Zebra-tailed iguana
| Zebra-tailed iguana | ||||||||||||
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Zebra-tailed iguana ( Callisaurus draconoides ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Callisaurus | ||||||||||||
| Blainville , 1835 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Callisaurus draconoides | ||||||||||||
| Blainville , 1835 |
The zebra or lattice- tailed iguana ( Callisaurus draconoides ) lives in Mexico and the southwestern United States, Arizona , Nevada , southeastern California, and southwestern Utah . It prefers stony terrain with little vegetation and hard floors. The species stands alone in the genus Callisaurus .
features
The lizards can be up to 23 centimeters long, but usually stay smaller. The black and white ringed tail is characteristic of the species. The drawing is stronger on the bottom than on the top. Otherwise the animals are gray to light brown-yellow in color. The underside is white, on the back they have small, paired dark spots. The males have a blue zone with two black bands in the middle of the body on the flanks. The scales of the lattice-tailed iguanas are grainy and the animals have two transverse folds on their throats. Your ear openings are clearly visible.
Way of life
The diurnal zebra-tailed iguanas are territorial and intolerant. They feed on insects, spiders and smaller lizards. When fleeing, they are only able to walk on their hind legs. In doing so, they stretch their tails upwards, which makes their drawing clearly visible. The females lay two to eight eggs up to five times from June to August. The young hatch, depending on the soil temperature, from July to November.
literature
- Manfred Rogner : Lizards. Care and breeding in the terrarium. Volume 1: geckos, pinnipeds, agamas, chameleons and iguanas. Ulmer, Stuttgart 1992, ISBN 3-8001-7248-8 .
Web links
- Callisaurus draconoides in The Reptile Database
- Callisaurus draconoides inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Endangered Species . Posted by: Hammerson, GA, Frost, DR & Gadsden, H., 2007. Retrieved February 1, 2014.