Spiny lizards is a common name for the genus Sceloporus in the family Phrynosomatidae. The genus is Endemism to North America, with various species ranging from New York, to Washington, and one occurring as far south as northern Panama.[Köhler G (2008). Reptiles of Central America, 2nd Edition. Offenbach, Germany: Herpeton, Verlag Elke Köhler. 400 pp. .] The greatest diversity is found in Mexico. This genus includes some of the most commonly seen lizards in the United States. Other common names for lizards in this genus include fence lizards, scaly lizards, bunchgrass lizards, and swifts.[Zim HS, Smith HM (1956). Reptiles and Amphibians: A Guide to Familiar American Species: A Golden Nature Guide. Revised Edition. New York: Simon & Schuster. 160 pp. (Genus Sceloporus, pp. 56-57, 155).]
Taxonomy
The 114
species in the genus
Sceloporus are organized into 21 species groups. However, their relationships to each other are currently under review. Listed below are species of
Sceloporus:
[. www.reptile-database.org.][" Sceloporus ". ITIS. www.itis.gov.]
Species
Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than
Sceloporus.
Sceloporus gallery
File:Prairie Lizard (Sceloporus consobrinus) Hardin Co. Texas. photo W. L. Farr.jpg|Prairie lizard ( S. consobrinus)
File:Cozumel Spiny Lizard - Flickr - treegrow (1).jpg|Cozumel spiny lizard ( S. cozumelae)
File:Sagebrush lizard (Sceloporus graciosus) Ferguzon Canyon, Utah (6288331524).jpg|Sagebrush spiny lizard ( Sagebrush lizard)
File:Hare sagebrush-lizard.jpg|Sagebrush lizard ( Sagebrush lizard)
File:Desert Spiny Lizard. Grand Canyon, Arizona (25778637054).jpg|Desert spiny lizard ( S. magister)
File:Grand Canyon Nat. Park Desert Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus magister) 3411.jpg|Desert spiny lizard ( S. magister)
File:Sceloporus variabilis marmoratus, Northern Rose-bellied Lizard, Texas.jpg|Northern rose-bellied Lizard ( S. marmoratus)
File:Big Bend Canyon Lizard - Flickr - GregTheBusker (3).jpg|Big Bend canyon lizard ( S. merriami annulatus)
File:Sceloporus minor, Minor Spiny Lizard, Tamaulipas.jpg|Minor spiny lizard ( Sceloporus minor) male
File:Lagarto (Sceloporus mucronatus), Zona arqueológica de Cantona, Puebla, México, 2013-10-11, DD 01.JPG|Cleft spiny lizard ( S. mucronatus)
File:Western Fence Lizard (9098617590).jpg|Western fence lizard ( S. occidentalis)
File:Texas spiny lizard (Sceloporus olivaceus) basking on a fencepost, Highway 102, Colorado County, Texas, USA (26 March 2017).jpg|Texas spiny lizard ( S. olivaceus)
File:Crevice spiny lizard (Sceloporus poinsettii), Mason County, Texas, USA (9 May 2014).jpg|Crevice spiny lizard ( S. poinsettii)
File:Sceloporus smithi.jpeg|Spiny lizard ( S. smithi)
File:Sceloporus torquatus mikeprestoni, Torquate Lizard, Tamaulipas.jpg|Torquate lizard ( S. mikeprestoni)
File:Sceloporus tristichus (29241274333).jpg|Plateau fence lizard ( S. tristichus)
File:Lizard on sandstone (Dinosaur National Monument, Utah, USA) 1 (48872735101).jpg|Plateau fence lizard ( S. tristichus)
File:Sceloporus variabilis variabilis, Rose-bellied Lizard, Tamaulipas.jpg|Rose-bellied Lizard ( S. variabilis)
File:Florida Scrub Lizard (Sceloporus woodi) (6558409167).jpg|Florida scrub lizard ( S. woodi)
File:Green Spiny Lizard (49703879952).jpg|Green spiny lizard ( S. malachiticus)
File:Green Spiny Lizard (49703563491).jpg|Green spiny lizard ( S. malachiticus)
File:Green Spiny Lizard (49703879612).jpg|Green spiny lizard ( S. malachiticus)
File:Sceloporus spinosus, Eastern spiny lizard, Tamaulipas.jpg|Eastern spiny lizard ( S. spinosus)
See also
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Moloch horridus, an unrelated Australian lizard that is sometimes also referred to as "spiny lizard"
Further reading
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Boulenger GA (1885). Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume II. Iguanidæ ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 497 pp. + Plates I-XXIV. (Genus Sceloporus, p. 216).
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Goin CJ, , Zug GR (1978). Introduction to Herpetology, Third Edition. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman. xi + 378 pp. . (Genus Sceloporus, pp. 130, 291).
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Köhler G, (2002). Stachelleguane: Lebensweise, Pflege, Zucht ''Spiny. Offenbach, Germany: Herpeton, Verlag Elke Köhler. 174 pp. . (in German).
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Powell R, Conant R, Collins JT (2016). Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiv + 494 pp., 47 Plates, 207 Figures. . (Genus Sceloporus, p. 292).
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Smith HM (1939). "The Mexican and Central American Lizards of the Genus Sceloporus ". Field Museum of Natural History, Zoological Series 26: 1–429.
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Smith HM, (1982). Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. (paperback), (hardcover). (Genus Sceloporus, p. 114-115).
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Stebbins RC (2003). A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians, Third Edition. The Peterson Field Guide Series ®. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Company. xi + 533 pp. 56 plates, 39 figures. . (Genus Sceloporus, p. 283; Sceloporus species accounts, pp. 283–294).
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Wiegmann AF (1828). " Beyträge zur Amphibienkunde ". Isis von Oken 21 (4): 364–383. ( Sceloporus, new genus, p. 369). (in German and Latin).
External links
