Holbrookia

Holbrookia
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Iguania
Family:	Phrynosomatidae
Genus:	Holbrookia; Girard, 1851

Holbrookia is a genus of earless lizards, known commonly as the lesser earless lizards, in the family Phrynosomatidae. The genus contains five recognized species, which are found throughout the southwestern and central United States and northern Mexico. They are characterized by having no external ear openings, presumably to prevent sand from entering their bodies when they are digging.

Etymology

The generic name, Holbrookia, is in honor of American zoologist, John Edwards Holbrook.^[1]^[2]

Description

Lesser earless lizards grow to approximately 2.0-2.5 inches (50–65 mm) snout-to-vent length (SVL), plus a tail 3-4 inches (75–100 mm) long. They are typically grey or tan in color, with black blotching. The males usually have blue patches on either side of their bellies, whereas the females do not. Females will often change to have bright orange patches when gravid.

Behavior

Holbrookia species are diurnal, basking lizards. They spend the vast majority of their time sunning on rocks, even in the heat of the day, until the surface temperature reaches approximately 104 °F (40 °C), when they will retreat to a rock crevice or burrow.

Diet

Lesser earless lizards are insectivorous.

Species

The genus Holbrookia contains five species which are recognized as being valid.^[3]

Holbrookia approximans Baird, 1859 – speckled earless lizard
Holbrookia elegans Bocourt, 1874 – elegant earless lizard
Holbrookia lacerata Cope, 1880 – spot-tailed earless lizard
Holbrookia maculata Girard, 1851 – lesser earless lizard
Holbrookia propinqua Baird & Girard, 1852 – keeled earless lizard

Geographic range

Earless lizards (genera Cophosaurus and Holbrookia) are found in the southwestern and central United States, in the states of Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and as far north as Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming. They are also found in Mexico, in the states of Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Sinaloa, Durango, Zacatecas, San Luis Potosí, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas and Veracruz.

References

^ Beltz, Ellin (2006). Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America – Explained. [1]
^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Holbrookia, p. 125).
^ "Holbrookia ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.