World’s Smallest Reptile Found

Researchers in the Caribbean Islands have discovered the world’s smallest reptile, measuring three-quarters of an inch from snout to the base of its tail. The Jaragua sphaero , or dwarf gecko, apparently exists only on Beata Island and nearby areas in the Dominican Republic’s Jaragua National Park, the researchers report in the December Caribbean Journal of Science.

The region is home to many small creatures. The world’s smallest bird, the bee hummingbird--barely twice the size of a penny--is found only in Cuba. And the Lesser Antillean thread snake is so thin that it could slither through a pencil if the lead were removed. Extremely large and small species often evolve on islands, where they face fewer competitors.

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Compiled by Times medical writer Thomas H. Maugh II