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Eastern fence lizard
The eastern fence lizard (Sceloporus undulatus) is a medium-sized species of lizard in the family Phrynosomatidae. The species is found along forest edges, rock piles, and rotting logs or stumps in the eastern United States. It is sometimes referred to as the fence swift, gray lizard, gravid lizard, northern fence lizard or pine lizard. It is also referred to colloquially as the horn-billed lizard. One of its most notable behaviors is that of its escape behavior when encountering fire ants, which have been known to invade and negatively affect many of their populations.
The generic name, Sceloporus, is derived from the Greek skelos/σκελος, meaning "leg", and the Latin porus, meaning "hole", referring to the enlarged femoral pores found in this genus of lizards. The specific name, undulatus, is Latin for "wave", referring to the transverse dark crossbars on the backs of these lizards.
Until 2002, 10 subspecies of S. undulatus were recognized, but re-evaluation showed paraphyly between the subspecies. These were reclassified as four distinct evolutionary species (the three new species being S. consobrinus, S. tristichus, and S. cowlesi). The narrowed redefinition of S. undulatus has been suggested to still contain two subspecies divided by the Appalachian Mountains. None currently hold formal recognition. This variation can be partially attributed to the high nucleotide variation. One study found an average of 38 SNPs per kilobase of DNA.
The following cladogram is based on Leaché and Reeder, 2002:
The eastern fence lizard can grow from 4.0 to 7.5 inches (10 to 19 cm) in total length (including tail). It is typically colored in shades of gray or brown, and has keeled scales, with a dark line running along the rear of the thigh. A female is usually gray and has a series of dark, wavy lines across her back. The belly is white with black flecks, with some pale blue on the throat and belly. The male is usually brown, and during the summer, has a more greenish-blue and black coloration on the sides of the belly and throat than the female. The young look like the females, but are darker and duller. Both sexes have keeled scales.
The lizards mostly inhabit sparsely wooded areas with ample sunlight, such as pine barrens with sandy or loose soil. They can be found basking atop of both natural and artificial structures including coarse woody debris, tree stumps, rock piles, sandy hills, dead logs, and fence posts. They are most active in the early morning sun when the ground has not been fully warmed up yet. They seek refuge under structures such as woodpiles, logs, and rocks for coverage and protection when it gets too hot and at night.
This species has sexual dichromatism, which is a difference in coloration between the sexes. Males are blue and black on their ventral side. In some lizards, this coloration appears green or turquoise. In males, these patches assist intraspecific sex recognition and signaling. The size of patches correlates with the size of a lizard, and therefore may be a signal towards females or other antagonistic lizards. Males are somewhat uniformly brown elsewhere with a reddish tinge.
Females and juveniles are slightly colored blue and black on the ventral side or not at all. Their coloring is more complex, with "rows of dark brown or black chevrons set against a background of gray and brown."
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Eastern fence lizard
The eastern fence lizard (Sceloporus undulatus) is a medium-sized species of lizard in the family Phrynosomatidae. The species is found along forest edges, rock piles, and rotting logs or stumps in the eastern United States. It is sometimes referred to as the fence swift, gray lizard, gravid lizard, northern fence lizard or pine lizard. It is also referred to colloquially as the horn-billed lizard. One of its most notable behaviors is that of its escape behavior when encountering fire ants, which have been known to invade and negatively affect many of their populations.
The generic name, Sceloporus, is derived from the Greek skelos/σκελος, meaning "leg", and the Latin porus, meaning "hole", referring to the enlarged femoral pores found in this genus of lizards. The specific name, undulatus, is Latin for "wave", referring to the transverse dark crossbars on the backs of these lizards.
Until 2002, 10 subspecies of S. undulatus were recognized, but re-evaluation showed paraphyly between the subspecies. These were reclassified as four distinct evolutionary species (the three new species being S. consobrinus, S. tristichus, and S. cowlesi). The narrowed redefinition of S. undulatus has been suggested to still contain two subspecies divided by the Appalachian Mountains. None currently hold formal recognition. This variation can be partially attributed to the high nucleotide variation. One study found an average of 38 SNPs per kilobase of DNA.
The following cladogram is based on Leaché and Reeder, 2002:
The eastern fence lizard can grow from 4.0 to 7.5 inches (10 to 19 cm) in total length (including tail). It is typically colored in shades of gray or brown, and has keeled scales, with a dark line running along the rear of the thigh. A female is usually gray and has a series of dark, wavy lines across her back. The belly is white with black flecks, with some pale blue on the throat and belly. The male is usually brown, and during the summer, has a more greenish-blue and black coloration on the sides of the belly and throat than the female. The young look like the females, but are darker and duller. Both sexes have keeled scales.
The lizards mostly inhabit sparsely wooded areas with ample sunlight, such as pine barrens with sandy or loose soil. They can be found basking atop of both natural and artificial structures including coarse woody debris, tree stumps, rock piles, sandy hills, dead logs, and fence posts. They are most active in the early morning sun when the ground has not been fully warmed up yet. They seek refuge under structures such as woodpiles, logs, and rocks for coverage and protection when it gets too hot and at night.
This species has sexual dichromatism, which is a difference in coloration between the sexes. Males are blue and black on their ventral side. In some lizards, this coloration appears green or turquoise. In males, these patches assist intraspecific sex recognition and signaling. The size of patches correlates with the size of a lizard, and therefore may be a signal towards females or other antagonistic lizards. Males are somewhat uniformly brown elsewhere with a reddish tinge.
Females and juveniles are slightly colored blue and black on the ventral side or not at all. Their coloring is more complex, with "rows of dark brown or black chevrons set against a background of gray and brown."