into a self-made hollow in the ground. The clutch is covered with substrate and is then left. The young hatch after a period of 55 to 105 days. A newborn Plumed Basilisk weighs about 3 grs.

Did you know?
that the Plumed Basilisk is not only a good diver and swimmer, but with a speed up to app. 11 km/h it is capable to run short distances on the water surface? This is due to its long hind legs and its long, wide toes. When the speed decreases, it sinks into the water.

Factsheet
Class	REPTILIA
Order	SQUAMATA
Suborder	SAURIA (IGUANIA)
Family	CORYTOPHANIDAE
Name (Scientific)	Basiliscus plumifrons
Name (English)	Plumed Basilisk
Name (French)	Basilic crêté
Name (German)	Stirnlapenbasilisk
Name (Spanish)	Basilisco verde, Basilisco de doble cresta
CITES Status	Not listed
CMS Status	Not listed

Photo Copyright by
Marcel Staub

Distribution

Distribution
Range	Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama
Habitat	In tropical, dense and shady rainforests near rivers and streams mainly on trees, lianas, bromelias, orchids and ferns.
Wild population	This species is relatively common in the wild.
Zoo population	325 reported to ISIS (2007), but this species is also frequently kept by private owners.

In the Zoo

How this animal should be transported

For air transport, Container Note 41 of the IATA Live Animals Regulations should be followed.

Find this animal on ZooLex

Photo Copyright by
Hans Hillewaert

Why do zoos keep this animal

The plumed basilisk is not a currently threatened species. zoos keep it primarily for educational reasons as a large and conspicuous representative of the lizards, because of its ability of biped walking and walking on water, reason why it has been dubbed “The Jesus Christ Lizard" and as an ambassador species for the conservation of neotropical forests. Basilisks are popular pets, and zoos may often come into position to accept abandoned or not properly kept specimens for animal welfare reasons.

How this animal should be kept

Since Plumed Basilisks are big and very active animals. The terrarium should be rather spacious. An adult male and two to three adult females need a minimal enclosure of 140 x 70 x 150 cm, height being very important. Since males are rather aggressive against each other , Plumed Basilisks should be kept in pairs or one male with two to three females. At daytime the temperature should be between 27-30 °C and in the night 20-25°C (this can be achieved with infra-red heaters, regulated by a thermostat). To reach a high humidity of 70-90% at daytime and 80-100% at night, the terrarium should be sprayed accordingly. The rain-forest terrarium should contain many robust live plants, like Bromelias, Yuccas, Tillandsias, Ficus, Passionflowers and Ferns. The walls should be covered with cocos-fiber plates or cork plates. Also sufficient strong horizontal climbing branches with rather rough bark should be provided. Equally important is a big pool in the terrarium which allows the animals to submerse completely. The water temperature should be 24-28 °C. The substrate can be bark chips or a soil-peat-sand mixture, which should be kept humid. However, the substrate plays a rather unimportant role since Plumed Basilisk only rarely stay on the ground. For illumination HQ emitters have proven to be suitable. One can also use spotlights, but in this case and additional UV Light is necessary. Basiliscus plumifrons can be fed with house crickets, cockroaches, locusts, crickets, spiders, baby mice, small fish and now and then mealworms, Zophobas and waxmoths. Sometimes they also take fruit and flowers.