World Lizard Day - 14 August.

World Lizard Day is celebrated on August 14 every year. The day may not be a well-known one, but it’s still celebrated on local levels with schools, parks, and reptile enthusiasts being the main groups celebrating the occasion. Educational and fun events remain a staple of the holiday. Reptile enthusiasts use the internet to spread information about their love for the scaly critters. The day hasn’t been adopted by higher-level conservation organizations like the World Wildlife Fund (W.W.F.). Instead, it is mainly focused on awareness about reptiles as pets.

HISTORY OF WORLD LIZARD DAY

Like many odd holidays, the origins of World Lizard Day are unclear. Don’t let its murky beginnings dissuade you from celebrating this wholesome day though. The species is dying out worldwide due to ignorance and lack of attention. The day may be about lizards, but we can’t pass up on the opportunity to tell you more about reptiles in general. It’s the spirit of the day after all!

All reptiles are air-breathing vertebrates covered in scales, plates of bone, or a combination of both. Species of this family include snakes, lizards, crocodiles, and tortoises. All of these shed their skin and depend on the environment to regulate their body temperatures. This dependence on outside factors when it comes to regulating their core body temperatures means that reptiles have to find sun and shade in order to warm up or cool down. In areas that have colder winters, reptiles generally experience a period of inactivity until the weather grows warmer again.

Lizards are no different, which is why you see them sunning themselves in your warm garden or on the bricks that soak up the sun throughout the day. For pet lizards, staying warm or cool is a different matter entirely. People who own lizards as pets need to heat their tanks with heating lamps or pads without overheating the space. In fact, preparing and maintaining a tank for a lizard or any reptile requires a great deal of initial and continuous effort. Each subspecies of reptile has specific needs and preferences. It’s recommended that aspiring and even current reptile owners do research on exactly what their pet needs to be happy and healthy. Doing research before you buy or adopt a pet lizard will help you to figure out what kind of lizard would suit you and your budget constraints. This before you buy stage is crucial in ensuring that you make the right choice when it comes to being a pet owner.

Source: https://nationaltoday.com

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