Number of Pages: 3Integrative BiologyGeological Science

Dickson, Nancy A.

Vitt, Laurie J.

English

Nancy A. Dickson

Red Mexicana de Repositorios Institucionales

Urosaurus graciosus

Number of Pages: 3Integrative BiologyEarth and Planetary Science

Texas ScholarWorks

REPTILIA: SQUAMATA: S A W  IGUANIDAE: 448.1 UROSAURUS GRACIOSUS Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles. Vitt, Laurie J., and Nancy A. Dickson. 1988. U m a u m  graciosus. Umsaurus g r d s u s  Hallowell Long-tailed Brush Lizard Umsaum gmciosus Hallowell, 1854:92. Type-locality, "Lower California" [= Southern California], restricted to Winterhaven (-Fort Yuma), [Imperial Co.] California by Smith and Taylor (1950). Syntypes, Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 8550-8555, col- lected by W. Gabb, Dr. Heerman, and Dr. Horn, date of collec- tion unknown (not examined by authors). Uta graciasa: Baud, 18597. See Remarks. Uta gmtiasa: Coues, 1875:5%. Emendation. U m u n r s  o m t u s  graciosus: Mittleman, 1942:144. Content Two subspecies, graciosusand shannoni, are rec- ognized. See Comment. DeBnition. A medium-sized (to 68 mm SVL), streamlined species of Urosaumwith a long tail (average tail length 2.24 times SVL). The frontal plate is divided transversely and in contact with the occipital, and post-femoral dermal pockets are absent. Six to eight middorsal rows of scales are enlarged, imbricate, keeled, and of approximately equal size, and change abruptly to granular lateral scales. The dorsal color varies depending upon temperature, but is generally grayish with or without dark chevron-shaped crossbars. Theventer is nearly white and the throat is yellowish, but adult males have blue on the ventral surface and throat. ~maiptions. Urosaumgraciosus has been adequately de- scribed by Cope (1900), Van Denburgh (1922),  ide em an (1942), Smith (19%), Lowe (1955) and Stebbins (1985). Savage (1958) described some osteological features. IUustrations. Black and white photographs are in Van Denburgh (l922), Smith (19%) and Pickwell (1947). Stebbins (1954, 1964, 1985) provided original drawings. Cope (1900), Mittleman (1942) and Savage (1958) included line drawings of scalation pat- terns. Carpenter (1962) graphed a display-action pattern. Behav- ioral postures of males are in Gates (1%3) and Barnes (1974). Distribution. U m a u m  graciosus occurs in the Sonoran, Colorado, and Mojave Deserts of southern Nevada, northwestern Sonora and northeastern Baja California Norte, Mexico, through southern California to southwestern and south central Arizona. It was listed erroneously in Colorado until Maslin (1959) revised the faunal list. Boulenger (1885) listed it erroneously from Fort Bliss, New Mexico (= Texas). Mocquard (1899) recorded it at Santa Rosalia, Baja California, a record disputed by Van Denburgh (1922). Urusaum graciosus is strongly arboreal, and has been found at elevations from near sea level to 1070 m. Fossil Record None. Pertinent Literature. U m a u m  graciosus is among the best-known desert lizards in terms of ecology, systematics, and dis- tribution. Van Denburgh (1922), Atsatt (1939), and Norris and Lowe (1964) report that Urosaum graciosus has great ability to change color. Shaw (1952) reported on egg and clutch sizes and incubation times. Mayhew (1966,1968) described the male reproductive cycle and Fitch (1970) commented on reproduction. Gates (1957, 1963) discussed the species' ecology in central Arizona, and Pianka (1967, 1986) i d u d e d  it in studies on species diversity and ecology of desert lizards. Vin and Ohmart (1975) detailed ecology, reproductive cycles, and reproductive effort along the lower Colorado River. Vin et al. (1978) described seasonal variation in reproduction in central Arizona. Clutch frequency and egg size characteristics are in Vin Map. Solid symbols mark type localities, open symbols indicate other records. Circles with black dots cover areas where both sub- species apparently occur. See Comment. (1977) and caloric content of eggs and bodies from two populations were described by Vin (1978). Vin and Congdon (1978) and