Little striped whiptail
Little striped whiptail | |
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A. inornatus heptagrammus | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Family: | Teiidae |
Genus: | Aspidoscelis |
Species: | A. inornatus
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Binomial name | |
Aspidoscelis inornatus Baird, 1859
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Synonyms | |
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The little striped whiptail (Aspidoscelis inornatus) is a species of lizard found in the southwestern United States (in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas) and in northern Mexico (in Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Zacatecas, San Luis Potosí, and Nuevo León). A significant amount of research was done on the species during the mid-1990s, with several new subspecies being added, many of which some sources consider to be distinct enough to warrant full species status, and the research is ongoing. It is called little to distinguish it from many other species known as striped whiptails and to indicate that it is the smallest of those species.
Description
The little striped whiptail grows from 6.5 to 9.5 inches (17 to 24 cm) in length. It is typically black in color, with yellow or white striping from head to tail, and a light blue underside. It is slender bodied, with a blue colored tail approximately three times the body length. The blue coloration is much more pronounced on males than females. They aren't always striped or blue, sometimes they are brown with darker patches to blend in with the sand or dirt.
Behavior
Like most species of whiptail lizard, the little striped whiptail is
Subspecies
There are eight recognized subspecies of Cnemidophorus inornatus:
- Lowe, 1993)
- Lowe, 1993)
- Aspidoscelis inornatus heptagrammus (Axtell, 1961) - Trans-Pecos striped whiptail
- Lowe, 1993) - woodland striped whiptail
- Lowe, 1993)
- Aspidoscelis inornatus inornatus (Baird, 1859)
- Aspidoscelis inornatus octolineatus (Baird, 1858)
- Aspidoscelis inornatus paululus (Williams, 1968)[2]
References
- . Retrieved 17 May 2023.
- JSTOR 1563258
- Notes