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lizard
Table of Contents
References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images & Videos
black girdle-tailed lizard lizard body plans lizard body structures
Unique traits of the Galapagos marine iguana
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For Students
day gecko
lizard summary
Quizzes
Sea otter (Enhydra lutris), also called great sea otter, rare, completely marine otter of the northern Pacific, usually found in kelp beds. Floats on back. Looks like sea otter laughing. saltwater otters
Animal Group Names
Lion (panthera leo)
Deadliest Animals Quiz
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Wild Words from the Animal Kingdom Vocabulary Quiz
Mute swan with cygnet. (birds)
Match the Baby Animal to Its Mama Quiz
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Animal Factoids
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Why Do Animals Have Tails?
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Panama Canal infographic
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Fish. Lionfish. Lion-fish. Turkey fish. Fire-fish. Red lionfish. Pterois volitans. Venomous fin spines. Coral reefs. Underwater. Ocean. Red lionfish swims by seaweed.
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lizard: References & Edit History

Additional Reading

A succinct overview of the various evolutionary adaptations possessed by lizards is presented in Eric R. Pianka, Lizards: Windows to the Evolution of Diversity (2006).

General surveys of lizards and their life histories, with many photographs, are found in Harold G. Cogger and Richard G. Zweifel (eds.), Encyclopedia of Reptiles & Amphibians, 2nd ed. (1998). General herpetology textbooks include George R. Zug, Laurie J. Vitt, and Janalee P. Caldwell, Herpetology: An Introductory Biology of Amphibians and Reptiles, 2nd ed. (2001); and F. Harvey Pough et al., Herpetology, 3rd ed. (2004). Summaries of modern trends in research as they relate to lizard ecology, physiological ecology, and behaviour include Raymond B. Huey, Eric R. Pianka, and Thomas W. Schoener (eds.), Lizard Ecology: Studies of a Model Organism (1983); Laurie J. Vitt and Eric R. Pianka (eds.), Lizard Ecology: Historical and Experimental Perspectives (1994); John W. Wright and Laurie J. Vitt (eds.), Biology of Whiptail Lizards: Genus Cnemidophorus (1993); and Stanley F. Fox, J. Kelly McCoy, and Troy A. Baird (eds.), Lizard Social Behavior (2003).

Worthy regional accounts of lizards and other herpetofauna include Christopher J. Glasby, Graham J.B. Ross, and Pamela L. Beesley (eds.), Amphibia & Reptilia (1993), a packed but highly readable technical manual with summary accounts of the biology and anatomy of all families of Australian amphibians and reptiles; Roger Conant and Joseph T. Collins, A Field Guide to Reptiles & Amphibians: Eastern and Central North America, 3rd ed., expanded (1998), an excellent guide to the herpetofauna of eastern North America; and Brian I. Crother (ed.), Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Confidence in Our Understanding, 6th ed. (2008), an annotated list of all amphibians and reptiles in North America with comments on the validity of each species.

Important taxonomic works, not easily read by the layperson but fundamental to the understanding of lizard classification, include Steven C. Anderson, The Lizards of Iran (1999); T.C.S. Avila-Pires, Lizards of Brazilian Amazonia (Reptilia: Squamata) (1995); Brian I. Crother (ed.), Caribbean Amphibians and Reptiles (1999); and Albert Schwartz and Robert W. Henderson, Amphibians and Reptiles of the West Indies: Descriptions, Distributions, and Natural History (1991).

Laurie Vitt

Article Contributors

Primary Contributors

  • George C. Gorman
    Director, Tropical Programs, Center for Conservation Biology, Stanford University, California. Researcher on the evolution, behaviour, and systematics of lizards.
  • Laurie Vitt

Other Contributors

  • Marc Jones

Other Encyclopedia Britannica Contributors

Article History

Type Description Contributor Date
Modified link of Web site: National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - Lizard Tail Regeneration As An Instructive Model of Enhanced Healing Capabilities In An Adult Amniote. Dec 06, 2024
Add new Web site: PNAS - Lizards from warm and declining populations are born with extremely short telomeres. Sep 14, 2024
Media added. Jun 12, 2024
Add new Web site: Frontiers - Behavior, stress and metabolism of a parthenogenic lizard in response to flyover noise. May 10, 2024
Add new Web site: Animal Corner - Lizards. Feb 26, 2024
Add new Web site: University of California - Integrated Pest Management Program - Lizards. Dec 27, 2023
Add new Web site: Missouri Department of Conservation - Lizard Facts. Sep 05, 2023
Add new Web site: National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - Lizard Tail Regeneration As An Instructive Model of Enhanced Healing Capabilities In An Adult Amniote. Jun 30, 2023
Add new Web site: Canadian Encyclopedia - Lizard Species in Canada. May 05, 2023
Corrected display issue. Aug 04, 2022
Add new Web site: LiveScience - Facts About Lizards. Dec 28, 2016
Media added. Jun 16, 2016
Text added noting that the group Lepidosauria includes the squamates (lizards and snakes) and the rhynchocephalians (tuatara). Jul 10, 2015
Added video. May 20, 2015
Add new Web site: A-Z Animals - Lizard. Apr 02, 2014
Replaced video in the Dentition section. Jan 28, 2014
Add new Web site: Buzzle.com - Lizard. Jan 29, 2013
Add new Web site: San Diego Zoo Animals and Plants - Lizard. Jan 29, 2013
Text added identifying the oldest known fossil snake, Coniophis precedens. Aug 13, 2012
Species count changed from "nearly 4,450 species" to "more than 5,500 species." Apr 25, 2012
Add new Web site: Science Kids - Fun Science and Technology for Kids - Lizard Facts. Mar 16, 2012
Media added. Nov 11, 2011
Added diagram of lizard body plans. Aug 26, 2010
Add new Web site: British Broadcasting Corporation - Wall lizards. Aug 04, 2010
Added diagram of vomeronasal organ. Jun 30, 2010
Added image of specialized structures of some lizards. Apr 01, 2010
Added new Web site: Heritage History - The Compromise of 1850. Sep 09, 2008
Added new Web site: Texas State Historical Association - The Handbook of Texas Online - Compromise of 1850. Aug 12, 2008
Bibliography revised and updated. Jul 15, 2008
Article revised and updated. Jul 15, 2008
Added new Web site: Fact Monster - Science - Lizard. Jul 02, 2008
Added new Web site: Environmental Education For Kids - Lizards of Wisconsin. Jun 19, 2008
Added new Web site: How Stuff Works - Animals - Lizard. May 29, 2008
Added new Web site: Kansapedia - Kansas Historical Society - Compromise of 1850. May 01, 2008
Added new Web site: Enchanted Learning - Lizard. Mar 09, 2008
Added new Web site: Animal Corner - Lizard. Feb 07, 2008
Added new Web site: University of Texas - Herps of Texas. Jun 26, 2006
Added new Web site: University of Georgia - Reptiles and Amphibians of the Savannah River Site. Jun 26, 2006
Article added to new online database. Jul 26, 1999
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