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"Texas offers the opportunity to observe lizard diversity like no other part of the country," writes Laurie J. Vitt in the foreword to Texas Lizards. From the moist eastern Piney Woods to the western deserts, lizards can be found in every part of Texas. The state has forty-five native and six naturalized species of lizards, almost half of the 115 species that live in the continental United States. Yet Texas lizards have not received full coverage in regional field guides, and no other guide dedicated solely to the state's lizards has ever been published.
Texas Lizards is a complete identification guide to all fifty-one native and established exotic lizard species. It offers detailed species accounts, range maps, and excellent color photographs (including regional, gender, and age variations for many species) to aid field identification. The authors, two of the state's most knowledgeable herpetologists, open Texas Lizards with a broad overview of lizard natural history, conservation biology, observation, and captive maintenance before providing a key to Texas lizards and accounts of the various lizard families and species. Appendices list species of questionable occurrence in Texas and nonestablished exotic species. Informational resources on Texas lizards, a map of Texas counties, a glossary, a bibliography, and indexes of common and scientific names round out Texas Lizards.
Foreword (Laurie J. Vitt)
Acknowledgments
Introduction
What Is a Lizard?
Natural History
Activity and Seasonality
Reproduction
Behavior
Conservation
Texas Biogeography and Landforms
Habitat Loss
Pollution
Climate Change
Introduced Species
Collecting and Trade as a Cause of Decline
Observing and Collecting Lizards
Observing Lizards
Photographing Lizards
Collecting Lizards
Legal Aspects of Collecting Lizards
Permits and Collecting Lizards in Texas
Threatened, Endangered, or Protected Nongame Species
Maintenance of Lizards
Maintaining Lizards in Captivity
Creating Lizard Habitat
Handling Lizards
Museum and Preserved Lizard Specimens
Scientific and Common Names
Dichotomous Key to Texas Lizards
Dichotomous Keys
Key to Texas Lizards
Systematic Accounts
Order Squamata, Suborder Iguania
Family Crotaphytidae
Eastern Collared Lizard (Crotaphytus collaris)
Reticulate Collared Lizard (Crotaphytus reticulatus)
Long-nosed Leopard Lizard (Gambelia wislizenii)
Family Iguanidae
Mexican Spiny-tailed Iguana (Ctenosaura pectinata); introduced species
Family Phrynosomatidae
Greater Earless Lizard (Cophosaurus texanus)
Spot-tailed Earless Lizard (Holbrookia lacerata)
Lesser Earless Lizard (Holbrookia maculata)
Keeled Earless Lizard (Holbrookia propinqua)
Texas Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma cornutum)
Greater Short-horned Lizard (Phrynosoma hernandesi)
Round-tailed Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma modestum)
Common Side-blotched Lizard (Uta stansburiana)
Ornate Tree Lizard (Urosaurus ornatus)
Rose-bellied Lizard (Sceloporus variabilis)
Canyon Lizard (Sceloporus merriami)
Mesquite Lizard (Sceloporus grammicus)
Dunes Sagebrush Lizard (Sceloporus arenicolus)
Eastern Fence Lizard Complex (Sceloporus undulatus complex)
Texas Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus olivaceus)
Desert Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus magister)
Blue Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus cyanogenys)
Crevice Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus poinsetti)
Family Polychrotidae
Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis)
Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei); introduced species
Order Squamata, Suborder Scleroglossa
Infraorder Gekkota
Family Eublepharidae
Texas Banded Gecko (Coleonyx brevis)
Reticulated Gecko (Coleonyx reticulatus)
Family Gekkonidae
Rough-tailed Gecko (Cyrtopodion scabrum); introduced species
Common House Gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus); introduced species
Indo-Pacific House Gecko (Hemidactylus garnoti); introduced, unisexual species
Mediterranean Gecko (Hemidactylus turcicus); introduced species
Infraorder Scincomorpha
Family Scincidae
Coal Skink (Plestiodon anthracinus)
Prairie Skink (Plestiodon septentrionalis)
Four-lined Skink (Plestiodon tetragrammus)
Five-lined Skink (Plestiodon fasciatus)
Broad-headed Skink (Plestiodon laticeps)
Many-lined Skink (Plestiodon multivirgatus)
Great Plains Skink (Plestiodon obsoletus)
Ground Skink (Scincella lateralis)
Family Teiidae
Texas Spotted Whiptail (Aspidoscelis gularis)
Rusty-rumped Whiptail (Aspidoscelis septemvittata)
Little Striped Whiptail (Aspidoscelis inornata)
Marbled Whiptail (Aspidoscelis marmorata)
Six-lined Racerunner (Aspidoscelis sexlineata)
Gray Checkered Whiptail (Aspidoscelis dixoni); unisexual species
Common Checkered Whiptail (Aspidoscelis tesselata); unisexual species
Chihuahuan Spotted Whiptail (Aspidoscelis exsanguis); unisexual species
New Mexico Whiptail (Aspidoscelis neomexicana); unisexual species
Desert Grassland Whiptail (Aspidoscelis uniparens); unisexual species
Laredo Striped Whiptail (Aspidoscelis laredoensis); unisexual species
Infraorder Diploglossa
Family Anguidae
Texas Alligator Lizard (Gerrhonotus infernalis)
Slender Glass Lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus)
Appendix A: Species with Texas Records of Questionable Origin
Appendix B: Nonestablished Exotic Species
Appendix C: Lizard Informational Resources
Appendix D: Map of Texas Counties
Glossary
Bibliography
Index of Common Names
Index of Scientific Names
Troy D. Hibbitts, a high school science teacher, is a past president and current member of the Texas Herpetological Society. He coauthored Texas Amphibians: A Field Guide with Bob L. Tipton, Terry L. Hibbitts, Toby J. Hibbitts, and Travis J. LaDuc.
Toby J. Hibbitts is Biological Curator at Texas A&M University’s Biodiversity Research and Teaching Collections. His research focus is behavioral and comparative ecology of amphibians and reptiles.
