A Guide to the Amphibians
and Reptiles of California
A Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of California |
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This is a complete llst of all of the lizards that occur naturally in California, including non-native species with established populations. California's lizards are listed by scientific name and sorted by family, genus, species, and subspecies if applicable. They are listed by common name below the scientific name list. Follow the blue links to go to a page with information about each kind of lizard along with pictures of them and their habitat and short videos if available. The names used on this list are based mainly on lists published by the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. More Lists And Information About California Lizards |
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| Common Name | Original Description | Alternate Name | CA Endemic | |
| Order Squamata | Scaled Reptiles (Lizards) | Oppel, 1811 | ||
| Anguidae | Alligator Lizards and Allies | Gray, 1825 | ||
| Elgaria | Western Alligator Lizards | Gray, 1838 | ||
| Elgaria coerulea | Northern Alligator Lizard | Wiegmann, 1828 | ||
| Elgaria coerulea coerulea | San Francisco Alligator Lizard | (Wiegmann, 1828) | Endemic | |
| Elgaria coerulea palmeri | Sierra Alligator Lizard | (Stejneger, 1893) |
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| Elgaria coerulea principis | Northwestern Alligator Lizard | (Baird and Girard, 1852) | ||
| Elgaria coerulea shastensis | Shasta Alligator Lizard | (Fitch, 1934) | ||
| Elgaria multicarinata | Southern Alligator Lizard | (Blainville, 1835) |
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| Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata | Forest Alligator Lizard (California Alligator Lizard) | (Blainville, 1835) | California Alligator Lizard | |
| Elgaria multicarinata webbii | Woodland Alligator Lizard (San Diego Alligator Lizard) | (Baird, 1859 “1858”) | San Diego Alligator Lizard | |
| Elgaria panamintina | Panamint Alligator Lizard | (Stebbins, 1958) | Endemic | |
| Anniellidae | North American Legless lizards | Boulenger 1885 | ||
| Anniella | North American Legless Lizards | Gray, 1852 | ||
| Anniella alexanderae |
Temblor Legless Lizard | Papenfuss & Parham, 2013 | Endemic |
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| Anniella campi |
Big Spring Legless Lizard | Papenfuss & Parham, 2013 | Southern Sierra Legless Lizard |
Endemic |
| Anniella grinnelli | Bakersfield Legless Lizard | Papenfuss & Parham, 2013 | Endemic | |
| Anniella pulchra | Northern Legless Lizard | Gray, 1852 | Northern California Legless Lizard | Endemic |
| Anniella stebbinsi | San Diegan Legless Lizard | Papenfuss & Parham, 2013 | Southern Califonria Legless Lizard | |
| Crotaphytidae | Collared and Leopard Lizards | Smith & Brodie, 1982 | ||
| Crotaphytus | Collared Lizards | Holbrook, 1842 | ||
| Crotaphytus bicinctores | Great Basin Collared Lizard | Smith and Tanner, 1972 | ||
| Crotaphytus vestigium | Baja California Collared Lizard | Smith and Tanner, 1972 | ||
| Gambelia | Leopard Lizards | Baird 1859 “1858” | ||
| Gambelia copeii | Cope's Leopard Lizard | (Yarrow, 1882) | ||
| Gambelia sila | Blunt-nosed Leopard Lizard | (Stejneger, 1890) | Endemic | |
| Gambelia wislizenii | Long-nosed Leopard Lizard | (Baird and Girard, 1852) | ||
| Eublepharidae | Eyelid Geckos | Boulenger, 1883 | ||
| Coleonyx | Banded Geckos | Gray, 1845 | ||