Vitt and Price (1982) considered U: graciosus in theoretical models relating clutch masshody mass to foraging modes and predator escape tactics, and it is included in a statistical analysis of lizard life history traits by Dunham and Miles (1985). Vin et al. (1981) described the ecological relationships of U. graciosus with U: ornutus and Sce- lopom magister, and Congdon et al. (1982) compared water flux rates of U. graciosuswith those of U. ornutus. Carpenter (1962) and Purdue and Carpenter (1972) compared behavioral display patterns with those of other iguanid species, and Barnes (1974) examined possible ecological competition with sympatric U. omtus.  Bovee (1966) described a new coccidium from the gall bladder of a Mojave Desert specimen. Cowles (1941) determined that winter activity is temperature-dependent. Mayhew (1968) reported the minimum cloaca1 temperature of active U. graciosus as 16.6 C. Distributional data are in Hallowell (1854,1859), Girard (1858), Cope ("1866" [1867], 19001, Yarrow (1882), Stejneger (1890), ~ e e k  (1905), Van Denburgh and Slevin (1913, 1921a, b), Camp (1918, Stephens (1918,1921), Van Denburgh (1922), Schmidt (1922,19531, Stejneger and Barbour (1923), Burt and Burt (1929), LinSdale (1932, 1940), Burt (1935), Cowles and ~ o ~ e r t  (1936), ~ l o ~ d  (1937), ~ lauber  (19391, Murray (1953, 1955), Lowe (1955, 19641, Blair et a]. (19571,  orris (1958), Stebbins (1964, 1985), Banta (1965), Cochran and Goin (1970), Leviton (19711, Welsh (1976), Vin and Ohmart (19781, and Welsh and Bury (1984). Remarks. Hallowell (1854) described U m a u m  graciosus as similar to Uta omata Baird, except that enlarged dorsal scales extend the length of the dorsum in a broad uninterrupted band. Baird (1859) ignored this initial treatment and placed the species in the genus Uta, as then configured. It remained so until Mittleman (1942) placed graciosus in the " Urosaunrs ornatus complex." This arrangement persisted until sympatric U m a u m  o m t u s  and Umaumgraciosus were discovered in the vicinity of Wickenburg, Maricopa County, Arizona by Lowe (1955). Umaumgraciosus has since then been recognized as a distinct species (Stebbins, 1954, 1985). Etymology. The species name graciosus(Iatin) means "most slender," in reference to the streamlined, attenuate body shape. The name sbannoni honors Dr. Frederick A. Shannon, a well-known Arizona herpetologist. 1. Urosaurus gracbsus gradosus Hallowell Western Brush Lizard Urosaums graciosus Hallowell, 1854:92. See species synonymy. Urosaumsgraciosusgraciosus: Lowe, 1955:96. First use of trinomial. Definition. All mid-dorsal scales of a~~roximatelv equal size . . , L across the rump; coloration pale; pattern greatly subdued with some individuals nearly patternless, especially in the lower Colorado , . Desert. California. 2. Urosaurus gracbsus shannoni Lowe Arizona Brush lizard Urosaumsgraciosus sbannoni Lowe, 1955:96. Type-locality, "East bank of Hassayampa River, 2 miles west of Morristown, Maricopa County, Arizona." Holotype, Univ. Illinois Mus. Nat. Hist. 67066, male, collected by R. Abbuhl and G. Gates, 3 August 1954 (not examined by authors). Definition. Two to three mid-dorsal scale rows across the rump reduced in size; males with highly contrasting dorsal pattern of 6 to 7 bold black crossbars on gray background. Comment The distribution of the species was poorly known when Lowe (1955) described Urosaumsgraciosus shannoni. It is now known that the east-west distribution is continuous, at least along the Gila River drainage in Arizona to the Colorado River. The scutellation differences defining subspecies are variable enough that museum specimens from the eastern part of the range in Arizona can be assigned to either subspecies. Stebbins (1985) indicated subspe- cies ranges as well as an intergrade zone which dissects the species range from north to south. The subspecies were distinguished by Stebbins (1985) on the basis of color pattern, which has been demonstrated (Noms and Lowe, 1964) to be highly variable. There has been no taxonomic reassessment since Lowe (1955) described the