Slender glass lizard

Last updated

Slender glass lizard
Western Slender Glass Lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus) (14238435636).jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Anguidae
Genus: Ophisaurus
Species:
O. attenuatus
Binomial name
Ophisaurus attenuatus
Baird in Cope, 1880
Ophisaurus attenuatus distribution.png
Synonyms [2] [3]
  • Ophisaurus ventralis attenuatus
    Baird in Cope, 1880

The slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus) is a legless lizard in the glass lizard subfamily (Anguinae). [4] The species is endemic to the United States. Two subspecies are recognized. The lizard was originally believed to be a subspecies of the eastern glass lizard (Ophisaurus ventralis). Their name comes from their easily broken tail which they can break off themselves without ever being touched. It is difficult to find a specimen with an undamaged tail. The lizard eats a variety of insects and small animals, including smaller lizards. Snakes and other animals are known to prey on the species. Humans have a part in destroying their environment and killing their food supply with insecticides. The lizard is considered to be a least-concern species according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), though it is vulnerable in Iowa and endangered in Wisconsin. It is important to note that the streamlined, legless species is often confused with snakes. Glass Lizards, however, differ from snakes as they possess a moveable eyelid, which is absent in snakes. Another way to distinguish glass lizards from snakes is the presence of an external ear opening, which are absent in snakes.

Contents

Taxonomy

The species was originally believed by American herpetologist Edward Drinker Cope to be a subspecies of Ophisaurus ventralis in 1880 under the name Opheosaurus ventralis attenuatus. It was not until 1885 when the British herpetologist George Albert Boulenger recognized it to be its own species. However, Cope's belief influenced other herpetologists until 1949 when another American herpetologist Wilfred T. Neill expressed his belief that Boulenger was correct about it being a distinct species. [5] [6] The difference between this species with O. ventralis and other species in the genus is that the white spots on its dorsum are located on the posterior edges of its scales, with none of the spots being located mainly in middle of its scales. Another distinctive difference is that this species has 98 or more scales along its lateral fold. [7] In the word Ophisaurus, orphis is Ancient Greek for serpent or reptile and saurus means lizard or reptile. The word attenuatus is Latin for "tapered, drawn out, thin". [5]

Subspecies

The western slender glass lizard reaches an average of 0.66 m (26 in). It can be found in woods or dry rocky hillsides, in grass or the burrows of small mammals. The species can easily camouflage itself in tall grass because of its color. [9]

The males are larger than females with a longer head and tail. Males have more scales above their lateral fold and along the center of their back than females. Larger males have waxy white crossbars on their dorsum's anterior, which have an outline of black and are not present in smaller males and females. [10]

Description

Western slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus attenuatus), Vernon County, Missouri (14 June 2019) Western Slender Glass Lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus attenuatus) (48072177003).jpg
Western slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus attenuatus), Vernon County, Missouri (14 June 2019)
Eastern slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus longicaudus), Gilchrist County, Florida (29 Mar 2021) Ophisaurus attenuatus ssp. longicaudus (cropped).jpg
Eastern slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus longicaudus), Gilchrist County, Florida (29 Mar 2021)
Western slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus attenuatus), Colorado County, Texas (30 Mar 2018) Ophisaurus attenuatus. Colorado Co. TX; 30 Mar 2018.jpg
Western slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus attenuatus), Colorado County, Texas (30 Mar 2018)

Slender glass lizards have yellow to brown bodies with six stripes and they have a middorsal stripe. White specks on the middle of the lizard's scales may sometimes form light stripes. [5] O. attenuatus can attain a total length of 0.56 m (22 in) to 0.91 m (36 in). The species is closely related to collared lizards. [11] Its tail comprises two-thirds of its body length. [11] Its scales are supported by an osteoderm which makes the body hard and stiff. The species has a pointed snout and a non-distinct head. Males and females are of similar size. Its markings may fade as an individual ages. [12]

Unlike snakes, they have eyelids and ears. [5] Slender glass lizards have some difficulty moving across smooth surfaces because they do not have the large belly-plates and related muscles of snakes. [13] The body of a snake is more flexible than that of this species and have different shaped scales. [14]