| Coleonyx switaki | Switak's Banded Gecko | (Murphy, 1974) | ||
| Coleonyx switaki switaki | Peninsula Banded Gecko | (Murphy, 1974) | ||
| Coleonyx variegatus | Western Banded Gecko | (Baird, 1859 “1858”) | ||
| Coleonyx variegatus abbotti | San Diego Banded Gecko | Klauber, 1945 | ||
| Coleonyx variegatus variegatus | Desert Banded Gecko | (Baird, 1859) |
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| Helodermatidae | Gila Monsters | Gray, 1837 | ||
| Heloderma | Gila Monsters and Beaded Lizards | Wiegmann, 1829 | ||
| Heloderma suspectum | Gila Monster | Cope, 1869 | ||
| Heloderma suspectum cinctum | Banded Gila Monster | Bogert and Martín del Campo, 1956 | ||
| Iguanidae | Iguanas | Oppel, 1811 | ||
| Dipsosaurus | Desert Iguanas | Hallowell, 1854 | ||
| Dipsosaurus dorsalis | Desert Iguana | (Baird and Girard, 1852) | ||
| Dipsosaurus dorsalis dorsalis | Northern Desert Iguana | (Baird and Girard, 1852) | ||
| Sauromalus | Chuckwallas | Duméril, 1856 | ||
| Sauromalus ater | Common Chuckwalla | Duméril, 1856 | ||
| Phrynosomatidae | Zebra-tailed, Earless, Fringe-toed, Spiny, Tree, Side-blotched, and Horned Lizards | Fitzinger, 1843 | ||
| Callisaurus | Zebra-tailed Lizards | Blainville, 1835 | ||
| Callisaurus draconoides | Zebra-tailed Lizard | Blainville, 1835 | ||
| Callisaurus draconoides rhodostictus | Western Zebra-tailed Lizard | Cope, 1896 | ||
| Petrosaurus | Banded Rock Lizards | Boulenger, 1885 | ||
| Petrosaurus mearnsi | Mearns' Rock Lizard | (Stejneger, 1894) | ||
| Petrosaurus mearnsi mearnsi | Mearns' Rock Lizard | (Stejneger, 1894) | ||
| Phrynosoma | Horned Lizards | Wiegmann, 1828 | ||
| Phrynosoma blainvillii | Blainville's Horned Lizard | Gray, 1839 | Coast Horned Lizard - Phrynosoma coronatum Anota blainvillii |
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| Phrynosoma douglasii | Pygmy Short-horned Lizard | Bell, 1829 | Tapaja douglasii | |
| Phrynosoma mcallii | Flat-tailed Horned Lizard | Hallowell, 1852 | Anota mcallii | |
| Phrynosoma platyrhinos | Desert Horned Lizard | Girard, 1852 | Doliosaurus platyrhinos | |
| Phrynosoma platyrhinos calidiarum | Southern Desert Horned Lizard | Cope, 1896 | Doliosaurus platyrhinos calidiarum | |
| Phrynosoma platyrhinos platyrhinos | Northern Desert Horned Lizard | Girard, 1852 | Doliosaurus platyrhinos platyrhinos | |
| Sceloporus | Spiny Lizards | Wiegmann, 1828 | ||
| Sceloporus graciosus | Common Sagebrush Lizard | Baird and Girard, 1852 | ||
| Sceloporus graciosus gracilis | Western Sagebrush Lizard | Baird and Girard, 1852 | ||
| Sceloporus graciosus graciosus | Northern Sagebrush Lizard | Baird and Girard, 1852 | ||
| Sceloporus graciosus vandenburgianus | Southern Sagebrush Lizard | Cope, 1896 | ||
| Sceloporus magister | Desert Spiny Lizard | Hallowell, 1854 | ||
| Sceloporus occidentalis | Western Fence Lizard | Baird and Girard, 1852 | ||
| Sceloporus occidentalis becki | Island Fence Lizard | Van Denburgh, 1905 | Endemic | |
| Sceloporus occidentalis biseriatus | San Joaquin Fence Lizard | Hallowell, 1854 | Endemic | |
| Sceloporus occidentalis bocourtii | Coast Range Fence Lizard | Boulenger, 1885 | Endemic | |
| Sceloporus occidentalis longipes | Great Basin Fence Lizard | Baird, 1859 “1858” | ||
| Sceloporus occidentalis occidentalis | Northwestern Fence Lizard | Baird and Girard, 1852 | ||
| Sceloporus occidentalis taylori | Sierra Fence Lizard | Camp, 1916 | Endemic | |
| Sceloporus orcutti | Granite Spiny Lizard | Stejneger, 1893 | ||
