Hokitika | Westland District | New Zealand

New Zealand’s oldest "living dinosaur", the Tuatara. These reptiles were considered extinct until they were found on local offshore islands and introduced back onto the mainland in 2005, when a breeding programme was launched. The Tuatara are only found in New Zealand and are sometimes referred to as the World’s oldest living fossil. They are the only survivors of their reptile species which lived before the dinosaur age, over 200 million years ago. They are the largest reptile in New Zealand but are not a lizard. They are cold-blooded but unlike most reptiles, prefer cooler weather.

In Māori, the name Tuatara means "Peaks on the Back" and this is especially evident on the male Tuatara who has a crest of spines running down their neck and along their back. They stiffen these spines to look impressive to the females, or to intimidate other males. Juveniles have a "third eye" on the top of their head which is believed to help soak up UV rays to help them grown. This eye is not usually visible because they grow scales over it between 4-6 months of age. Tuatara are slow growing until 35 years old and can live over 100 years. Males can grow up to half a metre in length and weigh 1.5kg.

This Tuatara was photographed at the National Kiwi Centre, Hokitika, New Zealand.

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Make:	SONY
Model:	ILCE-7RM2
Exposure:	0.017 sec (1/60)
Aperture:	f/4.0
ISO Speed:	1250
Focal Length:	200 mm
Lens:	FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS