330:, giving birth to live young and producing 1 to 3 young from August to December. Unusually for a lizard, it forms family social groups with a father-mother pair and offspring, which may delay dispersing for years. The young are capable of feeding themselves but will huddle together with their relatives. They do not receive direct care from their parents and older siblings, and it is not yet known what the advantages of staying with their family members are. The baby lizards are well-camouflaged and are not much bigger than a toothpick.
75:
318:
most commonly found underneath fallen dead trees, fallen ecological debris (plant limbs, Spanish dagger, Quixote Plants), and amongst the spiny leaves of Joshua Trees. The desert night lizard avoids visibility and may select its habitat as an added layer of protection and obscurity from predatory species. This lizard is not isolated to areas with Yucca plants, but higher population density is usually associated with the presence of Yucca plants.
31:
50:
253:
scales with 30-50 granular dorsal scales around their mid-region. Above each eye, they have supraorbital scales (one around the nasal bone, two frontal ones, and two parietal scales). Typically, the color along their body ranges from light gray to brown. They can often be a single, uniform color, but some species have been found to have dark spots.
395:. In damp climates this species of lizard will either prepone or postpone ovulation for drier conditions. For example, in a particularly damp spring, ovulation is typically postponed to occur in the middle of the following summer. Regardless of climate, breeding typically occurs during the spring and winter.
244:
The desert night lizard attains a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of 1.5 to 2.75 in (3.8 to 7.0 cm) with a tail roughly the same length. The lizard's coloring is usually grey, yellow-brownish, or olive. Despite their name, night lizards are active during the day. They are known to easily change
398:
Diet carries a similar importance on determining the reproductive success of a given breeding season. Improper diet and malnutrition often leads to underdeveloped ova and lacking yolk deposition within female desert night lizards. Overly dry climates are heavily associated with underdevelopment in
317:
is one of the few species of lizard or vertebrates that have this type of plant based habitat occupation. While this lizard is widespread across various regions in the United States and Mexico, its local environmental settings seem standardized across its habitat range. The desert night lizard is
252:
is 65mm in total length and 1.1 g in weight. Male desert night lizards are distinguishable from females as they are lighter and shorter in length. They also have a stouter and wider tail, as well as enlarged femoral pores. Most desert night lizards have 12 longitudinal rows of rectangular ventral
352:
Winter groups (aggregates formed to survive through the cold winter) proved advantageous, allowing for greater internal heat retention for individual lizards and for the collective group as a whole. Most winter groups are as large as 20 lizards. However, winter groups do not last past the winter
417:
placenta is well developed to allow for exchange of amino acids between mother and fetus. Half of the embryo's weight gain is suspected to happen during the brief egg gestation period, from the oviduct wall to the placenta. At birth, neonates average 22–23 mm in length (SVL) and weigh
406:
lasts approximately 2 weeks at an optimal temperature range of 75 - 90 °F (24 - 32 °C). Gestation typically lasts 90 days. No day versus night preference exists for birth itself, where the event of delivery lasts about 10 minutes. Desert night lizards may live for 8–10 years.
399:
reproductive organs and reduced reproductive processes. One notable exception is that males experiencing drier climates and low resource settings have been shown to reach a greater level of testicular maturation.
345:(or the tendency for an animal to remain in the region of their birth as it proves advantageous to remain in a group) and winter aggregation. Reproductive success was heightened for female
829:
Cowles, R. B., & Burleson, G. L. (1946). The
Sterilizing Effect of High Temperature on the Male Germ-Plasm of the Yucca Night Lizard, Xantusia vigilis. The American Naturalist, 79(1),
245:
their color, from light olive (usually during the evening) to dark brown during the day. It is a good climber and usually eats termites, small insects, spiders and other arthropods.
1062:
1140:
391:
is dependent on a few factors, largely centering around climate variations, diet, and nutrition. Climatic changes heavily dictate the proceedings of gestation within
1135:
966:
1150:
1018:
1095:
384:
and ovary used for ovulation; when only a single ovum is ovulated there is a pressure for the right ovary to overproduce a larger number of mature ova.
248:
The desert night lizard is small for a reptile, with the average adult female at 80 mm in total length and 1.3 g in weight. The average adult male
940:
979:
1115:
265:
locales. During the day, it frequently may be found in rock crevices or under fallen plant debris. It is usually associated with varieties of
1125:
812:
1145:
1120:
1130:
1105:
790:
768:
728:
745:. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 497 pp. + Plates I-XXIV. (
495:
984:
287:
can be found along the
Southwestern coast of the United States and northern regions of Mexico. There is great prevalence of
303:
have been found in western
Arizona, some coastal ranges within Central California, Colorado, the Sierra Nevada, and Utah.