| Sceloporus uniformis | Yellow-backed Spiny Lizard | Phelan and Brattstrom, 1955 | ||
| Uma | Fringe-toed Lizards | Baird, 1859 “1858” | ||
| Uma inornata | Coachella Fringe-toed Lizard | Cope, 1895 | Endemic | |
| Uma notata | Colorado Desert Fringe-toed Lizard | Baird, 1859 “1858” | ||
| Uma scoparia | Mohave Fringe-toed Lizard | Cope, 1894 | ||
| Urosaurus | Tree and Bush Lizards | Hallowell, 1854 | ||
| Urosaurus graciosus | Long-tailed Brush Lizard | Hallowell, 1854 | ||
| Urosaurus graciosus graciosus | Western Long-tailed Brush Lizard | Hallowell, 1854 | ||
| Urosaurus microscutatus | Small-scaled Lizard | (Van Denburgh, 1894) | Urosaurus nigricaudus (nigricauda) - Baja California Brush Lizard |
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| Urosaurus ornatus | Ornate Tree Lizard | (Baird and Girard, 1852) | ||
| Urosaurus ornatus symmetricus | Colorado River Tree Lizard | (Baird, 1859 “1858”) | ||
| Uta | Side-blotched Lizards | Baird and Girard, 1852 | ||
| Uta stansburiana | Common Side-blotched Lizard | Baird and Girard, 1852 | ||
| Uta stansburiana elegans | Western Side-blotched Lizard | Yarrow, 1882 | ||
| Uta stansburiana nevadensis | Nevada Side-blotched Lizard | Ruthven, 1913 | ||
| Phyllodactylidae | Leaf-toed Geckos | Gamble, Bauer, Greenbaum, & Jackman 2008 | ||
| Phyllodactylus | Leaf-toed Geckos | Gray, 1828 | ||
| Phyllodactylus nocticolus | Peninsula Leaf-toed Gecko | Dixon, 1964 | ||
| Scincidae | Skinks | Gray, 1825 | ||
| Plestiodon | Toothy Skinks | Duméril and Bibron, 1839 | Eumeces | |
| Plestiodon gilberti | Gilbert's Skink | (Van Denburgh, 1896) | Eumeces gilberti | |
| Plestiodon gilberti cancellosus | Variegated Skink | (Rodgers and Fitch, 1947) | Eumeces gilberti cancellosus | Endemic |
| Plestiodon gilberti gilberti | Greater Brown Skink | (Van Denburgh, 1896) | Eumeces gilberti gilberti | Endemic |
| Plestiodon gilberti placerensis | Northern Brown Skink | (Rodgers, 1944) | Eumeces gilberti placerensis | Endemic |
| Plestiodon gilberti rubricaudatus | Western Red-tailed Skink | (Taylor, 1935) | Eumeces gilberti rubricaudatus | |
| Plestiodon skiltonianus | Western Skink | Baird and Girard, 1852 | Eumeces skiltonianus | |
| Plestiodon skiltonianus interparietalis | Coronado Skink | (Tanner, 1958 “1957”) | Eumeces skiltonianus interparietalis | |
| Plestiodon skiltonianus skiltonianus | Skilton's Skink | Baird and Girard, 1852 | Eumeces skiltonianus skiltonianus | |
| Teiidae | Whiptails and Racerunners | Gray, 1827 | ||
| Aspidoscelis | Whiptails | Fitzinger, 1843 | Cnemidophorus | |
| Aspidoscelis hyperythra | Orange-throated Whiptail | (Cope, 1863) | Cnemidophorus hyperythrus | |
| Aspidoscelis hyperythra beldingi | Belding's Orange-throated Whiptail | (Stejneger, 1894) | Cnemidophorus hyperythrus beldingi | |
| Aspidoscelis tigris | Tiger Whiptail | (Baird and Girard, 1852) | Cnemidophorus tigris | |
| Aspidoscelis tigris munda | California Whiptail | (Camp, 1916) | Cnemidophorus tigris munda | Endemic |
| Aspidoscelis tigris stejnegeri | San Diegan Tiger Whiptail | (Van Denburgh, 1894) | Cnemidophorus tigris stejnegeri - Coastal Whiptail | |
| Aspidoscelis tigris tigris | Great Basin Whiptail | (Baird and Girard, 1852) | Cnemidophorus tigris tigri | |
| Xantusiidae | Night Lizards | Baird, 1858 | ||
| Xantusia | Night Lizards | Baird, 1859 “1858” | ||
| Xantusia gracilis | Sandstone Night Lizard | Grismer and Galvan, 1986 | Endemic | |
