This colorful reptile is not a crocodile but a lizard. It gets its name from its powerful tail, which is scaly like that of a crocodile. The Chinese crocodile lizard’s defining feature is its vibrant skin. It has a gray-brown body with a yellow-tan underside and red or orange scales running along its sides. Males are usually larger and more colorful, with the colors growing more vivid during breeding season.

Otherwise known as the shinisaurus, the Chinese crocodile lizard is a popular household pet. It hails from a small mountain range in southern China and northern Vietnam.

These territorial and semiaquatic creatures spend their time alone in slow-moving streams and freshwater pools. Picture a densely populated subtropical forest in