The Tuatara Life Cycle
This is a life cycle of a Tuatara! It goes through four stages which are Egg, Hatch-ling, Juvenile and Adult.
Stage 1 The Eggs:
The female tuatara lays 10 - 19 eggs in a deep burrow in the soil. The eggs stay underground for 12 to 15 months that's more than a year! If the egg is warm its a female and it's cold,it's a male.Then they hatch into a hatch-ling.
Stage 2 The Hatching:
As soon as it hatches its on its own. There left to defend there self. It has three eyes one on top one on the side and one on the other side. Hatch-lings are 12 to 15 cm long. The first 15 years of the tuatara life is called a Juvenile
Stage 3 The Juvenile:
Juveniles do not mate or lay eggs. Juveniles and adult tuataras by only coming out at day time.
Stage 4 The Adult:
Adult tuataras eat little tuataras. The male is much bigger than the female tuataras. Adult tuataras are about 45 - 60 cm long. They eat beetles, crickets, spiders, frogs, lizards, eggs and birds. Tuataras have survived almost 200 million years.