User:Shreya.Narang
| banded rock lizard | |
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| Petrosaurus mearnsi | |
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| Species: | P. mearnsi
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| Binomial name | |
| Petrosaurus mearnsi (Stejneger, 1894)
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The banded rock lizard (Petrosaurus mearnsi) is a species of phrynosomatid lizard.
Etymology[edit]
The specific name, mearnsi, is in honor of American naturalist Edgar Alexander Mearns, who collected the first specimens.[2][3]
Geographic range[edit]
It is endemic to extreme southern California and Baja California, Mexico.[4]
Description[edit]
Petrosaurus mearnsi is an extremely flat-bodied lizard. Its dorsum is olive, brown or gray, with white or bluish spots. It has a single black collar, a banded tail, and granular scales on its body, with keeled tail and limb scales. Individuals may be 6.2 to 8.7 cm (2.4 to 3.4 in) long snout-to-vent. Males have more pronounced throat patterns and brighter blue coloring than females.
Habitat[edit]
These lizards are associated with boulder hillsides.
Diet[edit]
They are omnivorous, feeding not only on insects and spiders, but also on buds and flowers.[5]
Reproduction[edit]
Gravid females lay eggs from June through August. Clutch size varies from 2 to 6 eggs.[5]
References[edit]
- This article is based on a description from "A Field Guide to the Reptiles and Amphibians of Coastal Southern California", Robert N. Fisher and Ted J. Case, USGS, http://www.werc.usgs.gov/fieldguide/index.htm.
- ^ The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
- ^ Beltz, Ellin. 2006. Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained. ebeltz.net/herps/biogappx.html.
- ^ Beolens, Bo; Michael Watkins; Michael Grayson. 2011. The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore. xiii + 312 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Petrosaurus mearnsi, p. 174.)
- ^ Smith, H.M., and E.D. Brodie, Jr. 1982. Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. Golden Press. New York. 240 pp. ISBN 0-307-13666-3 (paperback). (Streptosaurus mearnsi, pp. 110-111.)
- ^ a b Stebbins, R.C. 2003. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians, Third Edition. The Peterson Field Guide Series®. Houghton Mifflin. Boston and New York. xiii + 533 pp. ISBN 0-395-98272-3 (paperback). (Petrosaurus mearnsi, pp. 298-299 + Plate 32 + Map 100.)
Category:Phrynosomatids Category:Fauna of the California chaparral and woodlands Category:Reptiles of the United States
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