Scuba-Diving Lizards Use Bubbles To Escape Predators In Costa Rica‌ ‌

A species of semi-aquatic lizard produces a special bubble over its nostrils to breathe underwater. LINDSEY SWIERK VIA SWNS.

“>

New research reveals that scuba-diving lizards, described as “the chicken nuggets of the forest,” use a bubble to breathe underwater and escape predators.

American scientists say water anoles—a type of semi-aquatic lizard found in the tropical forests of Costa Rica—utilize this unique technique to avoid birds and snakes that prey on them.

Dr. Lindsey Swierk of Binghamton University in New York had previously documented the species using a bubble underwater.

When the lizards feel threatened by a predator, she says they dive underwater and produce a bubble over their heads to breathe.

Dr. Swierk said: “We know that they can stay underwater for a really long time.

“We also know that they’re pulling oxygen from this bubble of air.

“We didn’t know whether there was actually any functional role for this bubble in respiration.

“Is it something that lizards do that is just a side effect of their skin’s properties or a respiratory reflex, or is this bubble actually allowing them to stay underwater longer than they would, say, without a bubble?”

To investigate whether the bubble serves a functional role in respiration or is merely a by-product, Dr. Swierk applied a substance to the lizards’ skin surface that would prevent bubble formation.

She said: “Lizard skin is hydrophobic.

“Typically, that allows air to stick very tightly to the skin and permits this bubble to form.