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Los Angeles (CNS) - The Los Angeles Zoo has successfully hatched two healthy perentie lizards, a first in the zoo's history, officials announced Thursday.
The rare achievement places the L.A. Zoo among only three accredited institutions in the United States to successfully reproduce the species, according to zoo officials.
"It is incredibly rewarding for our team to experience success breeding this species," Byron Wusstig, L.A. Zoo acting curator of ectotherms, said in a statement. "This species is not endangered, but it is rarely seen in zoo settings outside of Australia."
The baby lizards were thriving and were being closely monitored by staff in controlled off-exhibit conditions to ensure their proper development, zoo officials said.
Zoo visitors can see the adult male perentie, the father of the new hatchlings, in the Australia section near the Komodo dragon habitat.
Perentie lizards are among the world's largest lizards, measuring over 8 feet long and weighing up to 40 pounds. Known for their distinctive brown skin with cream or yellow markings, the carnivorous reptiles hunt using their sharp vision and keen sense of smell, according to zoo officials.