LIZARDS CITES Identification manual Tentative tool for Thai CITES officers Compiled by TANYA CHAN-ARD NATIONAL SCIENCE MUSEUM MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
CLASSIFICATION ORDER SQUAMATA SUBORDER SAURIA (LACERATA) 4,560 species in 442 genera 20 (27) families Distribution: S Canada to Tierra del Fuego; N Norway to Stewart Is., New Zealand; Antarctic, Pacific and Indian oceans Islands. Terrestrial, rock-dwelling, treedwelling, burrowing, or semiaquatic
GENERAL CHARACTERS Size: svl 1.5 150 cm. Color: highly variable, including green, brown, black, and some brightly- colored species.
CHAMAELIONIDAE Chamaeleons 135 species in 6 genera Madagascar and neighboring is. In Indian Ocean; Spain; India and Sri Lanka. Size: 2-28 cm. Color: predominantly brown, green, or yellow. Scales: small, juxtaposed, without bony plates. Body form: head and body compressed, head often with horns, flaps or crests; limbs tending to be long and slender; feet zygodactyl (with some toes bound together and opposed); tail muscular prehensile in most species, not fragile; eyes protruding, covered with scaly lids, independently mobile; ears without external opening.
CITES Listed App. I Brookesia pararmada App.II Bradypodion spp. Brookesia spp. Calumna spp. Chamaeleo spp. Furcifer spp.
Brookesia Columna Furcifer
IGUANIDAE Iguanas Nearly 700 species in 48 genera S Canada to Argentina; W Indies; Galapagos Is.; Madagascar; Fiji and Tonga. size: 3-75 cm. Color: generally brown, gray, or black, but some species bright green or blue. Scales: variable; bony plates absent; throat fans; crest on back, and fringes on toes common Body form: variable, from strongly depressed to strongly compressed, limbs well developed and typically five- toed, some with adhesive scansors; tail usually fragile.
CITES Listed App.I Brachylophus spp. Cyclura spp. Sauromalus varius App. II Amblyrhynchus cristatus Conolophus spp. Iguana spp. Phrynosoma coronatum
Brachylophus Amblyrhychus cristatus Cyclura Iguana delicatissima
GEKKONIDAE Geckos > 930 species in 88 genera Almost worldwide between 50⁰ N and 4 ⁰ S Size: 1.5-20 cm. Usually brown or grey, but some species green or other bright colors. Scales: almost always small; comprising a soft skin; scattered keeled tubercles ans spines sometimes present; without bone, rarely overlapping; enlarged, symmetrical head shields exceptional. Body form: typically with depressed head, body, and tail; tail varying considerably in shape and ornamentation, fragile; limbs short, with 5 toes that are especially variable in shape and scalation; eyes usually large, lids fused to form transparent covering; ears with external opening.
CITES Listed App.II Cyrtodactylus serpentsinsula Phelsuma spp. Uroplatus spp. Uroplatus
Phelsuma Scalation: Above, body with small juxtaposed granular scales; below, scales flattened, larger and imbricate. Coloration: Under good conditions, most of the species are conspiciously colored with vivid blue or green and spotted with red or brown. Quick color changes are typical for this diurnal genus, depending on state of excitement. Under bad conditions like stress at transport, the coloration and spotting darkens.
Phelsuma Head and body proportions: Whole body more or less depressed. Tail usually striking longer as head- body length. Head circa 1.5 times as long as broad. Foot: digits on apex disc- shaped dilated, below with adhesive lamellae. Digits not webbed, clawless or with one vestigial claw only. Inner digit on every foot reduced.
Phelsuma Eyes: Pupil circular (exception: P. guentheri with a vertical, slit-like pupil). Eyelids not movable, fused circular, forming and eye ring. Tail: Sometimes more or less segmented. The geckos can shed their tails in danger. Regenerated parts usually show a simpler arrangement of color.
Phelsuma Dorsal View Lateral view
DIPLODACTYLIDAE Pacific Geckos 121 species in 15 genera New Zealand, New Caledonia, Australia except S Victoria and Tasmania. Size: 4.5-36 cm. Color: usually brown, grey, or purplish, often with contrasting dorsal markings; a few species green. Scales: usually small and granular; some species with pronounce tubercles or caudal spines. Body form: typically depressed, sometimes with loose folds of skin at sides; tail short to very short, fragile in all but robust to long and slender; 5 toes with or without adhesive scancors; eyes usually large, lids fused to form transparent covering, pupils vertical; ears have external opening.