Behavior

Slender glass lizards are primarily diurnal and they can move fast. If captured, a specimen may thrash vigorously, causing part of the tail to fall off in one or more pieces. While a potential predator is distracted by the wiggling tail, the lizard quickly escapes. [15] [10] Observations have also reported the ability of western slender glass lizards to swim considerable distances when avoiding predation. [16] They are known to sleep in burrows borrowed from other animals and they will use those burrows to hibernate. [17] The species is active during the day when the weather is cool, but is only active during dawn and dusk when the temperature is hot. [11] Similar to snakes, the species will hibernate in a hibernaculum. [18] The species has also been known to make their own burrows in sandy soil. [19] The lizard hibernates from October until April or May. [20]

When a predator breaks off part of its tail, the tail never completely grows back which causes its tail to become shorter each time that it is attacked. They are known as slender glass lizards because their tail can be broken easily. The species can snap off their tail without it being touched and the partial tail that regenerates is tan, but it does not have the pattern of the original tail. [10] The pieces of tail will continue to move once broken off. Two common beliefs are that the pieces of broken tail can grow into new lizards or rejoin into a new tail. [12] In a 1989 study, 79% of the specimens in the population area had broken tails. [10] It is hard to find a slender glass lizard that has its entire tail. They seldom bite when they are threatened. [10] When they are approached, the lizard will sometimes stay still and try to blend in with the vegetation. [18]

Distribution

O. attenuatus is found in the midwestern and southeast United States, where it is endemic, in prairies, old fields, or open woodlands, often near water. [5] [11] They can also sometimes be found in longleaf pine forests and human-made debris. [21] [10] [1]

Diet and predators

Slender glass lizards eat a range of insects, such as grasshoppers, crickets and beetles, and will also consume spiders, small rodents, and snails. They have also been known to eat small lizards and small snakes. [10] Unlike snakes, glass lizards do not have flexible jaws, and this limits the size of prey items they can consume. [22] The size of their food can be no larger than the size of their head. [12] They forage underground in burrows. [17] A fold of their skin is able to expand their body when they are breathing, eating a large meal, or when they are carrying eggs. [13]

Broad-winged hawks, red-tailed hawks, opossums, coyotes, bob cats, and raccoons are predators of the lizard. Snakes that feed on the lizard include the eastern racer (Coluber constrictor), ring-necked snake (Diadophis punctatus), prairie kingsnake (Lampropeltis calligaster), common kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula), and copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix). [10]

Reproduction

Mating typically occurs biannually in May and they lay 5 to 15 oval eggs in late June or July. [5] Eggs hatch 50–60 days after being laid and the mother then stays beside them throughout the incubation period. [10] The eggs are laid under objects that can cover them including a log or a board. [12] The eggs hatch after 53 days during August to October. [10] Hatchlings are 10–13 cm (3.9–5.1 in) long and are difficult to find. [5] Sexual maturity is attained at three or four years of age. [10]

Conservation status

Although not endangered overall in the United States, it is listed as vulnerable in Iowa and endangered in Wisconsin. O. attenuatus is regarded as vulnerable in Iowa, where it is illegal to even capture them. [13] [23] Its primary threats are loss of habitat, and the fragmentation of what remains, by human development. Insecticides are harmful to the lizard because they can kill the insects that they consume and those insects can be ingested by the lizard. [24]

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources recommended steps to conserve the slender glass lizard which are to avoid burning grassland from April to October, to remove trees mechanically instead of using chemicals, and to limit insecticide use in areas where slender glass lizards are known to inhabit. [24]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anguidae</span> Family of lizards

Anguidae refers to a large and diverse family of lizards native to the Northern Hemisphere. Common characteristics of this group include a reduced supratemporal arch, striations on the medial faces of tooth crowns, osteoderms, and a lateral fold in the skin of most taxa. The group is divided into two living subfamilies, the legless Anguinae, which contains slow worms and glass lizards, among others, found across the Northern Hemisphere, and Gerrhonotinae, which contains the alligator lizards, native to North and Central America. The family Diploglossidae was also formerly included. The family contains about 87 species in 8 genera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zebra-tailed lizard</span> Species of lizard

The zebra-tailed lizard is a species of lizard in the family Phrynosomatidae. The species is native to the Southwestern United States and adjacent northwestern Mexico. There are nine recognized subspecies.

