The
green iguana (
Iguana iguana), also known as
common iguana or
American iguana, is a large,
arboreal, mostly
herbivorous species of
lizard of the
genus Iguana native to
Central,
South America, and the
Caribbean. Usually, this animal is simply called the
iguana. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area, from southern
Brazil and
Paraguay as far north as
Mexico and the
Caribbean Islands. They have been introduced from South America to
Puerto Rico and are very common throughout the island, where they are colloquially known as "Gallina de palo" and considered an
invasive species; in the
United States feral populations also exist in
South Florida (including the
Florida Keys),
Hawaii, the
U.S. Virgin Islands and the
Rio Grande Valley of
Texas.