| Xantusia henshawi | Granite Night Lizard | Stejneger, 1893 | ||
| Xantusia riversiana | Island Night Lizard | Cope, 1883 | ||
| Xantusia riversiana reticulata | San Clemente Night Lizard | Smith, 1946 | Endemic | |
| Xantusia riversiana riversiana | San Nicolas Night Lizard | Cope, 1883 | Endemic | |
| Xantusia sierrae | Sierra Night Lizard | Bezy, 1967 | Endemic | |
| Xantusia vigilis | Desert Night Lizard | Baird, 1859 “1858” | ||
| Xantusia wigginsi | Wiggins' Night Lizard | Savage, 1952 | ||
Non-Native Species (More information about non-native amphibians and reptiles reported in California) |
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| Acanthodactylus | Fringe-fingered Lizards, Spiny-toed Lizards, Fringe-toed Lizards | Wiegmann, 1834 | ||
| Acanthodactylus boskianus | Bosc's Fringe-toed Lizard | (Daudin, 1802) | ||
| Aspidoscelis | Whiptails | Fitzinger, 1843 | Cnemidophorus | |
| Aspidoscelis sonorae | Sonoran Spotted Whiptail | (Lowe and Wright, 1964) | Cnemidophorus Formerly described as Hybrids - Aspidoscelis flagellicauda x Aspidoscelis sonorae |
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| Chamaeleonidae | Chameleons | Gray, 1825 | ||
| Trioceros | Chameleons | Swainson, 1839 | Chamaeleo - Laurenti, 1768 | |
| Trioceros jacksonii | Jackson's Chameleon | Boulanger, 1896 | Chamaeleo jacksonii | |
| Dactyloidae | Anoles | Fitzinger, 1843 | ||
| Anolis | Anoles | Daudin, 1802 | ||
| Anolis carolinensis | Green Anole | (Voigt, 1832) | ||
| Anolis sagrei |
Brown Anole | Dumeril and Bibron, 1837 | ||
| Gekkonidae | Geckos | Gray, 1825 | ||
| Cyrtopodion | Bow-fingered Geckos | Fitzinger, 1843 | ||
| Cyrtopodion scabrum | Rough-tailed Gecko | (Heyden, 1827) | Keeled Rock Gecko, Bow-footed Gecko, Rough-tailed Bowfoot Gecko, Rough Bent-toed Gecko, Common Tuberculate Ground Gecko, and Keeled Gecko | |
| Hemidactylus | House Geckos | Gray, 1825 | ||
| Hemidactylus garnotii | Indo-Pacific Gecko | Dumeril and Bibron, 1836 | Fox Gecko, Garnot's House Gecko | |
| Hemidactylus mabouia | Tropical House Gecko | (Moreau de Jonnès, 1818) | Wood Slave, African House Gecko, etc. | |
| Hemidactylus turcicus | Mediterranean Gecko | (Linnaeus, 1758) | Gray, 1825 | |
| Tarentola | Wall Geckos | Gray, 1825 | ||
| Tarentola annularis |
Ringed Wall Gecko (White-spotted Wall Gecko) | (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1827) | ||
| Tarentola mauritanica |
Moorish Gecko | (Linnaeus, 1758) | ||
| Lacertidae | Lacertid Lizards | Cope, 1864 | ||
| Podarcis | Wall Lizard | Wagler, 1830 | ||
| Podarcis siculus | Italian Wall Lizard | (Rafinesque, 1810) | = Podarcis sicula | |
| Skincidae | Skinks | |||
| Chalcides | (Skinks) | Laurenti, 1768 | ||
| Chalcides ocellatus | Ocellated Skink | (Forsskal, 1775) | Ocellated Bronze Skink, Eyed Skink, Gongilo | |
| Trachylepis | Afro-Malagasy mabuyas | Fitzinger, 1843 | ||
| Trachylepis Quinquetaeniata | African Five-lined Skink | (Lichtenstein, 1823) | Mabuya quinquetaeniata Five-lined Mabuya, Rainbow Mabuya, Rainbow Skink, Rainbow Rock Skink |
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| Common Name | ||||
| Alligator Lizards | ||||
| Forest Alligator Lizard (California Alligator Lizard) |
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| Northwestern Alligator Lizard | ||||
| San Francisco Alligator Lizard | ||||
| Shasta Alligator Lizard | ||||
| Sierra Alligator Lizard | ||||
| Oregon Alligator Lizard | ||||
| Panamint Alligator Lizard | ||||
| Woodland Alligator Lizard (San Diego Alligator Lizard) |
