''Gerrhonotus'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

anguid Anguidae refers to a large and diverse family of lizards native to the Northern Hemisphere. It contains 9 genera and 89 extant species. Common characteristics of this group include a reduced supratemporal arch, striations on the medial faces of t ...

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 ...

s that are commonly referred to as alligator lizards, due to a vague resemblance to an

alligator An alligator, or colloquially gator, is a large reptile in the genus ''Alligator'' of the Family (biology), family Alligatoridae in the Order (biology), order Crocodilia. The two Extant taxon, extant species are the American alligator (''A. mis ...

. Most species are restricted to

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, but a few range into

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, and ''G. rhombifer'' is from

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

and

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

. Along with glass lizards (''

Ophisaurus ''Ophisaurus'' (from the Greek 'snake-lizard') is a genus of superficially snake-like legless lizards in the subfamily Anguinae. Known as joint snakes, glass snakes, or glass lizards, they are so-named because their tails are easily broken; li ...

'') and many other lizards, alligator lizards have the ability to regrow their tail.

Species and subspecies

There are nine recognized

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), ...

in the genus ''Gerrhonotus''. One species has recognized

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

. www.reptile-database.org. *'' Gerrhonotus farri'' – Farr's alligator lizard Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Gerrhonotus farri'', p. 88; ''G. liocephalus loweryi'', p. 161; ''G. lugoi'', p. 162). *'' Gerrhonotus infernalis'' –

alligator lizard *''

Gerrhonotus lazcanoi ''Gerrhonotus lazcanoi'' is a species of lizard of the Anguidae family. It is found in Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the Uni ...

'' *'' Gerrhonotus liocephalus'' – smooth-headed alligator lizard, Texas alligator lizard, Wiegmann's alligator lizard **'' Gerrhonotus liocephalus austrinus'' **'' Gerrhonotus liocephalus liocephalus'' **'' Gerrhonotus liocephalus loweryi'' – Lowery's alligator lizard *'' Gerrhonotus lugoi'' – Lugo's alligator lizard *'' Gerrhonotus mccoyi'' *'' Gerrhonotus ophiurus'' *'' Gerrhonotus parvus'' – pygmy alligator lizard *'' Gerrhonotus rhombifer'' – isthmian alligator lizard

Species and subspecies

References

External links

Further reading