Herpetology is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians and reptiles. Birds, which are cladistically included within Reptilia, are traditionally excluded here; the scientific study of birds is the subject of ornithology.
Dibamidae or blind skinks is a family of lizards characterized by their elongated cylindrical body and an apparent lack of limbs. Female dibamids are entirely limbless and the males retain small flap-like hind limbs, which they use to grip their partner during mating. They have a rigidly fused skull, lack pterygoid teeth and external ears. Their eyes are greatly reduced, and covered with a scale.
The greater earless lizard is the only species in the monotypic genus Cophosaurus. It is closely related to the smaller, lesser earless lizards and other species in the genus Holbrookia, and in fact was placed in that genus and referred to Holbrookia texana from 1852 into the 1970s. Earless lizards lack external ear openings, an adaptation to burrowing in the sand, as are the recessed lower jaw and flared upper labial scales. Greater earless lizards are sexually dimorphic, males grow larger and are more colorful than females, exhibiting pink and green colors that are particularly bright in the breeding season. Two bold black bars mark the lateral region of males but are greatly reduced and vague, or occasionally entirely absent in females.
The Texas tortoise, is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species G. berlandieri is one of six species of tortoises that are native to North America.
The Texas horned lizard is one of about 14 North American species of spikey-bodied reptiles called horned lizards, all belonging the genus Phrynosoma. It occurs in south-central regions of the US and northeastern Mexico, as well as several isolated introduced records and populations from Southern United States. Though some populations are stable, severe population declines have occurred in many areas of Texas and Oklahoma. The Texas spiny lizard may be confused for a Texas horned lizard due to its appearance and overlapping habitat.
The short-tailed horned lizard is a species of lizard in the family Phrynosomatidae. The species is endemic to Mexico. It has a very distinct, shortened tail, which is sometimes not apparent.
Indotyphlops braminus, commonly known as the brahminy blind snake and other names, is a non-venomous blind snake species found mostly in Africa and Asia, but has been introduced in many other parts of the world. They are completely fossorial animals, with habits and appearance similar to earthworms, for which they are often mistaken, although close examination reveals tiny scales rather than the annular segments characteristic of true earthworms. The species is parthenogenetic and all known specimens have been female. The specific name is a Latinized form of the word Brahmin. No subspecies are currently recognized.
The Mediterranean house gecko is a species of house gecko common to the Mediterranean area which has spread to many parts of the world. It is commonly referred to as the Turkish gecko as represented in its Latin name and also as the moon lizard because it emerges in the evening.
James Ray Dixon was professor emeritus and curator emeritus of amphibians and reptiles at the Texas Cooperative Wildlife Collection at Texas A&M University. He lived in El Campo, Texas throughout most of his childhood. He published prolifically on the subject of herpetology in his distinguished career, authoring and co-authoring several books, book chapters, and numerous peer reviewed notes and articles, describing two new genera, and many new species, earning him a reputation as one of the most prominent herpetologists of his generation. His main research focus was morphology based systematics of amphibians and reptiles worldwide with emphasis on Texas, US, Mexico, Central America, and South America, although bibliographies, conservation, ecology, life history and zoogeography have all been the subjects of his extensive publications.
Agkistrodon taylori is a species of venomous snake, a pitviper (Crotalinae) found only in northeastern Mexico. The standardized names are Taylor's cantil (English) and Metapil (Spanish), although it is sometimes called the ornate cantil as well as several other colloquial names. It was named in honor of American herpetologist Edward Harrison Taylor.
The northern sheep frog is native to Central America, Mexico, and extreme south Texas, United States. It occurs in the lowlands from Sonora, Mexico, to northern Costa Rica on the Pacific coast, and south Texas to Honduras on the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean coasts. The sheep frog inhabits semiarid thornscrub, savannas, pasturelands, and open woodlands, as well as more humid, moist forest in the canyons, basins, foothills, and lower elevations of mountains slopes. It is a fossorial, burrowing frog that is seldom seen on the surface except at night after heavy rains when they emerge to breed. The sheep frog gets its name from its distinctive call that resembles a sheep's bleat. It is a diet specialist primarily feeding on termites and ants.
Hobart Muir Smith, born Frederick William Stouffer, was an American herpetologist. He is credited with describing more than 100 new species of American reptiles and amphibians. In addition, he has been honored by having at least six species named after him, including the southwestern blackhead snake, Smith's earth snake, Smith's arboreal alligator lizard, Hobart's anadia, Hobart Smith's anole, and Smith's rose-bellied lizard. At 100 years of age, Smith continued to be an active and productive herpetologist. Although he published on a wide range of herpetological subjects, his main focus throughout his career was on the amphibians and reptiles of Mexico, including taxonomy, bibliographies, and history. Having published more than 1,600 manuscripts, he surpassed all contemporaries and remains the most published herpetologist of all time.
The Mexican alligator lizard, also known as the green arboreal alligator lizard, is an endangered species of lizard endemic to the Sierra Madre de Oaxaca highlands of Mexico. It can be found in the states of Puebla, Veracruz, and Oaxaca. It was originally described under the genus Gerrhonotus as Gerrhonotus gramineus by Edward D. Cope in 1864.
The Leora's stream salamander or ajolote is a rare species of mole salamander in the family Ambystomatidae. It is endemic to a very small area of land in the Iztaccihuatl-Popocatepetl National Park on the border of the State of Mexico with Puebla, with a single known population on Mount Tlaloc. Its very specific requirements as regards water quality militates against its survival in a habitat where water is being extracted, cattle graze and the salamander has traditionally been eaten as food. It has been listed as a threatened species by the Mexican Government and as "critically endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
The Veracruz moist forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in eastern Mexico.
Ctenosaura acanthura, is a species of iguanid lizard found in eastern Mexico and extreme western Guatemala. The standardized English name is the Mexican spiny-tailed iguana. Confusingly however, an earlier edition of standardized names for Mexican herpetofauna called Ctenosaura acanthura the northeastern spinytailed iguana and applied the name Mexican spinytailed iguana to Ctenosaura pectinata, which was called the western spiny-tailed iguana in the second edition. It has also been referred to as the Veracruz spiny-tailed iguana and Gulf Coast spiny-tailed iguana. It is an egg laying species that is mostly herbivorous and a moderately large lizard commonly growing over one meter in total length.
The El Cielo Biosphere Reserve is located in the Sierra Madre Oriental in the southern part of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas near the town of Gómez Farias. The reserve protects the northernmost extension of tropical forest and cloud forest in Mexico. It has an area of 144,530 hectares made up mostly of steep mountains rising from about 200 metres (660 ft) to a maximum altitude of more than 2,300 metres (7,500 ft).
Dibamus greeri, also known commonly as Greer's blind skink, is a species of legless lizard in the family Dibamidae. The species is endemic to Vietnam.
Scincella caudaequinae, commonly known as the Horsetail Falls ground skink is endemic to Mexico. It was named for the type locality "Horsetail Falls, 25 miles south of Monterrey, Nuevo, Leon". Scincella caudaequinae occurs in the northern Sierra Madre Oriental in Nuevo Leon, San Luis Potosi, southeast Coahuila, and Tamaulipas. It was considered a subspecies of Scincella silvicola for many decades.
Laemanctus serratus, also known commonly as the serrated casquehead iguana, is a species of lizard in the family Corytophanidae. The species is native to southeastern Mexico and Central America. There are two recognized subspecies.
