The Laredo striped whiptail (''Aspidoscelis laredoensis'') is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia al ...

found in the southern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

, in Texas, and northern

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

Coahuila Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico. Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...

Nuevo Leon Nuevo is the Spanish word for "new". It may refer to: * Nuevo, California, a town in the state of California * Nuevo (band), featuring singer and musician Peter Godwin Peter Godwin (born 4 December 1957) is a Zimbabwean author, journalist, ...

, and

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

. Some sources believe it to be the result of extensive hybridization between the Texas spotted whiptail, ''

Aspidoscelis gularis The Texas spotted whiptail (''Aspidoscelis gularis'') is a species of long-tailed lizard, in the family Teiidae. The species is endemic to the south central and southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Six subspecies are recognized as b ...

'' and the six-lined racerunner, ''

Aspidoscelis sexlineatus The six-lined racerunner (''Aspidoscelis sexlineatus'') is a species of lizard native to the United States and Mexico. Geographic range The six-lined racerunner is found throughout much of the southeastern and south-central portion of the United ...

''. It is one of many lizard species known to be parthenogenic.

Description

The Laredo striped whiptail grows from 6 to 11 inches in length. It has an overall color of dark green or dark brown, with 7 yellow or white stripes that run from head to tail, and a white underside. They are thin bodied, with a long tail.

Behavior

Like other species of whiptail lizard, it is diurnal and

insectivorous A robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the human practice of eating insects. The first vertebrate insectivores were ...

. They are wary, energetic, and fast moving, darting for cover if approached. Its preferred

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

is areas with sandy soils and sparse vegetation. They are often found in cultivated fields and pasture land. The species reproduces through parthenogenesis, the female lays up to four unfertilized eggs in mid summer, which hatch in approximately six weeks.

References

*
Herps of Texas: ''Cnemidophorus laredoensis''

''Herpetologica: Karyotypes of the Parthenogenetic Whiptail Lizard Cnemidophorus laredoensis and Its Presumed Parental Species (Sauria: Teiidae)''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2866845 Aspidoscelis Laredo, Texas Reptiles of the United States Reptiles of Mexico Reptiles described in 1973 Taxa named by Charles O. McKinney Taxa named by Fenton R. Kay Taxa named by Robert A. Anderson