You are here » home › advanced search › Uromastyx acanthinura

Uromastyx acanthinura BELL, 1825

IUCN Red List - Uromastyx acanthinura - Near Threatened, NT
iNaturalist logo

Can you confirm these amateur observations of Uromastyx acanthinura?

Add your own observation of
Uromastyx acanthinura »

Find more photos by Google images search: Google images

Higher TaxaAgamidae (Uromastycinae), Sauria, Iguania, Squamata (lizards)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: North-African Mastigure, North African Spiny-tailed Lizard
G: Nordafrikanischer Dornschwanz, Veränderlicher Schleuderschwanz 
SynonymUromastyx acanthinurus BELL 1825: 457
Uromastrix richii GRAY 1825 (nom. subst.; fide WERMUTH 1967)
Uromastix acanthinurus — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1837: 543
Uromastix acanthinurus — BOULENGER 1885: 406
Uromastix mutabilis – FISCHER 1885: 272.
Uromastix acanthinurus nigerrimus HARTERT 1913: 79
Uromastix acantherinus — CAMP 1923: 341
Uromastyx acanthinurus nigerrimus — MERTENS 1962: 426
Uromastyx acanthinurus nigerrimus — WERMUTH 1967: 101
Uromastyx acanthinurus — WERMUTH 1967: 100
Uromastyx acanthinura — SCHLEICH, KÄSTLE & KABISCH 1996: 298
Uromastyx acanthinurus acanthinurus — MANTHEY & SCHUSTER 1999: 109
Uromastyx acanthinura — BARTS & WILMS 2003
Uromastyx acanthinura — WILMS et al. 2009
Uromastyx acanthinura — TAMAR et al. 2017 
DistributionAlgeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt (incl. Sinai), NW Libya,
Mauritania ?, Western Sahara, Chad (Tibesti and Ennedi Mountains), Mali, Niger, N Sudan

acanthinura: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, Libya. Type locality: Africa. Restricted to near Biskra, north to el Kantara, Algeria, by FLOWER 1933.

nigerrimus: southern Algerian Sahara. Type locality: Southern Oued Mya (Algerian Sahara).  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: OUM 7845 (Oxford University Museum of Natural History), N. Africa (brought by Capt. Lyon RN), Bell & Hope Collection. 
DiagnosisDiagnosis: U. acanthinura is distinguished from U. thomasi and U. princepsby the longer and narrower tail (50.27–74.42 % of SVLin U. acanthinura vs. 25.00–36.16 % in U. thomasi and 34.62–52.55 % in U. princeps); from the species of the U. ocellata group and from U. macfadyeni by the arrangement of the annuli of the tail: last 8–21 forming a continuous scale row each (U. ocellata group and U. macfadyeni) vs. 2–5 whorls forming a continuous scale row in U. acanthinura; from U. aegyptia and U. occidentalis by the lower scale counts around midbody (238–322 in U. aegyptia, 297–301 in U. occidentalisvs. 146–195 in U. acanthinura), from U. geyri and U. alfredschmidti by the shorter tail (50.27–74.42 % of SVLin U. acanthinura vs. 65.45–98.06 % in U. geyri and 79.31–87.26 % in U. alfredschmidti). Diagnostic characters between U. acanthinura and the subspecies of U. dispar are: Lower number of scales around midbody [145–195 (mean. 165.6) in U. acanthinura vs. 187–227 (mean: 205.0) in U. d. dispar]; lower number of ventrals [74–96 (mean. 83.1) in U. acanthinura vs. 88–118 (mean: 104.5) in U. d. flavifasciata] and lower number of subdigital scales [9–15 (mean: 12.7) in U. acanthinura vs. 15–18 (mean: 16.4) in U. d. maliensis]. U. acanthinura is differentiated from U. nigriventris by being much less colourful and lacking red, green and citreous colouration. 
CommentStatus of Uromastyx temporalis unclear.

Illustrations: WILMS (2002: 30) for sexual dimorphism and juveniles in U. acanthinura.

Distribution: the populations of Uromastyx first named “acanthinura” for northern Chad and Sudan are now named U. dispar (L. Chirio, pers. comm. 5 Apr 2012). Not in Morocco (Martínez et al. 2019, and pers. comm. 18 Jan 2021).