<i>Ophisaurus</i> Genus of lizards

Ophisaurus 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; like many lizards, they have the ability to deter predation by dropping off part of the tail, which can break into several pieces, like glass. The tail remains mobile, distracting the predator, while the lizard becomes motionless, allowing eventual escape. This serious loss of body mass requires a considerable effort to replace, and can take years to do so. Despite this ability, the new tail is usually smaller than the original.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheltopusik</span> Species of lizard

The sheltopusik, also commonly called Pallas's glass lizard, the European legless lizard, or the European glass lizard, is a species of large glass lizard found from Southern Europe to Central Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smooth green snake</span> Species of snake

The smooth green snake is a species of North American nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is also referred to as the grass snake. It is a slender, "small medium" snake that measures 36–51 cm (14–20 in) as an adult. It gets its common name from its smooth dorsal scales, as opposed to the rough green snake, which has keeled dorsal scales. The smooth green snake is found in marshes, meadows, open woods, and along stream edges, and is native to regions of Canada, the United States, and northern Mexico. A non-aggressive snake, it seldom bites and usually flees when threatened. It mates in late spring to summer, and females lay their eggs from June to September. The smooth green snake will often bob its head in order to mimic vegetation blowing in the wind.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Desert iguana</span> Species of lizard

The desert iguana is an iguana species found in the Sonoran and Mojave Deserts of the Southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, as well as on several Gulf of California islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calabar python</span> Species of snake

The Calabar python is a species of non-venomous snake in the family Boidae. The species is endemic to West and Central Africa. It is the only species in its genus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western whiptail</span> Species of lizard

The western whiptail is a species of lizard in the family Teiidae. The species is found throughout most of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Most of its populations appear stable, and it is not listed as endangered in any of the states comprising its range. It lives in a wide variety of habitats, including deserts and semiarid shrubland, usually in areas with sparse vegetation; it also may be found in woodland, open dry forest, and riparian growth. It lives in burrows. Major differences between this species and the checkered whiptail include the lack of enlarged scales anterior to the gular fold and the presence of enlarged postantebrachial scales. It was previously known as Cnemidophorus tigris, until phylogenetic analyses concluded that the genus Cnemidophorus was polyphyletic. Since it does not migrate, a number of forms have developed in different regions, several of which have been given subspecific names – for example the California whiptail, Aspidoscelis tigris munda.

<i>Dopasia gracilis</i> Species of lizard

Dopasia gracilis, known commonly as the Asian glass lizard, the Burmese glass lizard, or the Indian glass snake, is a species of legless lizard in the family Anguidae. The species is endemic to Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern racer</span> Species of snake

The eastern racer, or North American racer, is a species of nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to North America and Central America. Eleven subspecies, including the nominotypical subspecies, are recognized, which as a group are commonly referred to as the eastern racers. The species is monotypic in the genus Coluber.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olive python</span> Species of snake

The olive python is a species of snake in the family Pythonidae. The species is endemic to Australia. Two subspecies are recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern glass lizard</span> Species of reptile

The eastern glass lizard is a species of legless lizard in the family Anguidae and the longest and heaviest species of glass lizards in the genus Ophisaurus, endemic to the Southeastern United States. It is 1 of 4 glass lizard species in the eastern United States. The streamlined, legless species is often confused with snakes. Glass lizards differ from snakes as they possess a moveable eyelid and an external ear opening, both of which are absent in snakes. Snakes also have flexible jaws while lizards do not. Ventralis comes from the Latin "venter" meaning belly; this is in reference to the snake-like movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Island glass lizard</span> Species of reptile

The island glass lizard is a species of lizard in the family Anguidae. The species is endemic to the southeastern United States.

