Editing Lizard (section)

==Relationship with humans==

=== Interactions and uses by humans ===
Most lizard species are harmless to humans. Only the largest lizard species, the [[Komodo dragon]], which reaches {{convert|3.3|m|ft|abbr=on}} in length and weighs up to {{convert|166|kg|lb|abbr=on}}, has been known to stalk, attack, and, on occasion, kill humans. An eight-year-old Indonesian boy died from blood loss after an attack in  2007.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna19026658 |title=Komodo dragon kills boy in Indonesia |work=NBC News |access-date=2011-11-07 |date=2007-06-04 |archive-date=2017-09-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170906224720/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/19026658/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Kini iguana.jpg|thumb|left|[[Green iguana]]s (''Iguana iguana''), are popular pets.]]

Numerous species of lizard are kept as [[pet]]s, including [[Pogona|bearded dragons]],<ref name=Virata/> [[iguana]]s, [[anole]]s,<ref>{{cite web|last1=McLeod|first1=Lianne|title=An Introduction to Green Anoles as Pets|url=https://www.thespruce.com/green-anoles-pets-1236900|website=The Spruce|access-date=28 May 2017|archive-date=24 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180324224708/https://www.thespruce.com/green-anoles-pets-1236900|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[gecko]]s (such as the popular [[leopard gecko]]).<ref name=Virata>{{cite web |last1=Virata |first1=John B. |title=5 Great Beginner Pet Lizards |url=http://www.reptilesmagazine.com/Lizards/5-Great-Beginner-Pet-Lizards/ |publisher=Reptiles Magazine |access-date=28 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170517132043/http://www.reptilesmagazine.com/Lizards/5-Great-Beginner-Pet-Lizards/ |archive-date=17 May 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref>[[Monitor lizard]]s such as the [[savannah monitor]] and [[Tupinambis|tegus]] such as the [[Argentine black and white tegu|Argentine tegu]] and [[red tegu]] are also kept.

[[Green iguana]]s are eaten in Central America, where they are sometimes referred to as "chicken of the tree" after their habit of resting in trees and their supposedly chicken-like taste,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Referencias culturales - todo iguanas verdes |url=http://todoiguanasverdes.jimdo.com/01-qu%C3%A9-es-una-iguana/h-referencias-culturales/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161026234318/http://todoiguanasverdes.jimdo.com/01-qu%C3%A9-es-una-iguana/h-referencias-culturales/ |archive-date=2016-10-26 |access-date=2018-11-25}}</ref> while [[Uromastyx|spiny-tailed lizards]] are eaten in [[Africa]]. In North Africa, ''Uromastyx'' species are considered ''dhaab'' or 'fish of the desert' and eaten by nomadic tribes.<ref>Grzimek, Bernhard. Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia (Second Edition) Vol 7 – Reptiles. (2003) Thomson – Gale. Farmington Hills, Minnesota. Vol Editor – Neil Schlager. {{ISBN|0-7876-5783-2}} (for vol.7). p. 48</ref>[[File:Red-tegu-fuego-drinking-water.gif|thumb|[[Red tegu]] drinking water out of a dispenser.]]Lizards such as the Gila monster produce toxins with medical applications. Gila toxin reduces plasma glucose; the substance is now synthesized for use in the anti-[[diabetes]] drug [[exenatide]] (Byetta).<ref name="Casey2013" /> Another toxin from Gila monster saliva has been studied for use as an anti-[[Alzheimer's]] drug.<ref>{{cite web |date=5 April 2002 |title=Alzheimer's research seeks out lizards |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1912396.stm |publisher=BBC |access-date=5 July 2017 |archive-date=29 June 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060629075246/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/1912396.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== In culture ===
Lizards appear in myths and folktales around the world. In [[Australian Aboriginal mythology]], Tarrotarro, the lizard god, split the human race into male and female, and gave people the ability to express themselves in art. A lizard king named Mo'o features in Hawaii and other cultures in Polynesia. In the Amazon, the lizard is the king of beasts, while among the Bantu of Africa, the god UNkulunkulu sent a chameleon to tell humans they would live forever, but the chameleon was held up, and another lizard brought a different message, that the time of humanity was limited.<ref>{{cite book |last=Greenberg |first=Daniel A. |title=Lizards |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iTZRUNFQ1x0C&pg=PA15 |year=2004 |publisher=Marshall Cavendish |isbn=978-0-7614-1580-0 |pages=15–16}}</ref> A popular legend in [[Maharashtra]] tells the tale of how a [[Bengal monitor|common Indian monitor]], with ropes attached, was used to scale the walls of the fort in the [[Battle of Sinhagad]].<ref name="auffenberg">{{cite book |last=Auffenberg |first=Walter |title=The Bengal Monitor |publisher=University Press of Florida |year=1994 |page=494 |isbn=978-0-8130-1295-7}}</ref> 

Lizards in many cultures share the symbolism of snakes, especially as an emblem of resurrection. This may have derived from their regular molting. The motif of lizards on Christian candle holders probably alludes to the same symbolism. According to Jack Tresidder, in Egypt and the Classical world, they were beneficial emblems, linked with wisdom. In African, Aboriginal and Melanesian folklore they are linked to cultural heroes or ancestral figures.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Tresidder |first1=Jack |title=the Hutchinson Dictionary of Symbols |date=1997 |publisher=Helicon |location=London| isbn=978-1-85986-059-5 |page=125}}</ref>