2022 · Days of The Week · Wildlife Wednesday

Southwestern Fence Lizard (Sceloporus cowlesi)

Southwestern Fence Lizard in Blue Mesa, Arizona

The Southwestern Fence Lizard (Sceloporus cowlesi), also known as Cowles’ prairie lizard, the White Sands prairie lizard, or the White Sands swift, is a species of spiny lizard in the family Iguanidae. The species is native to the Chihuahuan Desert of the southwestern United States and northcentral Mexico. Originally described in 1956 as Sceloporus undulatus cowlesi, a subspecies of the eastern fence lizard, subsequent DNA studies elevated the southwestern fence lizard to species status. The specific name, cowlesi, is in honor of American herpetologist Raymond Bridgman Cowles.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southwestern_fence_lizard

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