Species Fact Profile: Eastern Collared Lizard (Crotaphytus collaris)

                                                           Eastern Collared Lizard

Crotaphytus collaris (Say, 1823)

Range: South-Central United States, northern Mexico

Habitat: Dry Grasslands, Rocky Outcrops, Open Woodland, Desert and Semi-Desert

Diet: Insects, Spiders, Small Lizards and Snakes.  Ingest small amounts of plant matter

Social Grouping: Males are territorial and will aggressive exclude one another, maintain harems of females, which are more social

Reproduction:  Polygamous.  Breed from mid-March through mid-July.  Females may lay 1-3 clutches per year of 4-6 eggs in burrows or under rocks.  Incubation is 50-100 days.  No parental care, young are fully independent at birth.  Sexually mature by 2 years old

Lifespan: 5-8 Years

      Conservation Status: IUCN Least Concern

•       Body length 20-38 centimeters, including the tail, with a large head and powerful jaws.  Males are larger than females
•       Highly variable coloration, but adult males tend to have bluish-green bodies with brown or orange heads.  The body is covered with spots and bands of different colors.  Females and juveniles are a lighter brown (juveniles have dark brown bands which fade with age).  Undersides are paler.  In both sexes, there are two black bands around the neck, providing the common name
•       Capable of running on their powerful hindlegs for short distances, reaching speeds of up to 24 kilometers per hour
•       Active by day.  Time not spent foraging is usually spent perched on top of rocks basking and scanning for predators.  If confronted by a predator, primary defense is to dive into the rocks.  Predators include coyotes, bobcats, roadrunners, and hawks.  Males are typically more active and visible than females
•       Females carrying eggs develop bright red splashes on color on their bodies, which disappear after the eggs have been laid
•       5 subspecies recognized across range, varying in coloration and patterning.  Several closely related species were previously considered subspecies before being split off
•       State reptile of Oklahoma.  Known locally as "mountain boomer" in mistaken belief that the lizards make loud calls (actually the wind rushing through the canyons where the lizards are commonly found).
•       Conservation status not formally known, but considered abundant, no major threats, and distributed over wide range