Girdled lizard facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Girdled lizard
Cordylus tropidosternum, tropical girdled lizard
Scientific classification
Unrecognized taxon (fix):	Cordylus

Get ready to meet the fascinating girdle-tailed lizards! These amazing creatures belong to a group of animals called a genus named Cordylus. They are small to medium-sized lizards found in Africa. You might also hear them called "girdled lizards" because of their spiny, armored bodies that look a bit like they're wearing a belt or "girdle."

These lizards are active during the day. They are special because they are ovoviviparous, which means they give birth to live babies instead of laying eggs with shells. Most girdle-tailed lizards live among rocks, but some prefer trees or even dig burrows in the ground. They protect themselves with tough, bony plates under their skin, called osteoderms. When danger comes, they quickly hide in rock cracks or burrows. Many species live in groups, and the males often defend their own areas.

Protecting These Unique Lizards

Girdle-tailed lizards are important parts of their ecosystems. Many species are listed under CITES Appendix II. This means that while they might not be in immediate danger of disappearing, their trade is carefully watched. This helps stop people from catching too many of them. It ensures these lizards are not over-collected, especially for the pet trade. Some Cordylus species live in very specific places. They can be threatened by habitat destruction, which means their homes are being destroyed.

How Scientists Classify Lizards

Scientists work hard to understand all the different animals on Earth. They group similar animals together in categories. For example, a genus is a group of very similar species. In 2006, a scientist named Broadley recognized 47 species in the Cordylus genus. Most of these lizards live in South Africa, but some are found in Angola and parts of eastern Africa, like Ethiopia. Other lizard groups related to Cordylus include the legless lizards called Chamaesaura and the flat lizards known as Platysaurus.

The Cordylus Family Tree

Science is always learning new things! In 2011, a new study looked at the phylogeny of these lizards. This means scientists studied their DNA to understand how they are related. This research suggested that some species that were once in the Cordylus genus should actually be moved to other genera. These new groups include Hemicordylus, Karusasaurus, Namazonurus, Ninurta, Ouroborus, and Smaug. Today, the Reptile Database lists 21 species that remain in the Cordylus genus.

Types of Girdle-tailed Lizards

Here are some of the species that are currently part of the Cordylus genus:

• Angolan girdled lizard, Cordylus angolensis (Bocage, 1895)
• Maasai girdled lizard, Cordylus beraduccii Broadley & Branch, 2002
• Cape girdled lizard, Cordylus cordylus (Linnaeus, 1758)
• Rooiberg girdled lizard, Cordylus imkeae Mouton & Van Wyk, 1994
• Limpopo girdled lizard, Cordylus jonesii (Boulenger, 1891)
• Machadoe's girdled lizard, Cordylus machadoi Laurent, 1964
• Coastal spiny-tailed lizard, Cordylus macropholis (Boulenger, 1910)
• Marungu girdled lizard, Cordylus marunguensis Greenbaum et al., 2012
• McLachlan's girdled lizard, Cordylus mclachlani Mouton, 1986
• Mecula girdled lizard, Cordylus meculae Branch, Rödel & Marais, 2005
• Dwarf girdled lizard, Cordylus minor V. FitzSimons, 1943
• Kaokoveld girdled lizard, Cordylus namakuiyus Stanley, Ceríaco, Bandeira, Valerio, Bates & Branch, 2016
• Black girdled lizard, Cordylus niger Cuvier, 1829

Cordylus niger, a species found only in two small areas of South Africa.

• Nyika girdled lizard, Cordylus nyikae Broadley & Mouton, 2000
• Oelofsen's girdled lizard, Cordylus oelofseni Mouton & Van Wyk, 1990
• N’Dolondolo girdled lizard, Cordylus phonolithos Marques, Ceríaco, Stanley, Bandeira, Agarwal & Bauer, 2019
• Rhodesian girdled lizard, Cordylus rhodesianus (Hewitt, 1933)
• Ethiopian girdled lizard, Cordylus rivae (Boulenger, 1896)
• East African spiny-tailed lizard, Cordylus tropidosternum (Cope, 1869)
• Ukinga girdled lizard, Cordylus ukingensis (Loveridge, 1932)
• Transvaal girdled lizard, Cordylus vittifer (Reichenow, 1887)

Note: If you see a name in parentheses next to a species, it means that species was first described in a different genus before being moved to Cordylus.

Lizards That Used to Be in Cordylus

Thanks to new scientific studies, some lizards that were once part of the Cordylus genus are now in other groups. These include species found in the genera:

• Hemicordylus
• Karusasaurus
• Namazonurus
• Ninurta (like the Blue-spotted girdled lizard)
• Ouroborus (like the Armadillo girdled lizard)
• Pseudocordylus
• Smaug