California legless lizards avoid most predation by spending most of their time underground.
0000008032 00000 n Miller, C. 1943. European Legless Lizard Pseudopus apodus.
0000018578 00000 n Flying geckos (Ptychozoon sp.) The Animal Diversity Web team is excited to announce ADW Pocket Guides!To cite this page: 0000005756 00000 n How lizards turn into snakes: a phylogenic analysis of body-form evolution in Anguid lizards. California legless lizards require loose sand for burrowing (sand, loam, or humus), moisture, warmth, and plant cover (Stebbins 2003). 2008-01-19.
Since the tail is stiffer than the body, a snake feels more supple than a glass lizard.
California legless lizards are found in California and Mexico.
They can attain a length of over four-feet, and have ears and eyelids.
Vegetation is typically sparse, though spectacular blooms may occur following rain. In the blackest examples, the lines are not noticeable (Miller 1943). Pearse, D., G. Pogson.
The tail will regenerate over the course of about one year, but will be much shorter, darker, and more blunt than the original. Vegetation is dominated by stands of dense, spiny shrubs with tough (hard or waxy) evergreen leaves. Florida is home to two groups of legless lizards that are often mistaken for snakes--the glass lizards and wormlizards. Western Riverside County Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan. Amphibian and Reptile Species of Special Concern in California. 0000005167 00000 n However, California legless lizards lack external ear openings and have unreduced eyes with moveable lids (Cogger and Zweifel, 1998). These results suggest that California legless lizards may be locally abundant (Kuhnz et al. have been known to Western science since at least 1809, but many aspects of their natural history remain a mystery. When placed above the sand or soil, specimens will immediately bury themselves at least slightly. 0000004622 00000 n 0000001681 00000 n Young are born live and are immediately independent (Miller 1944). In dune areas vegetation is also sparse and conditions are dry. California legless lizards forage in leaf litter for prey. 0000000016 00000 n
As with most species of lizards, there is little to no parental investment in California legless lizards.
0000008144 00000 n A legless lizard's comparatively limited range of … 2008. Unlike most lizards, California legless lizards prefer lower temperatures. Jennings, M., M. Hayes. Rarely seen above ground, California legless lizards spend most of their time below the surface. 102 40 Their primary diet consists of insect larvae, termites, beetles, spiders, and other invertebrates (Dudek and Associates, Inc. 2000; Stebbins 2003). Burton's legless lizard (Lialis burtonis) is a species of lizard in the family Pygopodidae.The species lacks forelegs and has only rudimentary hind legs. Sexes are nearly impossible to distinguish without dissection. Fusari, M. 1984. As a result, it is commonly mistaken for a snake. 0000001525 00000 n Olfactory senses also seem likely as there are recorded instances of California legless lizards sticking their heads above ground while the body is still submerged and licking at the air, as if tasting it (Miller 1944). Archived from the original on 2008-04-02 "Giant Legless Lizard".
Dudek and Associates, Inc, 2000. "California Legless Lizard" 0000004063 00000 n Lee, S. 2008. However, California legless lizards lack external ear openings and have unreduced eyes with moveable lids (Cogger and Zweifel, 1998). 0000058127 00000 n European Legless Lizard Pseudopus apodus Average Size Average Lifespan Diet Feeding Housing 3 - 4 feet long 15 – 20 years Legless Lizards are carnivores. Ecological Relations and Adaptations of the Limbless Lizard of the Genus Anniella. April 15, 2008 Scientists don't even agree on how many species of flying gecko exist; between five and nine species are recognized by various authorities. Archived from the original on 2007-10-16 0000003627 00000 n at Bury, R., T. Balgooyen. The western slender glass lizard is Missouri’s longest species of lizard. 2005. Not much is known about mating in California legless lizards.Little data is available on the reproductive behaviors of California legless lizards. The ADW Team gratefully acknowledges their support. xref (On-line).
1976. trailer
0000045733 00000 n at Fusari, M. 1985. living in the Nearctic biogeographic province, the northern part of the New World.
Wiens, J., J. Slingluff. If you pick up a legless lizard, you'll notice that it doesn't feel quite like a snake, and that's in part because of this difference in body-to-tail proportion. Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.reproduction in which eggs develop within the maternal body without additional nourishment from the parent and hatch within the parent or immediately after laying.scrub forests develop in areas that experience dry seasons.reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a femalethat region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).movements of a hard surface that are produced by animals as signals to othersDepartment of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service. 0000058588 00000 n They can also remain active in cooler temperatures above ground.