Subspecies: WILMS et al. (2009) do not recognize subspecies of this species.Uromastyx acanthinura dispar and U. a. geyri are considered as a full species by WILMS & BÖHME 2001. Uromastyx acanthinura flavifasciata is considered as a subspecies of dispar by these authors. Uromastix acanthinura nigriventris ROTHSCHILD & HARTERT 1912 has been elevated to full species status. 
EtymologyNamed after the Greek words acanthus, meaning "spiny or prickly" and oura, meaning "tail," in reference to the spiny tail. 
References
  • Barata, Mafalda; Ana Perera, D. James Harris, Arie van der Meijden, Salvador Carranza, Francisco Ceacero, Enrique García-Muñoz, Duarte Gonçalves, Sérgio Henriques, Fátima Jorge, Jonathan C. Marshall, Luis Pedrajas and Pedro Sousa 2011. New observations of amphibians and reptiles in Morocco, with a special emphasis on the eastern region. Herpetological Bulletin (116): 4 - get paper here
  • Bauer, Aaron M.; Jonathan C. DeBoer , Dylan J. Taylor 2017. Atlas of the Reptiles of Libya. Proc. Cal. Acad. Sci. 64 (8): 155-318 - get paper here
  • Bell, T. 1825. Description of a new species of Lizard. Zoological Journal. London 1: 457-460 - get paper here
  • Boettger, O. 1885. Liste der von Hrn. Dr. med. W. Kobelt in Algerien und Tunisien gesammelten Kriechtiere. In W. Kobelt (editor), Reiseerinnerungen aus Algerien und Tunis. Berichte der Senckenbergischen Naturforschungs Gesellschaft 1885: 452–475 - get paper here
  • Bonetti, Mathilde 2002. 100 Sauri. Mondadori (Milano), 192 pp. - get paper here
  • Bons, J. 1959. Les lacertiliens du sud-ouest Marocain; systematique, repartition geographique, ethologie, ecologie. Instit. Sci. Cherifien, Rabat, Trav. (Ser. Zool.) no. 18 130 pp.
  • Bouam, I., Abdennebi, A., Chaouch, L. T., Lemoufek, T., Benmokhtar, E., Mebarki, T., ... & Messaoudi, T. 2025. Atlas of the herpetofauna of Batna Province and the Belezma Biosphere Reserve, north-eastern Algeria. Acta Herpetologica - get paper here
  • Boulenger, G.A. 1885. Catalogue of the lizards in the British Museum (Nat. Hist.) I. Geckonidae, Eublepharidae, Uroplatidae, Pygopodidae, Agamidae. London: 450 pp. - get paper here
  • Boulenger, George A. 1891. Catalogue of the reptiles and batrachians of Barbary (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia), based chiefly upon the notes and collections made in 1880-1884 by M. Fernand Lataste. Tr. Zool. Soc. 13: 93-164
  • Camp, Charles Lewis 1923. Classification of the Lizards. Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist. 48 (11): 289-481. - get paper here
  • CHIRAZ, BOUCHERIT. 2021. Uromastyx Acanthinura: An Updated Bibliographic Review. Applied Biology in Saharan Areas 3(4): 1–9. - get paper here
  • Dubuis, A.; Faurel, L.; Grenot, C.; Vernet, R. 1971. Sur le regime alimentaire du Lézard saharien Uromastyx acanthinurus. C. R. Acad. Sc. 273: 500-503
  • Duméril, A. M. C. and G. Bibron. 1837. Erpétologie Générale ou Histoire Naturelle Complete des Reptiles. Vol. 4. Libr. Encyclopédique Roret, Paris, 570 pp. - get paper here
  • Fischer Von, J. 1885. Der veränderliche Schleuderschwanz (Uromastyx acanthinurus) in der Gefangenschaft. Der Zoologische Garten 26: 269-278
  • Flower,Stanley 1933. Notes on the recent reptiles and amphibians of Egypt, with a list of the species recorded from that kingdom. Proc. Zool. Soc. London 1933: 735-851 - get paper here
  • Geniez, P.; Mateo, J.A.; Geniez, M. & Pether, J. 2004. The amphibians and reptiles of the Western Sahara (former Spanish Sahara) and adjacent regions. Edition Chimaira, Frankfurt, 228 pp. [reviewed in Reptilia GB 44: 81]