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| Chuckwallas | ||||
| Common Chuckwalla | ||||
| Collared Lizards | ||||
| Baja California Collared Lizard | ||||
| Great Basin Collared Lizard | ||||
| Fence Lizards (Bluebellies, Swifts) | ||||
| Coast Range Fence Lizard | ||||
| Great Basin Fence Lizard | ||||
| Island Fence Lizard | ||||
| Northwestern Fence Lizard | ||||
| San Joaquin Fence Lizard | ||||
| Sierra Fence Lizard | ||||
| Fringe-toed Lizards | ||||
| Coachella Valley Fringe-toed Lizard | ||||
| Mohave Fringe-toed Lizard | ||||
| Sonoran Fringe-toed Lizard | ||||
| Geckos | ||||
| Desert Banded Gecko | ||||
| Peninsular Banded Gecko | ||||
| Peninsular Leaf-toed Gecko | ||||
| San Diego Banded Gecko | ||||
| Gila Monster | ||||
| Banded Gila Monster | ||||
| Horned Lizards | ||||
| Blainville's (Coast) Horned Lizard | ||||
| Flat-tailed Horned Lizard | ||||
| Northern Desert Horned Lizard | ||||
| Pygmy Short-horned Lizard | ||||
| Southern Desert Horned Lizard | ||||
| Iguanas | ||||
| Northern Desert Iguana | ||||
| Legless Lizards | ||||
| Temblor Legless Lizard | ||||
| Southern Sierra Legless Lizard | ||||
| Bakersfield Legless Lizard | ||||
| Northern California Legless Lizard | ||||
| Black Legless Lizard | ||||
| Southern California Legless Lizard | ||||
| Leopard Lizards | ||||
| Blunt-nosed Leopard Lizard | ||||
| Long-nosed Leopard Lizard | ||||
| Night Lizards | ||||
| Baja California Night Lizard | ||||
| Granite Night Lizard | ||||
| Sandstone Night Lizard | ||||
| Island Night Lizard | ||||
| San Clemente Night Lizard | ||||
| San Nicolas Night Lizard | ||||
| Desert Night Lizard | ||||
| Sierra Night Lizard | ||||
| Yucca Night Lizard | ||||
| Rock Lizards | ||||
| Mearns' Rock Lizard | ||||
| Sagebrush Lizards | ||||
| Western Sagebrush Lizard | ||||
| Northern Sagebrush Lizard | ||||
| Southern Sagebrush Lizard | ||||
| Side-blotched Lizards | ||||
| Nevada Side-blotched Lizard | ||||
| Western Side-blotched Lizard | ||||
| Skinks |
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| Variegated Skink | ||||
| Greater Brown Skink | ||||
| Northern Brown Skink | ||||
| Western Red-tailed Skink | ||||
| Coronado Skink | ||||
| Skilton's Skink | ||||
| Spiny Lizards | ||||
| Yellow-backed Spiny Lizard | ||||
| Desert Spiny Lizard | ||||
| Granite Spiny Lizard | ||||
| Tree and Brush Lizards | ||||
| Small-scaled Lizard | ||||
| Colorado River Tree Lizard | ||||
| Long-tailed Brush Lizard | ||||
| Whiptails | ||||
| Belding's Orange Throated Whiptail | ||||
| California Whiptail | ||||
| Coastal Whiptail | ||||
| Great Basin Whiptail | ||||
| Zebra-tailed Lizards | ||||
| Western Zebra-tailed Lizard | ||||
| Non-native Species | (More information about non-native reptiles and amphibians reported in California) | |||
| Fringe-fingered Lizards, Spiny-toed Lizards |
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| Bosc's Fringe-toed Lizard | ||||
| Anoles | ||||
| Green Anole | ||||
| Brown Anole | ||||
| Chameleons | ||||
| Jackson's Chameleon | ||||
| Geckos | ||||
| Indo-Pacific Gecko | ||||
| Mediterranean House Gecko | ||||
| Moorish Wall Gecko | ||||
| Ringed (White-Spotted) Wall Gecko | ||||
| Tropical House Gecko | ||||
| Rough-tailed Gecko | ||||
| Skinks | ||||
| African Five-lined Skink | ||||
| Wall Lizards | ||||
| Italian Wall Lizard | ||||
| Whiptails | ||||
| Gila Spotted Whiptail x Sonoran Spotted Whiptail |
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