Lizards of the Dunes

Some people might think
Death Valley is
A desolate and forbidding place,
Inhospitable to man or beast,
But if you look close, however,
There are signs of life
Where you might least expect.
Not far from Stove Pipe Wells
Is an area of immense sand dunes
Popular for tourists,
Young lovers
And photographers alike.
What few visitors notice
In the bushes at the base
Of the dunes,
Was a population
Of desert iguanas
That live entirely
Off the leaves
Of those plants.
I have watched people
Follow the tracks
Of the lizards in the sand
And never notice
The ones in the bushes
Staring back at them.
They are not tiny either,
Getting up to
Three feet in length,
But they are
So well camouflaged ,
That few people
Can spot them
Hidden amongst
The sand and the bush.
They probably migrate
Across the desert floor,
Because I have been back
A time or two,
And failed to see them myself
Even though I knew
Where to look.
Hopefully, somewhere out there
Is a population of them
Still munching away,
Hidden from sight.