  • Gray, J.E. 1825. A synopsis of the genera of reptiles and Amphibia, with a description of some new species. Annals of Philosophy, 10:193—217 - get paper here
  • Hartert, E. 1913. Reptiles and batrachians. Expeditions to entral Western Sahara by E. Hartert. Novitates Zoologicae 20: 76-84 - get paper here
  • Hediger, H. 1935. Herpetologische Beobachtungen in Marokko. Verhandlungen der Naturforschenden Gesellschaft in Basel 46: 1-49
  • Heyden, C. H. G. von. 1827. Reptilien. In Rüppell, E. Atlas zu Reise im nördlichen Afrika. l. Zoologie. H. L. Brönner, Frankfurt a. M., pp. 1-24 - get paper here
  • Kechnebbou, M., Belliure, J., & Chammem, M. 2025. Field Thermoregulatory Behavior in the African Spiny-Tailed Lizard Uromastyx acanthinura. Ichthyology & Herpetology 113(2), 294–300 - get paper here
  • Kechnebbou, M; Chammem, M; Belliure, J; Abdelli, F & Nouira, S. 2019. Body size, food habits, and burrow distribution and orientation in the North African Spiny-tailed Lizard Uromastyx acanthinura in Tunisia. Herpetological Review 50 (3): 484-489 - get paper here
  • Kober, I. & Geissel, U. 2006. Welcher Typ passt zu mir? Die verschiedenen Lampen in der Terraristik. Terraria 1 (1): 17-21
  • Kolar, K. 1957. Jugendentwicklung von Uromastyx acanthinurus. Der Zoologische Garten 1-3 (23): 18-27
  • Krabbe-Paulduro, I. & E. Paulduro jr. 1988. Pflege und Nachzucht der Afrikanischen Dornschwanzagame Uromastyx acanthinurus BELL, 1825 (Sauria: Agamidae). Salamandra 24 (1): 27-40 - get paper here
  • Kwet, A. 2013. Die Nordafrikanische Dornschwanzagame. Terraria-Elaphe 2013 (4): 56-57 - get paper here
  • Macey, J. R., J. A. Schulte II, A. Larson, N. B. Ananjeva, Y. Wang, R. Pethiyagoda, N. Rastegar-Pouyani, T. J. Papenfuss 2000. Evaluating trans-Tethys migration: an example using acrodont lizard phylogenetics. Systematic Biology 49 (2): 233-256 - get paper here
  • Manthey,U. & SCHUSTER,N. 1999. Agamen, 2. Aufl. Natur und Tier Verlag (Münster), 120 pp. - get paper here
  • Martínez del Mármol, Gabriel; D. James Harris, Philippe Geniez, Philip de Pous, and Daniele Salvi 2019. Amphibians and Reptiles of Morocco. Edition Chimaira, Frankfurt am Main, Germany, 478 pp - get paper here
  • Mateo, J.A., GENIEZ, P., LOPEZ-JURADO, L. F., BONS, J. 1999. Chorological analysis and morphological variations of Saurians of the genus Uromastyx (Reptilia: Agamidae) in western Sahara. Description of two new taxa. Revista Española de Herpetologia 12: 97-109 - get paper here
  • Mertens,R. 1962. Bemerkungen über Uromastyx acanthinurus als Rassenkreis. Senckenbergiana biologica 43: 425-432
  • Mouane, A., Harrouchi, A. K., Ghennoum, I., Sekour, M., & Chenchouni, H. 2024. Amphibian and reptile diversity in natural landscapes and human-modified habitats of the Sahara Desert of Algeria: A better understanding of biodiversity to improve conservation. Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene, 12(1) - get paper here
  • Müller, L. 1922. Über eine neue Uromastix-Art aus der Zentral-Sahara. Naturwiss. Beobachter, Frankfurt 63: 193-201
  • ORTLEPP-SCHUMACHER, E. & R. SCHUMACHER 1988. Uromastix acanthinurus BELL 1825 - Nachzucht der Afrikanischen Dornschwanzagame. Sauria 10 (4): 17-19 - get paper here
  • Ortner, Andreas 1989. Pflegebedingungen und Nachzucht der Nordafrikanischen Dornschwanzagame (Uromastyx acanthinurus Bell, 1825). Herpetofauna 11 (59): 11-16 - get paper here
  • Ortner, Andreas 1989. Wiederholte Nachzucht bei der Nordafrikanischen Dornschwanzagame (Uromastyx acanthinurus Bell, 1825). Herpetofauna 11 (63): 20-21 - get paper here
  • Pflugmacher, S. 1984. Über die Haltung des afrikanischen Dornschwanzes - Uromastyx acanthinurus. Sauria 6 (4): 33-34 - get paper here
  • Rothschild, W. & Hartert, E. 1912. Ornithological explorations in Algeria. Novitates Zoologicae 18: 456-550 - get paper here
  • Rouag R, Ziane N, De Sousa M 2024. A tentative list of reptilian fauna of Algeria and their conservation status. Biodiversity Data Journal 12: e120471 - get paper here
  • Schleich, H.H., Kästle,W., Kabisch, K. 1996. Amphibians and Reptiles of North Africa. Koeltz, Koenigstein, 627 pp.
  • Schmidt, K. P. & Marx, H. 1956. The herpetology of Sinai. Fieldiana 39 (4): 21-40 - get paper here
  • Schnurrenberger, Hans 1963. Fishes, amphibians, and reptiles of two Libyan oases. Herpetologica 18 (4): 270-273 - get paper here
  • Sindaco, R. & Jeremcenko, V.K. 2008. The reptiles of the Western Palearctic. Edizioni Belvedere, Latina (Italy), 579 pp. - get paper here
  • Tamar, Karin; Margarita Metallinou , Thomas Wilms , Andreas Schmitz , Pierre‐André Crochet , Philippe Geniez , Salvador Carranza 2017. Evolutionary history of spiny-tailed lizards (Agamidae: Uromastyx) from the Saharo-Arabian region. Zoologica Scripta 47: 159– 173 - get paper here
  • Trape, J.F.; Trape, S. & Chirio, L. 2012. Lézards, crocodiles et tortues d'Afrique occidentale et du Sahara. IRD Orstom, 503 pp. - get paper here
  • Valenciennes, A. 1854. nan Compte Rendu des Séances de l’Académie des Sciences, Paris 39: 89
  • Wilms, T. 1995. Uromastyx acanthinura BELL, 1825. Sauria 17 Suppl.: 333–340 - get paper here
  • Wilms, T. 2001. Dornschwanzagamen, 2. Aufl. Herpeton, Offenbach, 142 pp. - get paper here
  • Wilms, T. 2002. Uromastyx - spiny-tailed agamas. Reptilia (GB) (21): 12-18 - get paper here
  • Wilms, T. 2002. Uromastyx; reproductive behavior. Reptilia (GB) (21): 30-33 - get paper here
  • Wilms, T. 2007. Dornschwanzagamen der Gattung Uromastyx - Einführung in Taxonomie und Ökologie einer auf Wüsten spezialisierten Echsengruppe. Draco 8 (31): 4-19 - get paper here
  • Wilms, T. 2009. Marokko - Schatzkammer in Nordwesten Afrikas. Reptilia (Münster) 14 (75): 16-23 - get paper here
  • Wilms, T. & W. Böhme 2001. Revision der Uromastyx acanthinura - Artengruppe, mit Beschreibung einer neuen Art aus der Zentralsahara (Reptilia: Sauria: Agamidae). Zool. Abh. Staatl. Mus. Tierk. Dresden 51 (8) - get paper here
  • Wilms, T.; Ruf, D. & Löhr, B. 2003. Zur Haltung und Nachzucht zweier Taxa aus dem Uromastyx-acanthinura-Komplex: Uromastyx geyri MÜLLER 1922 und Uromastyx dispar flavifasciata MERTENS 1962 (Reptilia: Agamidae: Leiolepidinae: Uromastyx). Draco 4 (14): 42-55 - get paper here
  • Wilms, T.; Strassen, B.; Oppermann, A. & Petri, C. 2007. Ein Beitrag zur artgerechten Einrichtung und Beleuchtung von Terrarien für die Haltung von Dornschwanzagamen. Draco 8 (31): 20-29 - get paper here
  • Wilms, Thomas; Böhme, Wolfgang; Wagner, Philipp; Lutzmann, Nicolà; Andreas Schmitz 2009. On the Phylogeny and Taxonomy of the Genus Uromastyx Merrem, 1820 (Reptilia: Squamata: Agamidae: Uromastycinae) – Resurrection of the Genus Saara Gray, 1845. Bonner zoologische Beiträge 56: 55-99 - get paper here
  • Wilms,T. 1995. Dornschwanzagamen. MÜNSTER: 130 (ISBN 3-9802892-5-7) - get paper here
 
External links  
Is it interesting? Share with others:


Please submit feedback about this entry to the curator