Horsfield's spiny lizard facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Salea horsfieldii |
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Salea
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| Species: |
horsfieldii
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The Horsfield's spiny lizard (also called the Nilgiri salea) is a type of lizard. It belongs to the family called Agamidae. This lizard is special because it lives only in one place. It is found only in the Nilgiri Hills of India.
You can mostly find this lizard in grassy hills that are very high up. Another lizard, called Salea anamallayana, is a relative of this one. It lives in the grassy hills of the Anaimalai Hills.
What's in a Name?
The scientific name for this lizard is horsfieldii. This name was given to honor an American naturalist named Thomas Horsfield. A naturalist is someone who studies nature.
Where it Lives
The Horsfield's spiny lizard prefers to live in forests. It likes places that are high up in the mountains. These lizards are found at heights between 1,600 and 2,500 meters (about 5,250 to 8,200 feet).
What it Looks Like
The Horsfield's spiny lizard can be olive brown or green. It often has white bands on its body. Its snout, which is its nose area, is about one and a half times longer than its eye. The eye is about twice as big as the ear opening.
The scales on its head are large and rough. Some scales above its eyes are curved. There are also three or four large scales between its eye and its ear. The scales on its throat are pointed and have a ridge, like a keel on a boat.
Male lizards have a crest, or a row of spines, on the back of their neck. These spines point backward. The crest continues down their back, but it might have a small break. The scales on their upper body are large and diamond-shaped. They also have strong keels and point straight backward. These scales are often different sizes.
The scales on the lizard's belly are very strong and overlap like roof tiles. They also have strong keels and end in a spine. These belly scales are almost as big as the back scales. Its legs are quite long. If you hold a hind leg along its body, the toes would reach between its shoulder and ear. The tail is flat from side to side. Males have a small crest on their tail, but females do not. The tail scales are similar in size and have strong keels.
The lizard's color is usually pale olive on top. But it can change from green to brown. It has dark brown bands across its body that are not regular. Sometimes, these bands are broken up by a light brown stripe along its sides. The larger scales on its sides are often white. A black band goes from its eye, past its ear, and down to its front leg. This black band has a white edge below it. Its tail has regular dark brown and creamy bands.
From its snout to its vent (the opening at the end of its body), this lizard is about 3.75 inches (9.5 cm) long. Its tail is much longer, measuring about 9.75 inches (24.8 cm).
Reproduction
The Horsfield's spiny lizard reproduces by laying eggs. This means it is an oviparous animal.
