The rhino-horned lizard (''Ceratophora stoddartii''), also commonly known as Stoddart's unicorn lizard and the mountain horned agama, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

lizard Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Agamidae Agamidae is a family containing 582 species in 64 genera of iguanian lizards indigenous to Africa, Asia, Australia, and a few locations in Southern Europe. Many species are commonly called dragons or dragon lizards. Overview Phylogenetically ...

. The species is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

. It is called ''kagamuva angkatussa-කගමුව අං කටුස්සා'' in Sinhala.

Etymology

The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

, ''stoddartii'', is in honor of

Charles Stoddart Colonel Charles Stoddart (23 July 1806 in Ipswich – June 1842 in Bukhara) was a British officer and diplomat. He was a famous British agent in Central Asia during the period of the Great Game. Stoddart, the son of Major Stephen Stoddart (176 ...

, who was a British army officer and diplomat.

Habitat and distribution

''C. stoddartii'' is found widespread in montane forests of central Sri Lanka. Localities from which it has been recorded include

Nuwara Eliya Nuwara Eliya ( ; ) is a city in the hill country of the Central Province, Sri Lanka. Its name means "city on the plain (table land)" or "city of light". The city is the administrative capital of Nuwara Eliya District, with a picturesque landsc ...

, Hakgala, Pattipola,

Ohiya Ohiya () is a rural village located in Badulla District of Uva Province, Sri Lanka. It is located approximately southeast of Colombo. Ohiya is in the Welimada Divisional Secretariat Division and the Grama Niladhari Division number is 62A. It i ...

Horton Plains Horton Plains National Park () is a national park in the central highlands of Sri Lanka that was designated in 1988. It covers an area of 31km² and borders Thotupalakanda Nature Reserve. It is located at an elevation of and encompasses montane ...

Hewaheta Hewaheta is a village in Sri Lanka. It is located within Central Province. Notable people Charles Spearman Armstrong (1847–1924) was a pioneer in growing tea and cinchona in Sri Lanka at the Rookwood plantation, near Hewaheta, from 1864. His g ...

, Dimbula, Agarapathana, and

Adam's Peak Adam's Peak is a conical sacred mountain located in central Sri Lanka.Capper, Daniel (2022), ''Roaming Free Like a Deer: Buddhism and the Natural World,'' Cornell University Press. It is well known for the ''Sri Pada'' (; ), a rock formati ...

Description

The head of ''C. stoddartii'' is oval, and longer than wide. The rostral appendage is long, horn-like, about two thirds the length of the snout in males, but is reduced or even absent in females. The lamellae under the fourth toe number 23–27. The dorsum is brownish green or yellowish brown. The tail is marked with 10–16 dark brown crossbands. The venter is light brownish gray.

Ecology

A slow moving, arboreal species, ''C. stoddartii'' is found on trees from above the ground. When threatened, it opens its mouth wide, revealing the bright orange lining of the oral cavity. The presence of relatively larger trees as well as plants with low to medium levels of DBH is an important factor for ''C. stoddartii'' which spends most of its time resting vertically on a tree trunk or a branch. When weather conditions are too harsh they tend to take refuge inside the mosses that are abundant in the Cloud Forests. Tree barks with different shades (grays and browns) and mosaics of lichens & mosses provide the ideal background for ''C. stoddartii'' to merge with. Higher perch height of the adult males can be assigned as a feature of territorial defense and attracting the females. The ground is less frequently used by adult ''C. stoddartii'' except for the occasional hunting sprints to catch the escaping prey. However, it has been observed on the ground feeding on caterpillars and even on earth worms (''Pheretima taprobenia''). When it descends to the ground it changes its green and brown colors into more shades of brown and becomes well camouflaged with the leaf-litter.

Reproduction

''C. stoddartii'' is

oviparous Oviparous animals are animals that reproduce by depositing fertilized zygotes outside the body (i.e., by laying or spawning) in metabolically independent incubation organs known as eggs, which nurture the embryo into moving offsprings kno ...

. Egg laying takes place in July, and clutch size is about 2–5 eggs, each measuring 7.6-8.1 by 13.5–14.5 mm (.31 by .55 inch). The eggs are deposited in a hole, and hatch after 81–90 days. However, hatchlings have been founded in the wild also during colder months such as December and January. Hatchlings which emerge from eggs laid in humus or among leaf litter can be observed frequently occupying the ground where dead branch sticks and leaf litter well camouflaged them from the possible predators.

References

External links

*http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Ceratophora&species=stoddartii *http://lankanaturesummary.blogspot.com/2014/02/ceratophora-stoddartii-rhino-horned.html