TUATARA !

Okay - you didn't like the weta blog?
Don't go to Australia, that's all I can say!
They have the 10 most dangerous and toxic creatures in the world (and the swine flu!)

Anyway - our creatures are cute and interesting by comparison...
Take the tuatara for example!



It's an endemic (only found in New Zealand) lizard..and it's been around for over 200 million years..basically "living fossils". Cool!
The name "tuatara" derives from the Māori language, and means "peaks on the back". They have a cute row of spines along their back.



They have a third eye on the top of their head, which grows over as they mature. The only animal in the world to have three eyes!
They have no external ears, but they can hear..how do they do that? And they are nocturnal.




Here's one for the boys.. male tuatara don't have a penis...hmmmm

They can hold their breath for up to an hour.
There are only two types of tuatara left in the world, because they are endangered: The Brother's Island tuatara has olive brown skin with yellowish patches, while the colour of the other species, and the Cook Strait tuatara which ranges from olive green through grey to dark pink with white spots.



The tuatara only lays eggs once every 4 years, which is why there are so few left. But they do live to about 100.
Isn't that nicer than those Ozzie menaces?