subspecies. We consider delineation of subspecies' ranges to be of little value until that is done. Literature Cited Atsatt, Sarah R. 1939. Color changes as controlled by temperature and light in the lizards of the desert regions of southern Califor- nia. Univ. California Los Angeles Publ. Biol. Sci. 1(11):237-276. Baird, Spencer F. 1859. Reptiles of the boundary. In Report of the United States and Mexican Boundary Survey, U.S. 34th Con- gress, 1st Session, Exec. Doc. 108, Vol. 2. Pt. 2:l-35. Banta, Benjamin H. 1965. A distributional checklist of the Recent reptiles inhabiting the state of Nevada. Occas. Pap. Biol. Soc. Nevada (5):l-8. Barnes, Roy A. 1974. Competitive coexistence of two species of lizards, genus Urosaums. M.S. Thesis, Arizona State University, Tempe. 92 p. Blair, W. Frank, Albert P. Blair, Pierce Brodkorb, Fred R. Cagle, and George A. Moore. 1957. Vertebrates of the United States. McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York. 819 p. Boulenger, George A. 1885. Catalogue of the lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second edition. Taylor and Francis, London. Volume 2, xiii + 497 p. Bovee, Eugene C. 1966. Eimeria urosaurisn. sp., a coccidium from the lizard Utwaumsgraciosus Hallowell, in California. J. Proto- ~001. 13(4):607-610. Burt, Charles E. 1935. A key to the lizards of the United States and Canada. Trans. Kansas Acad. Sci. 38:255-305. - ,and May Danheim Burt. 1929. Field notes and locality records on a collection of amphibians and reptiles chiefly from the western half of the United States. 11. Reptiles. J. Washington Acad. Sci. 19(20):44&460. Camp, Charles L. 1916. Notes on the local distribution and habits of the amphibians and reptiles of southeastern California in the vicinity of the Turtle Mountains. Univ. California Publ. Zool. 12(17):503-544. Carpenter, Charles C. 1962. A comparison of the patterns of display of Urosaums, Uta, and Streptosaums. Herpetologica 18(3):145- 152. Cochran, Doris M., and Coleman J. Goin. 1970. The new fieldbook of reptiles and amphibians. G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York. xxii + 359 p. Congdon, Justin D., Laurie J. Vitt, Richard C. Van Loben Sels, and Robert D. Ohmart. 1982. The ecological significance of water flux rates in arboreal desert lizards of the genus Umsaums. Physiol. Zool. 55(3):317-322. Cope, Edward D. "1866" (1867). On the Reptilia and Batrachia of the Sonoran Province of the Nearctic Region. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 18300-314. - . 1900. The crocodilians, lizards and snakes of North America. Rept. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1898:153-1270. Coues, Elliott. 1875. Synopsis of the reptiles and batrachians of Arizona; with critical and field notes, and an extensive synon- ymy, p. 585-633. (Chapter V). In Report upon geographical and geological explorations and surveys west of the 100th Merid- ian ... Geo. M. Wheeler ... Govt. Printing Office, Washington, Volume V (Zoology). Cowles, Raymond B. 1941. Observations on the winter activities of desert reptiles. Ecology 22(2):125-140. -, and C. M. Bogen. 1936. The herpetology of the Boulder Dam region (Nev., Ariz., Utah). Herpetological(2):33-42. Dunham, Arthur E., and Donald B. Miles. 1985. Patterns of covari- ation in life history traits of squamate reptiles: the effects of size and phylogeny reconsidered. Amer. Nat. 126(2):231-257. Fitch, Henry S. 1970. Reproductive cycles in lizards and snakes. Univ. Kansas Mus. Nat. Hist. Misc. Publ. (52):l-247. Gates, Gerald 0 .  1957. A study of the herpetofauna in the vicinity of Wickenburg, Maricopa County, Arizona. Trans. Kansas Acad. Sci. 60(4):403-418. -. 1963. Ecology of the iguanid lizard, Urosaums graciosus in Arizona. Ph.D. thesis, Univ. Arizona, Tucson. 237p. Girard, Charles. 1858. Herpetology. In United States exploring expedition, during the years 1838,1839,1840,1841,1842 under the command of Charles Wilkes, U.S.N. J. B. Lippincott and Co., Philadelphia, 20: xviii + 496 p. Gloyd, Howard K. 1937. A herpetological consideration of faunal areas in southern Arizona. Bull. Chicago Acad. Sci. 5(5):79-136. Hallowell, Edward. 