These anole lizards blow bubbles to breathe underwater
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The lizards in this study are known as anoles.
This is an anole lizard, a creature with a pretty special skill.
It can blow a bubble of air and use it to breathe underwater, hiding there to escape predators.
According to a study published earlier this month, the lizard found in the Caribbean and Latin America has evolved to be able to blow bubbles through their noses that contain oxygen.
Using this air bubble, which clings to the top of their heads, they can stay underwater for up to 15 minutes.
The author of the study, Christopher Boccia says the bubbles, called a rebreather device, are similar to a tank of oxygen used by scuba divers to breathe underwater.
This is what the bubbles look like!
During the study, the researchers saw that the lizards would dive into the water to avoid predators.
They placed the lizards in different water-filled containers so that they could observe what they were doing and discovereed that six different species of lizard used this bubble blowing technique.
Lizards aren't they only creatures to use bubbles to breathe underwater. Some beetles and arachnids, such as diving bell spiders, do the same thing.
Pretty cool, right?
- Published13 May 2021
- Published21 April 2020