822:
Brattstrom, Bayard H. “The Food of the
Nightlizards, Genus Xantusia.” Copeia, vol. 1952, no. 3, , 1952, pp. 168–72,
575:"Integrating species traits with extrinsic threats: closing the gap between predicting and preventing species declines"
1110:
901:
702:. 1859. Description of New Genera and Species of North American Lizards in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution.
513:
1023:
74:
538:
Stebbins, Robert (1948). "New distributional records for
Xantusia vigilis with observations on its habitat".
738:
699:
309:
received its more common name 'yucca night lizard,' because of its frequent prevalence around plants of the
185:
743:
Catalogue of the
Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume II. ... Xantusiidæ
841:
496:"Xantusia vigilis (Desert Night Lizard) and Sceloporus magister (Desert Spiny Lizard). Predation and diet"
906:
217:
169:
879:
756:
341:
that lacked close genetic relationships. It is believed that kin presence for these lizard encourages
927:
888:
644:
Kin
Dynamics and Adaptive Benefits of Social Aggregation in the Desert Night Lizard, Xantusia Vigilis
354:
800:
210:
39:
1010:
807:. The Peterson Field Guide Series. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Company. xiii + 533 pp.
678:
625:
555:
467:
69:
410:
Among night lizards, only a certain percentage of adult females will reproduce in a given year.
971:
1100:
1044:
914:
808:
786:
778:
764:
724:
607:
262:
1072:
1057:
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670:
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462:
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is a largely sedentary species of lizard that remains obscure and hidden from plain sight.
270:
997:
752:
1031:
423:
278:
221:
30:
893:
716:
602:
296:
274:
213:
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992:
453:
444:
292:
59:
54:
919:
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with higher levels of kin relatedness proved to be more stable than congregates of
206:
136:
494:
Adolph, Stephen; Perkins, Marc; Granite, Stephen; Hein, Wendy (January 1, 1997).
365:
follow the group stability hypothesis and are more stable within their families.
1005:
953:
873:
574:
864:
377:
342:
327:
299:, throughout southern California and Baja California. Smaller populations of
86:
611:
593:
1036:
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when kin presence and kin relatedness within a living group was observed.
858:
721:
The
Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians
376:
typically give birth to no more than two offspring per birth. There is a
146:
126:
106:
945:
682:
658:
559:
381:
233:
116:
958:
659:"Further observations on reproduction in the lizard Xantusia vigilis"
225:
96:
835:
674:
573:
Murray, Kris; Rosauer, Dan; McCallum, Hamish; Skerratt, Lee (2011).
551:
669:(1). American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists: 38–40.
823:
266:
830:
229:
932:
839:
805:
A Field Guide to
Western Reptiles and Amphibians, Third Edition
783:
Reptiles of North
America: A Guide to Field Identification
443:
Hammerson, G.A.; Frost, D.R.; Santos-Barrera, G. (2007).
763:. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman and Company. xi + 378 pp.
582:
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
848:
326:Like all night lizards, the desert night lizard is
8:
468:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2007.RLTS.T64368A12774414.en
546:(1). The University of Notre Dame: 96–101.
489:
487:
485:
836:
761:Introduction to Herpetology, Third Edition
48:
29:
20:
601:
466:
353:months, typically dissolving by the time
819:, pp. 307–309 + Plate 35 + Map 76).
1141:Fauna of the Southwestern United States
646:. University of California, Santa Cruz.
435:
1136:Fauna of the Baja California Peninsula
637:
635:
1151:Taxa named by Spencer Fullerton Baird
723:. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 743 pp.
7:
1096:IUCN Red List least concern species
454:IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
785:. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp.
704:Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia
422:mothers are reported to eat their
14:
626:"Family ties bind desert lizards"
380:preference based on the specific
735:, pp. 551–552 + Plate 406).
73:
824:https://doi.org/10.2307/1439698
775:, pp. 129, 132, 148, 286).
540:The American Midland Naturalist
831:https://doi.org/10.1086/281277
1:
1116:Reptiles of the United States
313:genus, such as Joshua Trees.
261:The lizard lives in arid and
232:and extreme western areas of
1126:Fauna of the Colorado Desert
713:, new species, p. 255).