<i>Rhinotyphlops lalandei</i> Species of snake

Rhinotyphlops lalandei, known commonly as Delalande's beaked blind snake, is a species of snake in the family Typhlopidae. The species is endemic to southern Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bibron's blind snake</span> Species of snake

Bibron's blind snake is a species of snake in the family Typhlopidae. The species is native to southern Africa.

References

  1. 1 2 Hammerson, G.A. (2007). "Ophisaurus attenuatus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2007: e.T63716A12709295. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2007.RLTS.T63716A12709295.en . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ↑ Baird SF (1880). In: Cope ED (1880). "On the Zoölogical Position of Texas". Bulletin of the United States National Museum (17): 1–51. (Ophisaurus ventralis attenuatus, new subspecies, p. 18).
  3. ↑ Boulenger GA (1885). Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume II. ... Anguidæ ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 497 pp. + Plates I-XXIV. (Ophisaurus attenuatus, p. 282).
  4. ↑ Lavin, Brian, R; Girman, Derek, J (2019). "Phylogenetic relationships and divergence dating in the Glass Lizards (Anguinae)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 133: 129–140. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2018.12.022. hdl: 10211.3/198486 . PMID   30584918. S2CID   58560490.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Ophisaurus attenuatus Cope, 1880 – Slender Glass Lizard". Illinois Natural History Survey. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  6. ↑ Neill, Wilfred T. (1949). "Forms of Ophisaurus in the Southeastern United States". Herpetologica. 5 (4): 97–100. JSTOR   3889689.
  7. ↑ McConkey, Edwin H. (1954). "A systematic study of the North American lizards of the genus Ophisaurus". American Midland Naturalist. 51 (1): 133–171. doi:10.2307/2422217. JSTOR   2422217.
  8. ↑ "Ophisaurus attenuatus Baird, 1880". The Reptile Database. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  9. ↑ "Western Slender Glass Lizard". Missouri Department of Conservation. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 D. Camper, Jeffrey (7 May 2019). The Reptiles of South Carolina. University of South Carolina Press. pp. 141–145. ISBN   978-1-61117-947-7.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Slender glass lizard – Ophisaurus attenuatus". Kansas State University. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  12. 1 2 3 4 "Slender Glass Lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus)". University of Georgia. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  13. 1 2 3 Christiansen, J. L.; Bailey, R. M. (December 1998). The Lizards and Turtles of Iowa. Iowa Department Of Natural Resources. p. 6.
  14. ↑ Hibbits, Toby J. (15 May 2015). Texas Lizards: A Field Guide. University of Texas Press. pp. 299–300. ISBN   978-0-292-77197-0.
  15. ↑ Bostian, Kelly (December 2, 2018). "The World Around You: A slender glass lizard makes a late-season appearance". Tulsa World. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  16. ↑ Blair, Albert P. (1961-12-29). "Notes on Ophisaurus Attenuatus Attenuatus (Anguidae)". The Southwestern Naturalist. 6 (3/4): 201. doi:10.2307/3669342. ISSN   0038-4909. JSTOR   3669342.
  17. 1 2 Wisconsin Statewide Karner Blue Butterfly Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) and Environmental Impact Statement. 1999. p. 2.
  18. 1 2 "Animal of the Week: slender glass lizard". Winterset Madisonian. January 8, 2006. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  19. ↑ "Slender Glass Lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus)". Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  20. ↑ Harding, James H.; Mifsud, David A. (19 May 2017). Amphibians and Reptiles of the Great Lakes Region, Revised Ed. University of Michigan Press. p. 254. ISBN   978-0-472-05338-4.
  21. ↑ Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles Ophisaurus attenuatus Holman, J. Alan. 1971.
  22. ↑ Howell, Catherine Herbert (2015). Reptiles and Amphibians of North America. National Geographic Society. p. 68. ISBN   978-1-4262-1476-9.
  23. ↑ "Ophisaurus attenuatus". Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  24. 1 2 "Slender glass lizard" (PDF). Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.