Green Iguana

Green Iguana

Iguana iguana

Silhouette: Jack Mayer Wood · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
at Anavilhanas National Park

In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%

16 Verified sightings at Anavilhanas National Park From 2019 to 2026
4,264 In all 44 parks
June Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Green Iguana

The green iguana (Iguana iguana), also known as the American iguana or the common green iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area; it is native from southern Brazil and Paraguay as far north as Mexico. It is highly invasive in many subtropical and tropical environments throughout the world.

A herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.7 m (5.6 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 m (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 9 kg (20 lb).

Although this species is commonly kept as a pet because of its disposition and coloration, it can be challenging to care for properly. Its requirements for adequate space, lighting, and heat can be difficult for hobbyists to meet.

The species was first officially described by Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Since then, numerous subspecies have been identified, but later classified as merely regional variants of the same species. Using nuclear and mitochondrial DNA... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Recording0:22

Costa Rica · 2025

© johnavery · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Recording0:17

Venezuela · 2026

© Marco Romero · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Recording0:10

Taiwan · 2024

© libertine soup · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~80%
2 Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas 🇧🇷 Brazil
~70%
3 Tayrona National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~70%
4 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~70%
5 Palo Verde National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~60%
6 Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
~60%
7 Braulio Carrillo National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~60%
8 Sierra de la Macarena National Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~50%
9 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~50%
10 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~50%
11 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~50%
12 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~50%
13 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~50%
14 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~50%
15 San Lorenzo Protected Forest 🇵🇦 Panama
~40%
16 Everglades National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~40%
17 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
18 Piedras Blancas National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
19 Anavilhanas National Park 🇧🇷 Brazil
~40%
20 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
21 Caroni Swamp 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
~40%
22 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
23 Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~40%
24 Masaya Volcano National Park 🇳🇮 Nicaragua
~40%
25 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~40%
26 Main Ridge Forest Reserve 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
~40%
27 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~40%
28 Coiba National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~40%
29 Arenal Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~40%
30 Lago de Yojoa 🇭🇳 Honduras
~40%
31 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
~30%
32 Henri Pittier National Park 🇻🇪 Venezuela
~30%
33 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
34 Pico Bonito National Park 🇭🇳 Honduras
~30%
35 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
~30%
36 Amacayacu National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~20%
37 Cañón del Sumidero National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
~20%
38 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~20%
39 Rincón de la Vieja National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
40 Farallones de Cali National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~20%
41 Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
42 Tenorio Volcano National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
43 Big Cypress National Preserve 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
44 Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Guayaquil 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~80%
2 Cali 🇨🇴 Colombia
~70%
3 Barranquilla 🇨🇴 Colombia
~70%
4 Manaus 🇧🇷 Brazil
~70%
5 São Luís 🇧🇷 Brazil
~70%
6 Valencia 🇻🇪 Venezuela
~70%
7 Miami 🇺🇸 United States
~70%
8 Natal 🇧🇷 Brazil
~60%
9 Belém 🇧🇷 Brazil
~60%
10 João Pessoa 🇧🇷 Brazil
~50%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Disney's Animal Kingdom 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
2 Everland 🇰🇷 South Korea In captivity
3 Busch Gardens Tampa 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
4 Moscow Zoo 🇷🇺 Russia In captivity
5 Pairi Daiza 🇧🇪 Belgium In captivity
6 National Zoological Park 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
7 ZooParc de Beauval 🇫🇷 France In captivity
8 Copenhagen Zoo 🇩🇰 Denmark In captivity
9 Dublin Zoo 🇮🇪 Ireland In captivity
10 Aquarium of Genoa 🇮🇹 Italy In captivity
11 Toba Aquarium 🇯🇵 Japan In captivity
12 Parque das Aves 🇧🇷 Brazil In captivity
13 Barcelona Zoo 🇪🇸 Spain In captivity
14 Cabarceno Natural Park 🇪🇸 Spain In captivity
15 Kolmården Wildlife Park 🇸🇪 Sweden In captivity
16 Nausicaà Centre National de la Mer 🇫🇷 France In captivity
17 Oceanarium in Saint Petersburg 🇷🇺 Russia In captivity
18 Paris Zoological Park 🇫🇷 France In captivity
19 Melaka Zoo and Bird Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia In captivity
20 Fota Wildlife Park 🇮🇪 Ireland In captivity
21 Réserve africaine de Sigean 🇫🇷 France In captivity
22 Zoologic park de Lille 🇫🇷 France In captivity
23 Rostov Zoo 🇷🇺 Russia In captivity
24 Karagandy Zoo 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan In captivity
25 Zoobotanic Park of Brusque 🇧🇷 Brazil In captivity
26 Parque Temático Hacienda Nápoles 🇨🇴 Colombia In captivity
27 Vinpearl Safari 🇻🇳 Vietnam In captivity
28 Nandankanan Zoological Park 🇮🇳 India In captivity
29 Arignar Anna Zoological Park 🇮🇳 India In captivity
30 Beijing Wildlife Park 🇨🇳 China In captivity
31 Al Ain Zoo 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates In captivity
32 Taipei Zoo 🇹🇼 Taiwan In captivity
33 Parque Zoológico 🇧🇷 Brazil In captivity
34 Nehru Zoological Park 🇮🇳 India In captivity
35 Khao Kheow Open Zoo 🇹🇭 Thailand In captivity
36 Yumka' 🇲🇽 Mexico In captivity
37 Zoológico de Brasília 🇧🇷 Brazil In captivity
38 Badoca Safari Park 🇵🇹 Portugal In captivity
39 Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo 🇹🇭 Thailand In captivity
40 Chiang Mai Night Safari 🇹🇭 Thailand In captivity
41 Planète Sauvage 🇫🇷 France In captivity
42 Ecological Center of Sonora 🇲🇽 Mexico In captivity
43 Virginia Safari Park 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
44 Parc zoologique de Montpellier 🇫🇷 France In captivity
45 Beijing Zoo 🇨🇳 China In captivity
46 Safari Madrid 🇪🇸 Spain In captivity
47 Indira Gandhi Zoological Park 🇮🇳 India In captivity
48 Sedgwick County Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
49 Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo 🇨🇳 China In captivity
50 Parc zoologique de Lisieux 🇫🇷 France In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Green Iguana in Anavilhanas National Park?

Likely

About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Green Iguana sighting in Anavilhanas National Park on a given day, based on 16 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 2nd most-seen of the 8 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Green Iguana in Anavilhanas National Park?

June

In that month about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Green Iguana in Anavilhanas National Park on a given day, against about 10% in February, May, September and November, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Green Iguana?

Between 11 am and 2 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Green Iguana sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Where does the Green Iguana sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Green Iguana is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Anavilhanas National Park (16 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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