Pedioplanis breviceps

Pedioplanis breviceps, known commonly as the short-headed sand lizard, the short-headed sandveld lizard, and Sternfeld's sand lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Lacertidae. The species is endemic to Namibia.

Pedioplanis breviceps
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Lacertidae
Genus: Pedioplanis
Species:
P. breviceps
Binomial name
Pedioplanis breviceps
(Sternfeld, 1911)
Synonyms[1]
  • Eremias breviceps
    Sternfeld, 1911
  • Mesalina breviceps
    — Szczerbak, 1989
  • Pedioplanis breviceps
    — Mayer, 1989

Geographic range

P. breviceps is found in northwestern Namibia.[1]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitat of P. breviceps is desert.[2]

Description

P. breviceps is a small species for its genus. It has a short head, to which the specific name, breviceps, refers. Adults have a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of 4.5–5.5 cm (1.8–2.2 in). The lower eyelid is scaly and opaque, without a "window". There is sexual dimorphism in coloration: adult females and juveniles have distinct dark dorsal stripes, but adult males are uniformly brown dorsally.[2]

Reproduction

P. breviceps is oviparous.[1] An adult female may lay a clutch of 2–4 eggs. Each egg measures 11 mm (0.43 in) by 6 mm (0.24 in). Each hatchling has a total length (including tail) of 5–8 cm (2.0–3.1 in).[2]

References
  1. Pedioplanis breviceps at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 16 May 2019.
  2. Branch, Bill (2004). Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa. Third Revised Edition, Second impression. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 399 pp. ISBN 0-88359-042-5. (Pedioplanis breviceps, pp. 170-171 + Plate 58).

Further reading
  • Conradie W, Measey GJ, Branch WR, Tolley KA (2012). "Revised phylogeny of African sand lizards (Pedioplanis), with description of two new species from south-western Angola". African Journal of Herpetology 61 (2): 91-112.
  • Makokha JS, Bauer AM, Mayer W, Matthee CA (2007). "Nuclear and mtDNA-based phylogeny of southern African sand lizards, Pedioplanis (Sauria: Lacertidae)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 44 (2): 622–633.
  • Sternfeld R (1911). "Zur Herpetologie Südwestafrikas ". Mitteilungen aus dem Zoologischen Museum in Berlin 5: 393–411. (Eremias breviceps, new species, p. 404, Figure 2). (in German).



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