Sauromalus varius DICKERSON, 1919

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Higher Taxa	Iguanidae, Iguania, Sauria, Squamata (lizards)
Subspecies
Common Names	E: Piebald Chuckwalla G: St. Esteban-Chuckwalla S: Iguana de Pared Piebald
Synonym	Sauromalus varius DICKERSON 1919 Sauromalus varius — LINER 1994 Sauromalus varius — HOLLINGSWORTH 1998: 159 Sauromalus varius — KÖHLER & ZORN 2014 Sauromalus varius — SUMARLI et al. 2023 Sauromalus varius — HEIMES 2022
Distribution	Mexico (Gulf of California: San Esteban, Roca Lobos, Pelicano [Sonora]) Type locality: "San Esteban Island, Gulf of California, Mexico."
Reproduction	oviparous
Types	Holotype: USNM 64441
Diagnosis	Diagnosis: Size very large, sometimes exceeding 600 mm.; nuchal scales somewhat enlarged medially, smaller than largest head scales and preauricular scales, with only faint tendency to formation of spines posteriorly; postauricular scales small; dorsal scales smooth, median subquadrangular, lateral with tendency to formation of posterior spine; dorsals small, larger in mid-dorsal region especially anteriorly, rows in head length near median line 28, 15 mm. distant from median line, 37; number of ventral scale rows from gular fold to anus, 143 (average in 15 specimens); scales around thickest part of tail, 72 (average in 15 specimens); femoral pores not variable, averaging 17. General color light yellowish to light reddish brown, with irregular blotching and mottling of dark over all dorsal and lateral surfaces, giving a piebald appearance (Dickerson 1919: 464).
Comment
Etymology	The specific name varius comes from the Latin root vari which means "different" or "changing" and presumably refers to the distinct dorsal color pattern of this lizard.
References	Alberts, A.C.; Carter, R.L.; Hayes, W.K. & Martins, E.P. (eds.) 2004. Iguanas - Biology and Conservation. University of California Press, 356 pp. - get paper here Avery, D. F.; Tanner, W. W. 1971. Evolution of the iguanine lizards (Sauria, Iguanidae) as determined by osteological and myological characters. Brigham Young University Science Bulletin 12 (3): 1-79 Bastic, Dennis L. 1971. Observations on the Tumor-like Growths in the Chuckwalla, Sauromalus varius. Journal of Herpetology 5 (1-2):76-78 - get paper here Beaman,K.R.; Hollingsworth,B.D.; Lawler, H.E. & Lowe,C.H. 1997. Bibliography of Sauromalus (Duméril 1856), the Chuckwallas. Smithsonian Herp. Inf. Serv. (116): 1-44 - get paper here Buckley, Larry J.; Kevin de Queiroz, Tandora D. Grant, Bradford D. Hollingsworth, John B. Iverson (Chair, <br />Stesha A. Pasachnik, and Catherine L. Stephen (Iguana Taxonomy Working Group, ITWG 2016. A Checklist of the Iguanas of the World (Iguanidae; Iguaninae). Herp. Cons. Biol. 11 (Monograph 6) - get paper here de Queiroz K 1995. Checklist and key to the extant species of Mexican iguanas (Reptilia: Iguaninae). Publ. Esp. Mus. Zool. Univ. Nac. Autón. México 9: 1-48 Dickerson, M. C. 1919. Diagnoses of twenty-three new species and a new genus of lizards from Lower California. Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist. 41 (10): 461-477 - get paper here Enderson, Erik F.; Adrian Quijada-Mascareñas; Dale S. Turner; Philip C. Rosen & Robert L. Bezy 2009. The herpetofauna of Sonora, Mexico, with comparisons to adjoining states. Check List 5 (3): 632–672 - get paper here Heimes, P. 2022. LIZARDS OF MEXICO - Part 1 Iguanian lizards. Edition Chimaira, Frankfurt Am Main, 448 pp. Hollingsworth, B. D. 1998. The systematics of Chuckwallas (Sauromalus) with a phylogenetic analysis of other iguanid lizards. Herpetological Monographs 12: 38-191. - get paper here Hollingsworth, B. D. et al. 1997. The occurrence of Sauromalus varius on a satellite islet of Isla Salsipuedes, Gulf of California, Mexico. Herpetological Review 28 (1): 26-28 [erratum in HR 28 (2): 112] - get paper here Jones, L.L. & Lovich, R.E. 2009. Lizards of the American Southwest. A photographic field guide. Rio Nuevo Publishers, Tucson, AZ, 568 pp. [review in Reptilia 86: 84] - get paper here Köhler, G. & Zorn, H. 2014. Chuckwallas. Herpeton-Verlag, 120 pp. [review in Reptilia 23 (132): 62] - get paper here Lawler H E. Beaman K R. Grismer L L. 1995. Sauromalus varius. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles (616): 1-4. - get paper here Lemos-Espinal JA, Smith GR, Rorabaugh JC 2019. A conservation checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of Sonora, Mexico, with updated species lists. ZooKeys 829: 131-160 - get paper here McAliley, L.R. et al. 2006. Eight microsatellite markers for the San Esteban chuckwalla, Sauromalus varius. Molecular Ecology Notes 6: 759–761 - get paper here Peralta-García A, Valdez-Villavicencio JH, Fucsko LA, Hollingsworth BD, Johnson JD, Mata-Silva V, Rocha A, DeSantis DL, Porras LW, and Wilson LD. 2023. The herpetofauna of the Baja California Peninsula and its adjacent islands, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation status. Amphibian & Reptile Conservation 17(1&2): 57–142 Sumarli, A., Hollingsworth, B. D., Valdez–Villavicencio, J. H., & Reeder, T. W. 2023. Phylogenomic data reveal cryptic diversity and deep phylogeographical structure within the common chuckwalla, Sauromalus ater (Squamata: Iguanidae). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, blad104 - get paper here Sylber, C.K. 1988. Feeding Habits of the Lizard Sauromalus varius and S. hispidus in the Gulf of California Journal of Herpetology 22 (4): 413-424. - get paper here Zimmerman, Linda C.; andC. Richard Tracy 1989. Interactions between the Environment and Ectothermy and Herbivory in Reptiles. Physiological Zoology, 62(2): 374–409 - get paper here
External links	IUCN Red List National Center for Biotechnology Information Google images

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