369:Reproduction and life cycle
1167:
1146:Reptiles described in 1859
1121:Fauna of the Mojave Desert
357:occurs in June. Socially,
402:The ovulation period for
175:
168:
70:Scientific classification
68:
46:
37:
28:
23:
1131:Fauna of the Great Basin
1106:Lizards of North America
657:Miller, Malcolm (1954).
500:Scholarship at Claremont
257:Habitat and distribution
781:, Brodie ED Jr. 1982.
642:Davis, Alison (2009).
594:10.1098/rspb.2010.1872
461:: e.T64368A12774414.
418:approximately 0.23g.
218:San Gabriel Mountains
749:, pp. 327–328).
518:The Reptile Database
387:Reproduction within
24:Desert night lizard
588:(1711): 1515–1523.
211:Southern California
197:desert night lizard
40:Conservation status
1111:Reptiles of Mexico
797:, pp. 84–85).
685:– via JSTOR.
514:"Xantusia vigilis"
1083:
1082:
1045:Open Tree of Life
842:Taxon identifiers
813:978-0-395-98272-3
719:, King FW. 1979.
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192:
63:
16:Species of lizard
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894:Xantusia_vigilis
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880:Xantusia vigilis
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850:Xantusia vigilis
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817:Xantusia vigilis
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773:Xantusia vigilis
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733:Xantusia vigilis
711:Xantusia vigilis
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374:Xantusia vigilis
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424:fetal membranes
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324:
322:Social behavior
297:Sonoran Deserts
279:Spanish Bayonet
259:
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228:, southwestern
222:Baja California
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183:
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161:X. vigilis
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275:Spanish Dagger
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214:Eastern Sierra
209:native to the
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170:Binomial name
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55:Least Concern
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739:Boulenger GA
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709:: 253–256. (
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521:. Retrieved
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207:night lizard
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147:
18:
1006:NatureServe
954:iNaturalist
874:Wikispecies
801:Stebbins RC
755:, Goin OB,
523:17 December
474:20 November
271:Joshua Tree
240:Description
224:, southern
137:Xantusiidae
1090:Categories
430:References
420:X. vigilis
415:X. vigilis
404:X. vigilis
393:X. vigilis
389:X. vigilis
378:laterality
363:X. vigilis
359:X. vigilis
355:copulation
347:X. vigilis
343:philopatry
339:X. vigilis
333:Groups of
328:viviparous
315:X. vigilis
307:X. vigilis
301:X. vigilis
289:X. vigilis
285:X. vigilis
717:Behler JL
263:semi-arid
155:Species:
93:Kingdom:
87:Eukaryota
1101:Xantusia
1011:2.893172
972:10361745
865:Q2257095
859:Wikidata
779:Smith HM
759:. 1978.
741:. 1885.
700:Baird SF
612:20980304
216:and the
148:Xantusia
133:Family:
127:Squamata
117:Reptilia
107:Chordata
103:Phylum:
97:Animalia
83:Domain:
60:IUCN 3.1
1063:vigilis
946:2451726
753:Goin CJ
683:1440634
603:3081746
560:2421431
382:oviduct
291:in the
234:Arizona
205:) is a
143:Genus:
123:Order:
113:Class:
58: (
1073:209144
1070:uBio:
1050:139521
1037:104468
985:174092
933:793549
907:170038
811:
789:
767:
757:Zug GR
727:
681:
663:Copeia
610:
600:
558:
293:Mohave
277:, and
226:Nevada
188:, 1859
998:64368
967:IRMNG
959:39484
920:5C8PB
679:JSTOR
578:(PDF)
556:JSTOR
311:Yucca
267:yucca
220:into
186:Baird
1024:8547
1019:NCBI
993:IUCN
980:ITIS
941:GBIF
902:BOLD
809:ISBN
787:ISBN
765:ISBN
725:ISBN
667:1954
608:PMID
525:2021
476:2021
459:2007
413:The
295:and
230:Utah
195:The
928:EoL
915:CoL
889:ADW
815:. (
793:. (
771:. (
731:. (
671:doi
598:PMC
590:doi
586:278
548:doi
463:doi
1092::
1060::
1058:RD
1047::
1034::
1021::
1008::
995::
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969::
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917::
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707:10
677:.
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661:.
634:^
606:.
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584:.
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554:.
544:39
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498:.
484:^
457:.
451:.
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281:.
273:,
236:.
826:.
673::
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614:.
592::
562:.
550::
527:.
502:.
478:.
465::
449:"
445:"
199:(
62:)
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
