Description: The checkered whiptail grows to a body length (head to back legs) of about 4 inches, with a tail length of 5 to 6 inches. Their pattern and base coloration varies widely, with brown or black blotching, checkering or striping on a pale yellow or white base color. Their rear legs often have dark spotting, and their underside is usually white with dark flecking on the throat area. They are slender bodied, with a long tail.

Habitat: They are found in semi-arid, rocky habitats, normally in canyon lands or hilled regions.

Range: The range extends from southeastern Colorado through New Mexico, extreme southeastern Arizona, and western Texas to Chihuahua and Coahuila, Mexico. It also includes subpopulations in very small areas of Texas and New Mexico that formerly were recognized as a separate species, Aspidoscelis dixoni. The distribution is mostly discontinuous and localized

Found in these States: CO | NM | OK | TX

Diet: Like other species of whiptail lizard, the checkered whiptail is diurnal and insectivorous.

Reproduction: They are parthenogenic, laying up to eight unfertilized eggs in mid summer, which hatch in six to eight weeks.

Status: Listed as Least Concern in view of the fairly large and probably relatively stable or slowly declining extent of occurrence, area of occupancy, number of subpopulations, and population size. Threats appear to affect only a small percentage of the range.

Taxonomy: