How to tell the difference between a male and female Iguana

With a little understanding of reptilian anatomy, it may possible for you to be able to determine if your iguana is a male or a female. This can be difficult with smaller animals, but you should be able to tell with an animal that is about 2 feet long. There are several steps you need to take that will help you determine whether your iguana is a male or female.

Things You'll Need

  • Assistant
  • Towel
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Instructions

    • 1

      Some young iguanas may first appear to be female, but as the reptile gets older it will develop more obvious male characteristics. It may be nearly impossible to determine if a young or baby iguana is a male or a female. Pseudo-females do occur. This means that a male may appear for all practical evaluation to be a female when in fact it is a male. The reason for this is that if a young male appears to be a female, a larger dominant male will allow it to remain in the larger iguana̵7;s territory. Mature males do not allow other mature males, which they see as rivals, in their territory.

    • 2

      Look on your iguana̵7;s face for a large, round scale on the cheek. In females, this scale stays flat. In males, it gets quite swollen looking. Males will develop fatty deposits here and this area will begin to look jowly.

    • 3

      Look at your iguana̵7;s head for fat deposits that have developed over the top of the head. A female̵7;s head looks smooth and rounded. Males develop two distinctive fatty-deposit bumps on top of the head.

    • 4

      Find an assistant to help you look at your iguana̵7;s genitalia. Examine the underside of your iguana̵7;s hind legs, paying attention to the upper thigh area. You will see a row of pores on each leg. In females, this row of pores is very tiny and looks like pin-pricks. In males, the pores can become quite obvious and looks like a comb with thick, waxy exudates (oozy substance).