(Image: Flávio H. G. Rodrigues)

When there’s no food to be found, cannibalism could be the last resort. This photo captures a rare instance of an iguana tucking into a juicy juvenile for lunch.

Last August, José M. Mora from the National University of Costa Rica and his team spotted the adult female preying on a 3-month-old of its own species at Santa Rosa National Park in north-western Costa Rica. The older lizard grabbed the victim with its mouth, while the young iguana fought back by biting its attacker’s fingers.

(Image: Flávio H. G. Rodrigues)


The team suspects that the adult lizard resorted to cannibalism in response to a shortage of food caused by a drought in the area. The rainy season, which is typically in full swing at that time of year, was delayed by a recent El Niño event, reducing the amount of insects and plants – the basis of the iguanas’ diet.

Although it is uncommon for reptiles to munch on their own kind, they have been caught in the act before. The small Greek island of Diavates, for example, is home to supersized wall lizards with a taste for the meat of younger specimens. And it may not be a recent trend: evidence suggests that some dinosaurs, in particular Tyrannosaurus rex, were cannibals.

Journal reference: Mesoamerican Herpetology, vol 2, p 107