Mexican beaded lizard debate among scientists. However, this venom has been found to contain several enzymes useful for manufacturing drugs in the treatment of diabetes, and research on the pharmacological use of its venom is ongoing. Threatened throughout its range by overcollection and habitat loss, it is a CITES protected species. The Guatemalan beaded lizard ("H. charlesbogerti" ) is one of the rarest lizards in the world, with a wild population of fewer than 200. The beaded lizards have one close living relative, the Gila monster ("H. suspectum"), as well as many extinct relatives in the Helodermatidae, whose genetic history may be traced
The Lizard main units; the serpentinites, the "oceanic complex" and the metamorphic basement. Several nature sites exist on the Lizard Peninsula; Predannack nature reserve, Mullion Island, Goonhilly Downs, and the Cornish Seal Sanctuary at Gweek. An area of the Lizard covering is designated a national nature reserve because of its coastal grasslands and heaths and inland heaths. The peninsula contains 3 main Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), both noted for their endangered insects and plants, as well as their geology. The first is East Lizard Heathlands SSSI, the second is "Caerthillian to Kennack SSSI" and the third is West Lizard SSSI,