1854. Descriptions of new reptiles from Cali- fornia. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 7:91-97. -. 1859. Report upon the reptiles collected on the survey. In Reports of explorations and surveys.. .for a railroad from the Mis- sissippi River to the Pacific Ocean, vol. 10. Report of explora- tions in California ... to connect with the routes near 35th and 32nd parallels ... Lieut. R. S. Williamson ..., Part 4(1):1-27. Klauber, Laurence M. 1939. Studies of reptile life in the arid south- west. Bull. Zool. Soc. San Diego (14):l-100. Leviton, Alan E. 1971. Reptiles and amphibians of North America. Doubleday and Co., New York. 252 p. Linsdale, Jean M. 1932. Amphibians and reptiles from lower Cali- fornia. Univ. California Publ. Zool. 36(6):345-386. -. 1940. Amphibians and reptiles in Nevada. Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts Sci. 73(8):197-257. Lowe, Charles H., Jr. 1955. A new subspecies of Urosaurus graciosw Hallowell with a discussion of relationships within and of the genus Umsaums. Herpetologica 11(2):96-101. -. 1964. Amphibians and reptiles of Arizona, p. 153-174. In Charles H. Lowe, Jr., (ed.), The vertebrates of Arizona. Univ. Arizona Press, Tucson. x + 259 p. Maslin, T. Paul. 1959. An annotated check list of the amphibians and reptiles of Colorado. Univ. Colorado Stud. Ser. Biol. (6): vi + 98. Mayhew, Wilbur W. 1966. Reproduction in the arenicolous lizard Uma notata. Ecology 47(1):9-18. , -. 1968. Biology of desert amphibians and reptiles, p. 195-356. In G. W. Brown, Jr. (ed.), Desert biology. Academic Press, New York. Vol. I., xvii + 635 p. Meek, Seth E. 1905. An annotated list of a collection of reptiles from southern California and northern Lower California. Zool. Ser. Field Mus. Nat. Hist. 7(1):1-19. Mittleman, M. B. 1942. A summary of the iguanid genus Umsaum. Bull. Mus. Comp. 2001. 91(2):103-181, pls. 1-16. Mocquard, M. F. 1899. Contribution a la faune herp6tologique de la Basse-Californie. Nouv. Archs. Mus. Natn. Hist.Nat. Paris 4(1): 297-344. Murray, Keith. 1953. Notes on the taxonomy and distribution of the lizard species Uta ornata and Uta graciosa. Herpetologica 9(2):110-112. -. 1955. Herpetological collections from Baja California. Herpetologica 11(1):33-48. Norris, Kenneth S. 1958. The evolution and systematics of the iguanid genus Uma and its relation to the evolution of other North American desert reptiles. Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist. 114(3):247-326. -, and Charles H. Lowe. 1964. An analysis of back-ground color-matching in amphibians and reptiles. Ecology 45(3):565- 580. Pianka, Eric R. 1967. On lizard species diversity: North American flatland deserts. Ecology 48(3):333-351. -. 1986. Ecology and natural history of desert lizards. Princeton Univ. Press, Princeton, New Jersey. xi + 208 p. Pickwell, Gayle. 1947. Amphibians and reptiles of the Pacific states. Stanford Univ. Press, Palo Alto, California. xiv + 236 p. Purdue, James R., and Charles C. Carpenter. 1972. A comparative study of the display motion in the iguanid genera Scelopoms, Uta, and Urosaums. Herpetologica 28(2): 137-141. Savage, Jay M. 1958. The iguanid lizard genera Urosaums and Uta, with remarks on related groups. Zoologica, New York, 43(2): 41-54. Schmidt, Karl P. 1922. The amphibians and reptiles of Lower California and the neighboring islands. Bull. h e r .  Mus. Nat. Hist. 46(11):607-707. -. 1953. A checklist of North American amphibians and reptiles. Sixth edition. Amer. Soc. Ichthyol. Herpetol. viii + 280p. Shaw, Charles E. 1952. Notes on the eggs and young of some United States and Mexican lizards, I. Herpetologica 8(3):71-79. Smith, Hobart M. 1946. Handbook of lizards: Lizards of the United States and of Canada. Comstock Publ., Ithaca, New York. xxi + 557 p. -, and Edward H. Taylor. 1950. An annotated checklist and key to the reptiles of Mexico exclusive of the snakes. Bull. U. S. Natl. Mus. (199):~ + 253. Stebbins, Robert C. 1954. Amphibians and reptiles of western North America. McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York. xxiv + 528 p. 1964. Reptiles, p. 362-433. In The lives of desert animals in Joshua Tree National Monument, by Alden H. Miller and Robert C. Stebbins. Univ. California Press, Berkeley. vi + 452p. -. 1985. A field guide to western reptiles and amphibians. Second edition. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston. xiv + 336 p. Stejneger, Leonhard. 1890. Annotated list of reptiles and batrachians collected by Dr. C. Hart Merriam and Vernon Bailey on the San Francisco Mountain Plateau and desert of the Little Colorado, Arizona, with descriptions of new species. N. Amer. Fauna (3): 103-1 18. -, and Thomas Barbour. 1923. A checklist of North American amphibians and reptiles. Second edition. Harvard Univ. Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts. x + 171 p. Stephens, Frank. 1918. Some southern California reptile notes. Copeia (54):34-35. -. 1921. An annotated list of the amphibians and reptiles of San Diego County, California. Trans. San Diego Soc. Nat. Hist. 3(4):57-69. Van Denburgh, John. 1922. The reptiles of western North America. Vol. I. Lizards. Occ. Pap. California Acad. Sci. (10):l-611. - , and J. R. Slevin. 1913. A list of the amphibians and reptiles of Arizona, with notes on the species in the collection of the Academy. Proc. California Acad. Sci. Ser. 4, 3:391-454. -, and -. 1921a. A list of the amphibians and reptiles of Nevada, with notes on the species in the collection of the Academy. Proc. California Acad. Sci. Ser. 4, 11(2):27-38. -, and -. 1921b. A list of the amphibians and reptiles of the peninsula of Lower California, with notes on the species in the collection of the Academy. Proc. California Acad. Sci. Ser. 4, 11(4):49-72. Vitt, Laurie J. 1977. Observations on clutch and egg size and evidence for multiple clutches in some lizards of southwestern United States. Herpetologica 33(3):333-338. -. 1978. Caloric content of lizard and snake (Reptilia) eggs and bodies and the conversion of weight to caloric data. J. Herpetol. 12(1):65-72. -, and Justin D. Congdon. 1978. Body shape, reproductive effort, and relative clutch mass in lizards: resolution of a para- dox. h e r .  Nat. 112(985):595-608. - , and Roben D. Ohmart. 1975. Ecology, reproduction, and reproductive effort of the iguanid lizard Urosaumsgraciosus on the Lower Colorado River. Herpetologica 31(1):56-65. -, and -. 1978. Herpetofauna of the Lower Colorado River: Davis Dam to the Mexican border. Proc. Western Found. Vert.  ZOO^. 2(2):33-72. -, and Holly J. Price. 1982. Ecological and evolutionary deter- minants of relative clutch mass in lizards. Herpetologica 38(1): 237-255. -, Richard C. Van Loben Sels, and Robert D. Ohman. 1978. Lizard reproduction: annual variation and environmental corre- lates in the iguanid lizard Urosaurus graciosus. Herpetologica 34(3):241-253. -- , , and -. 1981. Ecological relationships among arboreal desert lizards. Ecology 62(2):398-410. Welsh, Hartwell H., Jr. 1976. Ecogeographic distribution of the herpetofauna of the Sierra San Pedro Martir Region, Baja Cali- fornia Norte, Mexico. M. S. Thesis, Humboldt State University, Arcata, California. 169 p. -, and R. Bruce Bury. 1984. Additions to the herpetofauna of the South Colorado Desert, Baja California, with comments on the relationships of Lichanura trin'rgata. Herpetol. Rev. 15(2): 53-56. Yarrow, Henry C. 1882. Checklist of North American Reptilia and Batrachia, with catalogue of specimens in U. S. National Mu- seum. Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus. (24):l-249. Laurie J. Vitt, Department of Biology, University of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 30024, and Nancy A. Dichn, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P. 0. Drawer E, Aiken, South Carolina 29801. Primary editor for this account, Andrew H. Price. Published 15 December 1988 and Copyright 01988 by the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 

https://repositories.lib.utexas.edu/bitstream/2152/45132/1/0448_Xantusia_vigilis.pdf

Urosaurus graciosus

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Red Mexicana de Repositorios Institucionales

Texas ScholarWorks