Agama aculeata

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Agama aculeata
in Damaraland, Namibia
in South Africa
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Iguania
Family: Agamidae
Genus: Agama
Species:
A. aculeata
Binomial name
Agama aculeata
Merrem, 1820
Subspecies

A. a. aculeata Merrem, 1820
A. a. distanti (Boulenger, 1902)

Synonyms

Saura spinalis
Agama infralineata

Agama aculeata, the ground agama, is a species of lizard from the family Agamidae, found in most of sub-Saharan Africa (Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mozambique, Southern Angola, Tanzania, Zambia, Eswatini).[1]

Description

Snout-to-vent length is 76–100 mm. With a triangular head and rounded snout, this agama is coloured olive to reddish-brown (sometimes grey or yellowish) with a light creamy-white to pink belly. There are four or five paired darker blotches on the back—many smaller blotches continue down the tail. Breeding males become blue on the sides of their heads.[2]

  • Female ground agama in Serengeti, Tanzania
    Female ground agama in Serengeti, Tanzania
  • Ground agama in Tanzania
    Ground agama in Tanzania

References

  1. ^ Agama aculeata at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database
  2. ^ Branch, Bill. Field Guide to Snakes and Other Reptiles of Southern Africa. Third revised edition. Sanibel Is., Florida:Ralph Curtis Books Publ., 1998.