| Uracentron | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Tropical thornytail iguana (Uracentron flaviceps) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Iguania |
| Family: | Tropiduridae |
| Genus: | Uracentron Kaup, 1827 |
| Species | |
2 spp., see text | |
Uracentron is a genus of tropidurid lizards found in forests in northern South America. It contains only two species, which are both arboreal, have a relatively short spiny tail, and mainly feed on ants. [1]
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia although some lizards are more closely related to these two excluded groups than they are to other lizards. Lizards range in size from chameleons and geckos a few centimeters long to the 3-meter-long Komodo dragon.
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 three genera are described.
The Tropiduridae are a family of iguanid lizards. The family is sometimes considered a subfamily, Tropidurinae. The subfamily is native to South America, including the islands of Trinidad and the Galápagos. Commonly known as Neotropical ground lizards, most are ground-dwelling animals, and the subfamily includes some lizards adapted to relatively cold climates, including those of the Andes mountains and Tierra del Fuego. Several species give birth to live young.
The Iguanidae is a family of lizards composed of the iguanas, chuckwallas, and their prehistoric relatives, including the widespread green iguana.
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: ctenos (κτενός), meaning "comb", and saura (σαύρα), meaning "lizard".
Microlophus is a genus of tropidurid lizards native to South America. Around 20 species are recognized and 10 of these are endemic to the Galápagos Islands, where they are commonly known as lava lizards. The remaining, which often are called Pacific iguanas, are found in the Andes and along the Pacific coasts of Chile, Peru, and Ecuador.
Tropidurus is a genus of reptiles. The genus includes many species of Neotropical ground lizards. Tropidurus is the type genus of the family Tropiduridae.
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.
The blue iguana, also known as the Grand Cayman ground iguana, Grand Cayman blue iguana or Cayman Island rock iguana, is an endangered species of lizard which is endemic to the island of Grand Cayman. It was previously considered to be a subspecies of the Cuban iguana, Cyclura nubila, but in a 2004 article Frederic J. Burton reclassified it as a separate species because according to him the genetic differences discovered four years earlier between the different C. nubila populations warranted this interpretation. The blue iguana is one of the longest-living species of lizard.
Iguania is an infraorder of squamate reptiles that includes iguanas, chameleons, agamids, and New World lizards like anoles and phrynosomatids. Using morphological features as a guide to evolutionary relationships, the Iguania are believed to form the sister group to the remainder of the Squamata, which comprise nearly 11,000 named species, roughly 2000 of which are iguanians. However, molecular information has placed Iguania well within the Squamata as sister taxa to the Anguimorpha and closely related to snakes. The order has been under debate and revisions after being classified by Charles Lewis Camp in 1923 due to difficulties finding adequate synapomorphic morphological characteristics. Most Iguanias are arboreal but there are several terrestrial groups. They usually have primitive fleshy, non-prehensile tongues, although the tongue is highly modified in chameleons. The group has a fossil record that extends back to the Early Jurassic. Today they are scattered occurring in Madagascar, the Fiji and Friendly Islands and Western Hemisphere.
Ctenosaura pectinata is a species of moderately large lizard in the family Iguanidae. The species is native to western Mexico.
The Jamaican iguana, also known commonly as Colley's iguana, is a large species of lizard in the family Iguanidae. The species is endemic to Jamaica. It is critically endangered, even considered extinct between 1948 and 1990. Once found throughout Jamaica and on the offshore islets Great Goat Island and Little Goat Island, it is now confined to the forests of the Hellshire Hills.
The Cuban rock iguana, also known as the Cuban ground iguana or Cuban iguana, is a species of lizard of the iguana family. It is the second largest of the West Indian rock iguanas, one of the most endangered groups of lizards. A herbivorous species with a thick tail and spiked jowls, it is one of the largest lizards in the Caribbean.
Ctenosaura similis, commonly known as the black iguana or black spiny-tailed iguana, is a lizard native to Mexico and Central America. It has been reported in some Colombian islands in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, and has been introduced to the United States in the state of Florida. It is the largest species in the genus Ctenosaura. They are typically found in areas such as grasslands and forests.
Cyclura is a genus of lizards in the family Iguanidae. Member species of this genus are commonly known as "cycluras" and only occur on islands in the West Indies. Rock iguanas have a high degree of endemism, with a single species or subspecies originating on an individual island.
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 in 1768 by Austrian naturalist Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti in his book Specimen Medicum, Exhibens Synopsin Reptilium Emendatam cum Experimentis circa Venena. Two species are placed in the genus, the green iguana, which is widespread throughout its range and a popular pet, and the Lesser Antillean iguana, which is native to the Lesser Antilles. Genetic analysis indicates that the green iguana may comprise a complex of multiple species, some of which have been recently described, but the Reptile Database considers all of these as subspecies of the green iguana.
The Guatemalan beaded lizard, also called commonly the Motagua Valley beaded lizard, is a highly endangered species of beaded lizard, a venomous lizard in the family Helodermatidae. The species is endemic to the dry forests of the Motagua Valley in southeastern Guatemala, an ecoregion known as the Motagua Valley thornscrub. It is the only allopatric beaded lizard species, separated from the nearest population by 250 km (160 mi) of unsuitable habitat. The Guatemalan beaded lizard is the rarest and most endangered species of beaded lizard, and it is believed that fewer than 200 individuals of this animal exist in the wild, making it one of the most endangered lizards in the world. In 2007, it was transferred from Appendix II to Appendix I of CITES due to its critical conservation status.
Uracentron flaviceps, the tropical thornytail iguana or Amazon thornytail iguana is an elusive species of medium-sized arboreal lizard found in the tropical lowlands of the Amazon Rainforest. The species was described by French zoologist Alphone Guichenot in 1855. They are considered to be ant specialists and exhibit communal nesting and a harem-style breeding system in which one male mates with and attends to multiple females. Study of this species has been impeded by difficulties collecting and observing them.
The green thornytail iguana is an arboreal species of lizard from the Amazon rainforest and forests in the Guiana Shield. It is found in Colombia, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, northeastern Peru, southern Venezuela, and northern Brazil. As in U. flaviceps, U. azureum primarily feeds on ants.
Gobiguania is an extinct clade of iguanian lizards from the Late Cretaceous. All known gobiguanians are endemic to the Gobi Desert of Mongolia. Gobiguania was given a phylogenetic definition by Jack Conrad and Mark Norell in 2007 as all taxa more closely related to Anchaurosaurus gilmorei than to Iguana iguana, Crotaphytus collaris, or Agama agama. According to Conrad and Norell's phylogenetic analysis, Gobiguania includes Anchaurosaurus as well as several other Late Cretaceous lizards such as Ctenomastax, Temujinia, Saichangurvel, and Zapsosaurus. A phylogenetic analysis published in 2012 indicated that three other lizard genera — Igua, Isodontosaurus, and Polrussia, all from Mongolia and all from the Late Cretaceous — are also gobiguanians. Below is a cladogram from the analysis: