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Home »» Lizards »» Anguidae (New World Lizards) »» Northern Alligator Lizards »» Shasta Alligator Lizard (Elgaria coerulea shastensis)


Shasta Alligator Lizard (Elgaria coerulea shastensis)Critically Imperiled





Description: The Shasta Alligator Lizard is a medium-sized lizard with short limbs, a long tail, and a slim body. This subspecies can have a variety of color patterns, but is typically brown, olive, or grey with dark patches or irregular crossbands along the body.


Habitat: The Shasta Alligator Lizard is generally found in cooler, damper places in a variety of forested habitats. They can also be found in grassy grown-over areas at the edge of woodlands, in clear-cuts, near streams, and rock outcrops. They find cover under rocks, logs, and dense vegetation.


Range: The Shasta Alligator Lizard is only found in the extreme Northwest part of Nevada.


Found in these States: NV


Diet: They are known to eat a variety of small invertebrates, including insects, spiders, millipedes, slugs, snails, and worms. It will also eat small lizards and small mammals and will occasionally feed on bird eggs and young birds.


Reproduction: After mating, the female carries her young inside her until they are born live and fully formed sometime between June and September. During the spring breeding season, a male lizard grabs on to the head of a female with his mouth until she is ready to let him mate with her.


Status: Listed as Critically Imperiled in Nevada.


Taxonomy:

»» Kingdom: Animalia - Animals
   »» Phylum: Chordata - Chordates
     »» Subphylum: Vertebrata - Vertebrates
       »» Class: Reptilia - Reptiles
         »» Order: Squamata - Lizards
           »» Family: Anguidae - New World Lizards
             »» Genus: Elgaria
               »» Species: Elgaria coerulea - Northern Alligator Lizard
                 »» Subspecies: Elgaria coerulea shastensis - Shasta Alligator Lizard

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Northern Alligator Lizard", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0. Content may have been omitted from the original, but no content has been changed or extended.

 

 

 

 


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Handbook of Lizards: Lizards of the United States and of Canada     Lizards of the World: A Guide to Every Family     Texas Lizards: A Field Guide     National Geographic Readers: Lizards



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Disclaimer: ITIS taxonomy is based on the latest scientific consensus available, and is provided as a general reference source for interested parties. However, it is not a legal authority for statutory or regulatory purposes. While every effort has been made to provide the most reliable and up-to-date information available, ultimate legal requirements with respect to species are contained in provisions of treaties to which the United States is a party, wildlife statutes, regulations, and any applicable notices that have been published in the Federal Register. For further information on U.S. legal requirements with respect to protected taxa, please contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

 
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