Biology:Gulf Coast horned lizard
| Gulf Coast horned lizard | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Iguania |
| Family: | Phrynosomatidae |
| Genus: | Phrynosoma |
| Species: | P. wigginsi
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| Binomial name | |
| Phrynosoma wigginsi Montanucci, 2004
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The Gulf Coast horned lizard (Phrynosoma wigginsi) is a species of lizard in the family Phrynosomatidae. The species is endemic to Baja California, Mexico.
Taxonomy
Phrynosoma wigginsi was split from Phrynosoma coronatum in 2004 on morphological evidence. P. wigginsi has a tan rather than chocolate forehead, a fourth "subrictal" spine below the eye, and a longer head than P. coronatum.
Etymology
The specific name, wigginsi, is in honor of Stanford University botanist Ira Loren Wiggins, who in 1946 collected what later became the holotype.[1][2]
Geographic range
The geographic range of P. wigginsi is restricted to the region around Mulegé and Loreto on the Gulf Coast side of Baja California Sur, specifically the eastern side of the Sierra de Guadalupe and Sierra de La Giganta.[1]
Habitat
P. wigginsi lives in similar coastal desert habitats to its close relative P. coronatum, but unlike more distantly related members of the genus. This alignment has been used to illustrate the principle of niche conservatism.[3] It preys on ants and other invertebrates, and, like other Phrynosomatid lizards, has the remarkable ability to squirt blood from its eyes as a defense.[4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Montanucci, Richard R. (2004). "Geographic Variation in Phrynosoma coronatum (Lacertilia, Phrynosomatidae): Further Evidence for a Peninsular Archipelago". Herpetologica 60 (1): 117–139. doi:10.1655/02-100. (Phrynosoma wigginsi, new species).
- ↑ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN:978-1-4214-0135-5. (Phrynosoma wigginsi, p. 285).
- ↑ Luxbacher, A. M.; Knouft, J. H. (2009). "Assessing concurrent patterns of environmental niche and morphological evolution among species of horned lizards (Phrynosoma)". Journal of Evolutionary Biology 22 (8): 1669–78. doi:10.1111/j.1420-9101.2009.01779.x. PMID 19538346.
- ↑ Sherbrooke, Wade C.; Rodriguez, Chris (2010). "Defensive blood-squirting behavior of Phrynosoma braconnieri (Short-tailed Horned Lizard)". Herpetological Review 41 (2): 226–227.
External links
- Naherp.com
- National Geographic footage of blood squirting from eyes, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hE_fZNZjJcQ
Wikidata ☰ Q392932 entry
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