Dracaena guianensis
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
The northern caiman lizard (Dracaena guianensis) is a species of lizard found in northern South America. The northern caiman lizard is built similarly to its cousin the tegu, with a large heavy set body and short but powerful limbs. Its head is bulky and often a red or orange color. Their jaws are heavily muscular to help aid in eating its normal prey of snails, crawfish and fresh water clams. It also has a few adaptations that help it in its watery habitat. It has a long and flattened tail, similar to its namesake, the caiman. The long tail helps the northern caiman lizard to successfully swim and dive. A clear third eyelid is thought to act like a pair of goggles underwater.
The body of the northern caiman lizard is very similar to that of a crocodile. It is typically a bright green with slight dark green banding. There are horned raised scales along the dorsal of the back. This helps to provide some protection against predators.
These lizards can reach up to 4 ft (1.2 m) long and weigh up to 10 lb (4.5 kg). D. guianensis can be found in the south American countries of Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and the Guianas. It lives in swampy... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yasuní National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Disney's Animal Kingdom | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Busch Gardens Tampa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | San Diego Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Moscow Zoo | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 5 | Prague Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 6 | National Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Shedd Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Basel Zoo | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | |
| 9 | ZooParc de Beauval | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 10 | Leipzig Zoological Garden | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 11 | Copenhagen Zoo | 🇩🇰 Denmark | |
| 12 | California Academy of Sciences | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | Barcelona Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 14 | Zlín-Lešná Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 15 | Paris Zoological Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 16 | Greensboro Science Center | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 17 | Abilene Zoological Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 18 | Aquarium du palais de la Porte Dorée | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 19 | Zoo Miami | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 20 | Toronto Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 21 | Bronx Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 22 | Brookfield Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 23 | Parc zoologique de Montpellier | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 24 | Nashville Zoo at Grassmere | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 25 | Safari Madrid | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 26 | Los Angeles Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 27 | Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 28 | Wildlife World Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 29 | Birmingham Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 30 | Berlin Zoological Garden | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 31 | Caldwell Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 32 | Paignton Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 33 | San Francisco Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 34 | Night Safari | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 35 | Zoologischer Garten Leipzig | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 36 | Fort Worth Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 37 | Zoo Knoxville | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 38 | Singapore Zoo | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 39 | Virginia Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 40 | Houston Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 41 | Gembira Loka Zoo | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 42 | Tierpark Hagenbeck | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 43 | Philadelphia Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 44 | Fresno Chaffee Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 45 | Schönbrunn Zoo | 🇦🇹 Austria | |
| 46 | Zoo Atlanta | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 47 | London Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 48 | Ueno Zoo | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 49 | Rosamond Gifford Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 50 | Aquarama Barcelona | 🇪🇸 Spain |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Caiman Lizard sighting in Yasuní National Park on a given day, based on 37 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 14th most-seen of the 49 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March and April
In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Caiman Lizard in Yasuní National Park on a given day, against under 5% in November, the lowest month.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Northern Caiman Lizard sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Yasuní National Park, in our data
Yasuní National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Northern Caiman Lizard sightings: about 30% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Teiidae
The closest relatives of the Northern Caiman Lizard that you can see in Yasuní National Park (family Teiidae, Whiptails and Tegus) are Forest Whiptail (about 30%) and Cusco Tegu (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Northern Caiman Lizard is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Yasuní National Park (37 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.
