Description: Gambelia copeii is between 3.1 and 5.5 inches in snout-to-vent length (SVL), and has a smoky gray color and darker gray or black dorsal spots, edged in a lighter shade. The dorsal pattern appears mottled or ocellated. There are light crossbars on the dorsum, and light gray or white on the venter. It has small granular scales. The large head is distinct from the neck, and the lining of the mouth and throat is purplish-black. Juvenile lizards are similar to adults, but have more distinct banding across the dorsum. Females develop red-orange blotches on the ventral side during breeding season. Males have femoral pores.

Habitat: In Baja California, this lizard is particularly common on sparsely vegetated aeolian flats of the Vizcaíno Peninsula, where it can be observed basking on roadside rocks, on berms adjacent to graded dirt roads, or moving about in open spaces among clumps of vegetation; it also occurs elsewhere in Baja California in arroyo (dry creek) bottoms, bajadas, open sandy flats, creosote bush scrub habitats, coastal sage scrub, and oak woodland habitats. Apparently the species occurs in relatively densely vegetated chaparral in southern California (McGuire 1996). It is similar to other Gambelia in seeking shelter at the base of a shrub and remaining motionless there

Range: The species is endemic to Baja California and adjacent southern California.

Found in these States: CA

Diet: feed upon a variety of insects, seeds, and flowers as well as on small mammals and other lizards.

Reproduction: Mates from April to July. Eggs are probably laid in the Summer.

Status: Listed as Least Concern in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, and because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category.

Subspecies: None

Taxonomy: