Iguaninae
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The Iguanidae is a family of
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 composed of the
iguana ''Iguana'' (, ) is a genus of herbivorous lizards that are native to tropical areas of Mexico, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. The genus was first described by Austrian naturalist Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti, J.N. Laurenti in ...
s,
chuckwalla Chuckwallas are lizards found primarily in arid regions of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Some are found on coastal islands. The five species of chuckwallas are all placed within the genus ''Sauromalus''; they are part of th ...
s, and their prehistoric relatives, including the widespread
green iguana The green iguana (''Iguana iguana''), also known as the American iguana or the common green iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly Herbivory, herbivorous species of lizard of the genus ''Iguana''. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana. ...
.


Taxonomy

Iguanidae is thought to be the sister group to the collared lizards (family
Crotaphytidae The Crotaphytidae, or collared lizards, are a family (biology), family of desert-dwelling reptiles native to the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Alternatively they are recognized as a subfamily, Crotaphytinae, within the clade Ple ...
). This family likely first appeared in
Cenozoic The Cenozoic Era ( ; ) is Earth's current geological era, representing the last 66million years of Earth's history. It is characterized by the dominance of mammals, insects, birds and angiosperms (flowering plants). It is the latest of three g ...
, previously identified two
Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...
genera (''
Pristiguana ''Pristiguana'' is an extinct genus of possible iguanian lizard from the Maastrichtian Marília Formation of Brazil.Pariguana ''Pariguana'' (meaning "near ''Iguana''" in Greek) is an extinct genus of iguanomorph lizard from the Late Cretaceous of western North America. It is known from a single type species, ''Pariguana lancensis'', named in 2012 on the basis of a part ...
'') are unlikely to belong to this family. The subfamily
Iguaninae The Iguanidae is a family of lizards composed of the iguanas, chuckwallas, and their prehistoric relatives, including the widespread green iguana. Taxonomy Iguanidae is thought to be the sister group to the Crotaphytidae, collared lizards (fam ...
, which contains all modern genera, likely originated in the earliest
Paleocene The Paleocene ( ), or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), ...
, about 62 million years ago. The most basal extant genus, '' Dipsosaurus,'' diverged from the rest of Iguaninae during the late
Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...
, about 38 million years ago, with ''
Brachylophus The genus ''Brachylophus'' consists of four Extant taxon, extant iguanid species native to the islands of Fiji and a giant extinct species from Tonga in the South West Pacific. One of the extant species, ''B. fasciatus'', is also present on Tong ...
'' following a few million years later at about 35 million years ago, presumably after its dispersal event to the
Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...
. All other modern iguana genera formed in the
Neogene The Neogene ( ,) is a geologic period and system that spans 20.45 million years from the end of the Paleogene Period million years ago ( Mya) to the beginning of the present Quaternary Period million years ago. It is the second period of th ...
period. A
phylogenetic tree A phylogenetic tree or phylogeny is a graphical representation which shows the evolutionary history between a set of species or taxa during a specific time.Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, MA. In ...
of Iguaninae is shown here:


Description

Iguanas and iguana-type species are diverse in terms of size, appearance, and habitat. They typically flourish in tropical, warm climates, such as regions of South America and islands in the Caribbean and in the Pacific. Iguanas typically possess dorsal spines across their back, a dewlap on the neck, sharp claws, a long whip-like tail, and a stocky, squat build. Most iguanas are
arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally (scansorial), but others are exclusively arboreal. The hab ...
, living in trees, but some species tend to be more
terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth, as opposed to extraterrestrial. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on o ...
, which means they prefer the ground. Iguanas are typically
herbivore A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet. These more broadly also encompass animals that eat ...
s and their diets vary based on what plant life is available within their habitat. Iguanas across many species remain oviparious, and exhibit little to no
parental care Parental care is a behavioural and evolutionary strategy adopted by some animals, involving a parental investment being made to the evolutionary fitness of offspring. Patterns of parental care are widespread and highly diverse across the animal k ...
when their eggs hatch. They do, however, display nest-guarding behavior. Like all extant non-avian reptiles, they are
poikilotherm A poikilotherm () is an animal (Greek ''poikilos'' – 'various', 'spotted', and ''therme'' – 'heat') whose internal temperature varies considerably. Poikilotherms have to survive and adapt to environmental stress. One of the most important s ...
ic, and also rely on regular periods of basking under the sun to
thermoregulate Thermoregulation is the ability of an organism to keep its body temperature within certain boundaries, even when the surrounding temperature is very different. A thermoconforming organism, by contrast, simply adopts the surrounding temperature ...
.


Distribution

All but one of the modern iguana genera are native to the Americas, ranging from the
deserts A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the l ...
of the
Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...
through
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 ...
,
Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...
, and the
Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
, to throughout
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
down to northernmost
Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
. Some iguanas like ''I. iguana'' have spread from their native regions of Central and South America into many Pacific Islands, and even to Fiji, Japan, and Hawai'i, due to the exotic pet trade and illegal introductions into the ecosystems. Other iguanas, like the Galapagos pink iguana (''C. marthae'') are endemic only to specific regions on the Galapagos islands. The Grand Cayman blue iguana, ''C. lewisi'', is endemic only to the Grand Cayman island, limited to a small wildlife reserve. The only non-American iguana species are the members of the genus ''
Brachylophus The genus ''Brachylophus'' consists of four Extant taxon, extant iguanid species native to the islands of Fiji and a giant extinct species from Tonga in the South West Pacific. One of the extant species, ''B. fasciatus'', is also present on Tong ...
'' and the extinct ''
Lapitiguana ''Lapitiguana impensa'' is an extinct giant (1.5 m long) iguanid from Fiji. It likely became extinct following the human colonization of Fiji 3000 years ago. All extant Fijian iguanas are in the genus '' Brachylophus'', together with an ext ...
'', which are found on
Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...
and formerly
Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...
; their distribution is thought to be the result of the longest overwater dispersal event ever recorded for a vertebrate species, with them rafting over 8000  km across the
Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...
from the
Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...
to the Fiji and Tonga.


Extant genera


Fossils

Cretaceous '' Pristiguana brasiliensis'' and '' Pariguana lancensis'' are later excluded from the family.


Classification

Several classification schemes have been used to define the structure of this family. The "historical" classification recognized all New World iguanians, plus ''
Brachylophus The genus ''Brachylophus'' consists of four Extant taxon, extant iguanid species native to the islands of Fiji and a giant extinct species from Tonga in the South West Pacific. One of the extant species, ''B. fasciatus'', is also present on Tong ...
'' and the Madagascar oplurines, as informal groups and not as formal subfamilies. Frost and Etheridge (1989) formally recognized these informal groupings as
families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...
. Macey et al. (1997), in their analysis of molecular data for iguanian lizards recovered a monophyletic Iguanidae and formally recognized the eight families proposed by Frost and Etheridge (1989) as
subfamilies In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zool ...
of Iguanidae. Schulte et al. (2003) reanalyzed the morphological data of Frost and Etheridge in combination with molecular data for all major groups of Iguanidae and recovered a monophyletic Iguanidae, but the subfamilies Polychrotinae and Tropidurinae were not monophyletic. Townsend et al. (2011), Wiens et al. (2012) and Pyron et al. (2013), in the most comprehensive
phylogenies A phylogenetic tree or phylogeny is a graphical representation which shows the evolutionary history between a set of species or taxa during a specific time.Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, MA. In o ...
published to date, recognized most groups at family level, resulting in a narrower definition of Iguanidae.


Historical classification

Family Iguanidae *Informal grouping anoloids: anoles, leiosaurs, ''Polychrus'' *Informal grouping basiliscines: casquehead lizards *Informal grouping crotaphytines: collared and leopard lizards *Informal grouping iguanines: marine, Fijian, Galapagos land, spinytail, rock, desert, green, and chuckwalla iguanas *Informal grouping morunasaurs: wood lizards, clubtails *Informal grouping oplurines: Madagascan iguanids *Informal grouping sceloporines: earless, spiny, tree, side-blotched and horned lizards *Informal grouping tropidurines: curly-tailed lizards, South American swifts, neotropical ground lizards


Frost et al. (1989) classification of iguanas

Family Corytophanidae
Family Crotaphytidae
Family Hoplocercidae
Family Iguanidae *Genus ''
Amblyrhynchus The marine iguana (''Amblyrhynchus cristatus''), also known as the sea iguana, saltwater iguana, or Galápagos marine iguana, is a species of iguana found only on the Galápagos Islands (Ecuador). Unique among modern lizards, it is a marine repti ...
'' – marine iguana *Genus ''
Brachylophus The genus ''Brachylophus'' consists of four Extant taxon, extant iguanid species native to the islands of Fiji and a giant extinct species from Tonga in the South West Pacific. One of the extant species, ''B. fasciatus'', is also present on Tong ...
'' – Fijian/Tongan iguanas *Genus ''
Cachryx ''Cachryx'' is a genus of lizards in the family Iguanidae, native to the Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula and adjacent Guatemala. Taxonomy There are two described species in this genus. Until 2017, they were genererally included in ''Ctenosaura ...
'' – spinytail iguanas *Genus ''
Conolophus ''Conolophus'' is a genus of lizards, also known commonly as Galápagos land iguanas, in the family Iguanidae. The genus is endemic to the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador. The number of species A species () is often defined as the largest g ...
'' – Galápagos land iguanas *Genus ''
Ctenosaura ''Ctenosaura'' is a lizard genus commonly known as spinytail iguanas or ctenosaurs. The genus is part of the large lizard family Iguanidae and is native to Mexico and Central America. The name is derived from two Greek words: (), meaning "com ...
'' – spinytail iguanas *Genus ''
Cyclura ''Cyclura'' is a genus of lizards in the family Iguanidae. Member species of this genus are commonly known as "cycluras" (or more commonly as rock iguanas) and only occur on islands in the West Indies. Rock iguanas have a high degree of endemism ...
'' – West Indian rock iguanas *Genus '' Dipsosaurus'' – desert iguana *Genus ''
Iguana ''Iguana'' (, ) is a genus of herbivorous lizards that are native to tropical areas of Mexico, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. The genus was first described by Austrian naturalist Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti, J.N. Laurenti in ...
'' – green and Lesser Antillean iguanas *Genus '' Sauromalus'' – chuckwallas *Genus '' Armandisaurus'' (extinct chuckwalla) *Genus ''
Lapitiguana ''Lapitiguana impensa'' is an extinct giant (1.5 m long) iguanid from Fiji. It likely became extinct following the human colonization of Fiji 3000 years ago. All extant Fijian iguanas are in the genus '' Brachylophus'', together with an ext ...
'' (extinct giant Fijian iguana) *Genus '' Pumilia'' (extinct Palm Springs iguana) *Genus ''
Pristiguana ''Pristiguana'' is an extinct genus of possible iguanian lizard from the Maastrichtian Marília Formation of Brazil.Corytophaninae Corytophanidae is a family (biology), family of iguanian lizards, also called casquehead lizards or helmeted lizards, Endemism, endemic to the New World. Nine species of casquehead lizards from three Genus, genera are recognized. Geographic ran ...
: casquehead lizards *Subfamily Crotaphytinae: collared and leopard lizards *Subfamily
Hoplocercinae Hoplocercidae are a family of lizards native to the tropical forests, woodlands and savanna-like habitats of Central and South America. Alternatively they are recognized as a subfamily, Hoplocercinae. 20 species in two genera are described. Spe ...
: wood lizards, clubtails *Subfamily
Iguaninae The Iguanidae is a family of lizards composed of the iguanas, chuckwallas, and their prehistoric relatives, including the widespread green iguana. Taxonomy Iguanidae is thought to be the sister group to the Crotaphytidae, collared lizards (fam ...
: marine, Fijian, Galapagos land, spinytail, rock, desert, green, and chuckwalla iguanas *Subfamily Oplurinae: Madagascan iguanids *Subfamily Phrynosomatinae: earless, spiny, tree, side-blotched and horned lizards *Subfamily Polychrotinae: anoles, leiosaurs, ''
Polychrus ''Polychrus'' is the Monotypic taxon, only extant genus of Polychrotidae, polychrotid lizards in the world. Commonly called bush anoles, they are found in Central America, Central and South America, as well as nearby Trinidad and Tobago. ''Poly ...
'' *Subfamily Tropidurinae: curly-tailed lizards, neotropical ground lizards, South American swifts


Schulte et al. (2003) classification of Iguanidae

Here families and subfamilies are proposed as clade names, but may be recognized under the traditional Linnean nomenclature. Iguanidae *
Corytophaninae Corytophanidae is a family (biology), family of iguanian lizards, also called casquehead lizards or helmeted lizards, Endemism, endemic to the New World. Nine species of casquehead lizards from three Genus, genera are recognized. Geographic ran ...
: casquehead lizards * Crotaphytinae: collared and leopard lizards *
Hoplocercinae Hoplocercidae are a family of lizards native to the tropical forests, woodlands and savanna-like habitats of Central and South America. Alternatively they are recognized as a subfamily, Hoplocercinae. 20 species in two genera are described. Spe ...
: wood lizards, clubtails *
Iguaninae The Iguanidae is a family of lizards composed of the iguanas, chuckwallas, and their prehistoric relatives, including the widespread green iguana. Taxonomy Iguanidae is thought to be the sister group to the Crotaphytidae, collared lizards (fam ...
: marine, Fijian, Galapagos land, spinytail, rock, desert, green, and chuckwalla iguanas * Oplurinae: Madagascan iguanids * Phrynosomatinae: earless, spiny, tree, side-blotched and horned lizards * Polychrotinae: anoles, leiosaurs, ''
Polychrus ''Polychrus'' is the Monotypic taxon, only extant genus of Polychrotidae, polychrotid lizards in the world. Commonly called bush anoles, they are found in Central America, Central and South America, as well as nearby Trinidad and Tobago. ''Poly ...
'' :*subclade of Polychrotinae ''
Anolis ''Anolis'' is a genus of anoles (), iguanian lizards in the family Dactyloidae, native to the Americas. With more than 425 species, it represents the world's most species-rich amniote tetrapod genus, although many of these have been proposed to b ...
'': anoles :*subclade of Polychrotinae Leiosaurini: leiosaurs ::*subclade of Leiosaurini Leiosaurae: ::*subclade of Leiosaurini Anisolepae: :*subclade of Polychrotinae ''
Polychrus ''Polychrus'' is the Monotypic taxon, only extant genus of Polychrotidae, polychrotid lizards in the world. Commonly called bush anoles, they are found in Central America, Central and South America, as well as nearby Trinidad and Tobago. ''Poly ...
'' : * Tropidurinae: curly-tailed lizards, neotropical ground lizards, South American swifts :*subclade of Tropidurinae '' Leiocephalus'': curly-tailed lizards :*subclade of Tropidurinae Liolaemini: South American swifts :*subclade of Tropidurinae Tropidurini: neotropical ground lizards :


Townsend et al. (2011), Wiens et al. (2012) and Pyron et al. (2013) classification of Iguanidae

*Family
Corytophanidae Corytophanidae is a family of iguanian lizards, also called casquehead lizards or helmeted lizards, endemic to the New World. Nine species of casquehead lizards from three genera are recognized. Geographic range Corytophanids are found from Mex ...
*Family
Crotaphytidae The Crotaphytidae, or collared lizards, are a family (biology), family of desert-dwelling reptiles native to the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Alternatively they are recognized as a subfamily, Crotaphytinae, within the clade Ple ...
*Family
Dactyloidae Dactyloidae are a family of lizards commonly known as anoles (singular anole ) and native to warmer parts of the Americas, ranging from southeastern United States to Paraguay. Instead of treating it as a family, some authorities prefer to treat ...
*Family
Hoplocercidae Hoplocercidae are a family of lizards native to the tropical forests, woodlands and savanna-like habitats of Central America, Central and South America. Alternatively they are recognized as a subfamily, Hoplocercinae. 20 species in two genera are ...
*Family Iguanidae *Family
Leiocephalidae Leiocephalidae, also known as the curlytail lizards or curly-tailed lizards, is a family of iguanian lizards restricted to the West Indies. One of the defining features of these lizards is that their tail often curls over. They were previously ...
*Family
Leiosauridae Leiosauridae is a Family (biology), family of iguanian lizards containing six genera and 34 species. The family is Endemism, endemic to Central America and South America. Taxonomy A 2022 phylogenetic study found the Leiosauridae to be the sist ...
*Family
Liolaemidae Liolaemidae are a family of iguanian lizards. They were traditionally included in the family Iguanidae as subfamily Liolaeminae, which some more recent authors prefer to delimit in a more restricted way. This family is only found within South Ame ...
*Family
Opluridae The Opluridae, or Madagascan iguanas, are a family of moderately-sized lizards native to Madagascar and Grande Comore. There are eight species across two genera, with most of them being under '' Oplurus''. The other genus, '' Chalarodon'', is eas ...
*Family
Phrynosomatidae The Phrynosomatidae are a diverse family of lizards, sometimes classified as a subfamily (Phrynosomatinae), found from Panama to the extreme south of Canada. Many members of the group are adapted to life in hot, sandy deserts, although the spiny ...
*Family
Polychrotidae The Polychrotidae family (sometimes classified as the Polychrotinae subfamily instead) of iguanian lizards contains the living genus '' Polychrus'' (commonly called bush anoles) and the extinct genus '' Afairiguana''. The family Polychrotidae was ...
*Family
Tropiduridae The Tropiduridae are a family of iguanid lizards."Tropiduridae". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org. The family is sometimes considered a subfamily, Tropidurinae. The subfamily is native to South America, including the islands of Tri ...


References


External links


Family Iguanidae
{{Authority control Taxa named by Nicolaus Michael Oppel Lizard families Extant Late Cretaceous first appearances