Species: Uta stansburiana

Side-blotched Lizard

Species

Encyclopedia of Puget Sound

Side-blotched lizards are variable in color and pattern, being spotted, blotched, or unpatterned, depending on location. The scales along the middle of the back are of uniform size. Each side of chest has a dark blotch (a large blue-black streak is present in some males). The throat of adults is blue, with an orange rim in some regions (colors less intense in late summer). At least one scale on top of the head behind the eyes is obviously larger than the scales along the middle of the back. Maximum snout-vent length is about 2.5 inches (6.3 cm); average size of adults increases from north to south across the range. Mature males have two hemipenial swellings on the underside of the tail base and a pair of enlarged scales behind the vent on the underside of the tail. Source: Hammerson (1999).

Classification

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Craniata

Class

Reptilia

Order

Squamata

Family

Phrynosomatidae

Genus

Uta

NatureServe

Source:
ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.106390

Classification

Other Global Common Names

Side-blotched Lizard

Informal Taxonomy

Animals, Vertebrates - Reptiles - Lizards

Formal Taxonomy

Animalia - Craniata - Reptilia - Squamata - Phrynosomatidae - Uta - (southeastern Arizona to western Texas and southward into north-central Mexico) was proposed as a distinct species by Collins (1991), but Collins did not present supporting data. Stebbins (2003) did not recognize any subspecies.

Ecology and Life History

Migration

true - false - false

Non-migrant

true

Locally Migrant

false

Food Comments

Eats insects, spiders, scorpions, mites, ticks, and sowbugs (Stebbins 1985). Diet usually includes many Hymenoptera, Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Orthoptera, and Aranae. Adult males sometimes are cannibalistic on young.

Reproduction Comments

In most of the range, courtship and mating occur in spring as lizards emerge from hibernation. Reproductive females produce 1-3 clutches of 1-5 eggs in the northern part of the range, 2-7 clutches of 1-8 eggs in the south. Egg laying begins as early as March in the south, by mid-April in Colorado, and extends through July or August in many areas. Females bury eggs in sandy soil. Eggs hatch in late July and August in Colorado, as early as late June in Texas, Nevada, and Idaho. Individuals become sexually mature in 1-2 years (Nussbaum et al. 1983, Hammerson 1999).

Ecology Comments

In Colorado, Tinkle (1967) and Tinkle and Woodward (1967) found that home range size is no more than a few hundred square meters, but individuals, especially males, sometimes make long-distance movements of up to a few hundred meters. Distance from the hatching site to the center of the home range was about 6 m in one female and 20-42 m (average 33 m) in four males. <br><br>Home range size in western Colorado averaged about 440-610 m2 in males and about 190-225 m2 in females (Tinkle 1967, Waldschmidt 1979, Christian and Waldschmidt 1984) Population density in Colorado was estimated at 25-44 adults/ha (see Hammerson 1982). Density ranged from 11 to 285 individuals/ha in 7 sites in California, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington (mean 60/ha and 78/ha in two consecutive years) (Wilson 1991). May aggregate during hibernation in some areas.

Length

Conservation Status

NatureServe Global Status Rank

Global Status Last Reviewed

2005-08-25

Global Status Last Changed

2001-01-16

Other Status

LC - Least concern

Distribution

Conservation Status Map

Global Range

G - 200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles) - G - The geographic range extends from central and northeastern California, central and eastern Oregon, central Washington, southwestern Idaho, Utah, and western Colorado southward to the tip of Baja California, northern Sinaloa, and northern Zacatecas, Mexico, including many islands along the Pacific coast of Baja California and in the Gulf of California (Grismer 2002, Stebbins 2003). Elevational range extends from below sea level in desert sinks to about 2,750 meters (9,000 feet) (Stebbins 2003).<br><br>DNA data suggest long-established residency on Santa Catalina and San Clemente islands but more recent arrival for the populations on San Nicolas and Santa Cruz Islands, California (Mahoney et al. 2003).

Global Range Code

Global Range Description

200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles)

ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.106390