CITES Listed App. II Hoplodactyllus spp. Naultinus spp. Hoplodactylus
TEIIDAE Whiptails and Race Runners 120 species in 9 genera S USA. Through S America and W Indies except Patagonia and southern forests. Size: 5.5 to 45 cm. Color: chiefly green, brown, or gray. Scales: large and symmetrical on head, small and granular on body and rectangular plates on belly; bony plates absent. Body form: stout with large head and well- developed limbs, hind toes elongate; usually with pointed snout and long fragile tail; eyes moderate large, with oval pupils; lid well developed, movable, and covered with scales; Ear large, not covered by scales.
CITES Listed Dracaena App. II Crocodilurus amezonicus Dracaena spp. Tupinambis spp. Tupinambis
LACERTIDAE Wall and Sand Lizards 225 species in 27 genera Europe, Africa, Asia, Indo- Australian Archipelago. Size: 4-26 cm. Color: green, yellow, reddish, brown, gray or black. Scales: may be enlarged and symmetrical plates usually fused to skull; on back small and usually granular; belly with large, smooth, rectangular plates in well- defined rows; in whorls on tail Body form: head conical and distinct from body; usually have folds of skin across throat; body long with welldeveloped limbs, typically five- toed; tail very long and fragile; eyes moderlately large, with moveable lid.
CITES Listed App. I Gallotia simonyi App. II Podarcis lilfordi Podarcis pityusensis
SCINCIDAE Skinks 1,400 species in 115 genera All tropical and temperate zones. Size: 2.3-49 cm. Color: brown, gray, and black in predominating; some species green og blue. Scales: usually enlarged on top of head to form series of symmetrical shields; on body, usually smooth flat, and overlapping each other in regular order. Body form: very variable; in general elongated and somewhat depressed, with a small flattened head and short legs, reduced or absent in many species; eyes moderate to small and nonfunctional; pupil usually round; lids well- developed, moveable or fused; lower eyelids with transparent disks or covered with scales; ears with external opening or covered by scales.
CITES Listed App. II Corucia zebrata Prehensile- tailed skink
CORDYLIDAE Girdled Lizards 52 species in 4 genera E and S Africa Size: 5-20 cm. Color: brown, black, or brightly multicolored; some species sexually dichromatic. Scales: on head, large, symmetrical shields with bony plates; on body usually in regular series, rectangular and overlapping, usually keeled on upper surfaces; small and granular in flat lizards. Body-form: stout to snake- like; typically moderately to very depressed; limbs short, reduced in some species; tail fragile, short to very long, usually with whorls of spines; eyes well- ddeveloped; ears with distinct external pening.
CITES Listed App.II Cordylus spp. Spiny- tailed Lizards Cordyrus catahractus
XENOSAURIDAE Xenosaurs 6 species in 2 genera E Mexico southwards to Guatemala; SE China Size: 10-15 cm. Color: predominantly brown, gray or black. Scales: minute to large, with small to large disks of bones; some species with a series of enlarge scutes on midline of nape and trunk, which may continued to tail. Body form: head compressed in chinese xenosaur, depressed in new world species; body stout, with well- developed limbs; tail moderately long, not fragile; eyes of moderate size, with round pupil; ears have large opening.
CITES Listed App. II Shinisaurus crocodilurus Chinese crocodile lizard
VARANIDAE Monitor lizards 57 species in 1 genus Africa to S Asia, Indo- Australian Archipelago, Philippines, New Guinea, Australia. Size: 12 cm. to 1.5 m. Color: largely drab brown, gray, or black. Scales: mostly small, pebble-like granules that may form rings around larger, juxtaposed scales with conspicuous pits; thin disks of bone in some. Body form: distinctive, with large neck and relatively short body; head usually very long and narrow, frequency with pointed snout and slit-like nostrils placed near eyes; skin fold across throat; limbs strongly built, 5-toed; toes and curved claws long and strong; tail long and muscular, not fragile.
CITES Listed App. I Varanus bengalensis Varanus flavescens Varanus griseus Varanus komodoensis Varanus nebulosus App. II Varanus spp.
HELODERMATIDAE Bead Lizards 2 species in 1 genus SW USA. Through W Mexico to Guatemala. Size: 33-45.5 cm Color: brown to black with pinkish or yellowish markings. Scales: relatively large, raised, rounded scales on upper surface; undersides with smaller, rectangular scales in regular rows; larger scales, including on head, with bony disks inside. Body form: almost cylindrical, head large, depressed, with blunt snout; distinctive fold of skin across throat; body stout; limbs short, five- toed; tail short to moderate in length, thick, blunt- tipped, not fragile; eyes small, with round pupil; ears have external opening exposed.
CITES Listed App. II Heloderma spp. Heloderma horridum Heloderma suspectum