Some lizards have big, strong legs while some have none at all. Several families of lizards show some form of limb reduction. Males belonging to the family Dibamidae have limbs that look like flaps, while the females have no limbs at all. The large Australian shingle back skink has well developed limbs, whereas the cylindrical skink from North Africa has tiny limbs.
Limbless lizards include those that are active on the surface such as the slow worms and the burrowers. The burrowers may be sand dwellers, or they may be found where leafy matter lies. The cylindrical skink is a sand dweller, while the Bachia is found in leafy litter. Limbless lizards move on the surface like snakes. Lizards with little limbs also move like snakes, but they use their much reduced limbs while moving slowly. They burrow by pushing the head through the soil or the litter. The scales on the head of these lizards are reduced in number of fused with one another to make the skull tough. Limbless lizards are seen in India too.
At first sight, flying lizards look like ordinary lizards. When they are attacked, they show their true colours. The flying lizard unfolds a pair of colourful wings along its sides, and jumps. Its wings are actually flaps of skin supported by long ribs from within. The flying lizard or Draco glides down for the most part, but it turns up just before it alights on a tree trunk or a branch. Flying lizards are seen only in the forests of South East Asia.
The chameleon creeps upon an insect. Suddenly, it shoots out its sticky tongue. The insect sticks to the tongue, and the chameleon has a tasty meal. The chameleon’s tongue is longer than its body. However it is the ability to change body colour that makes the chameleon famous. The chameleon can make the colour of the skin lighter or darker as needed. That is how it hides. Light level, temperature and the mood of the lizard can all affect the colour it takes on.
The marine iguana looks like a dragon when it puffs steam from its nose. Though it looks fearsome, this iguana is very shy. The Galapagos Islands of the Southern Pacific is its home. The marine iguana is the best swimmer among all lizards, and it often enters water to eat seaweed. The feet are slightly webbed, and the tail is shortened. The tail powers the iguana through water, and the feet sometimes serve to steer the animal. However, normally they are folded alongside their body. Some of the lizards that died out in the past lived out their whole lives in water. Some living lizards like the marine iguana divide their lives between land and water. Some lizards enter water occasionally. Even the desert dwelling Gila monster can swim. 
Take a trip to the island of Komodo in the Indian Ocean to see the Komodo dragon. The Komodo dragon is the biggest lizard of them all. It grows up to a length of 3.5 metres and weighs over 136 kilogrammes. It has a long tongue which it uses like a nose. The Komodo dragon eats animals as big as pigs and deer. It eats dead animals too.
‘Gecko… geck-o’, says the gecko when it ‘talks’. This talk gave the gecko its name. In fact, geckos are the noisiest of reptiles. They live around houses in warm climates, and eat insects. So, they are welcome guests. The gecko’s tail breaks off when attacked and a new one will grow in its place. Unlike other geckos, leopard geckos have movable eyelids. Leopard geckos are commonly kept as pets. Geckos can walk up walls and across ceilings with the help of sticky pads in their feet. The coromandel striped gecko of New Zealand is the rarest of the geckos. Only four have been found so far.