Crotaphytidae facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Crotaphytidae
A collared lizard (Crotaphytus collaris)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Iguania
Clade:	Pleurodonta
Family:	Crotaphytidae H.M. Smith & Brodie, 1982
Genera
Crotaphytus Gambelia

The Crotaphytidae, also known as collared lizards, are a family of reptiles. They live in desert areas in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. These lizards are very quick animals. They have long legs and tails. Collared lizards are carnivores, which means they eat meat. Their main diet includes insects and smaller lizards.

This family of lizards has two main groups, called genera. These two groups contain a total of 12 different species.

Types of Collared Lizards

There are two main groups, or genera, of collared lizards:

Genus Gambelia (Leopard Lizards)

This group is known as leopard lizards. They were first described by Baird in 1859.

• Cope's leopard lizard – Gambelia copeii (Yarrow, 1882)
• blunt-nosed leopard lizard – Gambelia sila (Stejneger, 1890)
• long-nosed leopard lizard – Gambelia wislizenii (Baird & Girard, 1852)

Genus Crotaphytus (Collared Lizards)

This group includes the true collared lizards. They were first described by Holbrook in 1842.

• venerable collared lizard – Crotaphytus antiquus Axtell & Webb, 1995
• desert collared lizard – Crotaphytus bicinctores N.M. Smith & W.W. Tanner, 1972
• common collared lizard – Crotaphytus collaris (Say, 1823)
• Dickerson's collared lizard – Crotaphytus dickersonae K.P. Schmidt, 1922
• Grismer's collared lizard – Crotaphytus grismeri McGuire, 1994
• Eastern collared lizard – Crotaphytus insularis Van Denburgh & Slevin, 1921
• Sonoran collared lizard – Crotaphytus nebrius Axtell & Montanucci, 1977
• reticulated collared lizard – Crotaphytus reticulatus Baird, 1858
• Baja collared lizard – Crotaphytus vestigium N.M. Smith & W.W. Tanner, 1972

See also

In Spanish: Crotafítidos para niños