Crotaphytidae
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| Smith & Brodie , 1982 |
The Crotaphytidae are a family of the iguanas (Iguania) that occur in southwestern North America from Oregon to the Mississippi and northern Mexico .
features
The animals reach a head-trunk length of ten to 14 centimeters. They differ from other iguanas by a total of 30 autapomorphies , mostly affecting the skull bones. Examples are:
- No raised scaly crest on the back and tail and no throat dewlap.
- Undivided rostral scutum .
- No bone shields and thorns on the head.
- No enlarged scales to protect the ears.
- No enlarged scales on the sides of the toes.
Way of life
All Crotaphytidae live in deserts and other arid areas, preferably on rocky terrain. Their diet consists of insects, other invertebrates and smaller lizards. They make noises in case of danger and are only able to run on their hind legs when fleeing.
Systematics
The Crotaphytidae were initially considered a subfamily of the iguanas (Iguanidae) until they were raised to the rank of a family by Frost and Etheridge in 1989.
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Collared lizards ( Crotaphytus )
- Crotaphytus antiquus Axtell & Webb, 1995
- Collar Iguana ( Crotaphytus collaris (Say, 1823))
- Crotaphytus grismeri Mcguire, 1994
- Crotaphytus insularis Van Denburgh & Slevin, 1921
- Crotaphytus nebrius Axtell & Montanucci, 1977
- Crotaphytus reticulatus Baird, 1858
- Crotaphytus vestigium Smith & Tanner, 1972
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Leopard iguanas ( Gambelia )
- Gambelia copeii (Yarrow, 1882)
- Gambelia sila (Stejneger, 1890)
- Gambelia wislizenii (Baird & Girard, 1852)
literature
- Wilfried Westheide , Reinhard Rieger (Hrsg.): Special zoology. Volume 2: Vertebrates or Skull Animals. Spectrum - Akademischer Verlag, Heidelberg et al. 2004, ISBN 3-8274-0307-3 .
Web links
Commons : Crotaphytidae - Collection of images, videos and audio files
- Crotaphytidae in The Reptile Database
- Integrated Taxonomic Information System Crotaphytidae