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Aspidoscelis marmoratus (BAIRD & GIRARD, 1852)

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Higher TaxaTeiidae, Teiinae, Gymnophthalmoidea, Sauria, Squamata (lizards)
SubspeciesAspidoscelis marmoratus marmoratus (BAIRD & GIRARD 1852)
Aspidoscelis marmoratus pulcher (WILLIAMS, SMITH & CHRAPLIWY 1960)
Aspidoscelis marmoratus reticuloriens (HENDRICKS & DIXON 1986)
Aspidoscelis marmoratus variolosus (COPE 1863) 
Common NamesE: Western Marbled Whiptail [marmorata]
E: Eastern Marbled Whiptail [reticuloriens]
S: Huico Marmóreo 
SynonymCnemidophorus marmoratus BAIRD & GIRARD 1852
Cnemidophorus tigris marmoratus — BURGER 1950
Cnemidophorus tigris marmoratus — SMITH & TAYLOR 1950: 190
Cnemidophorus tigris mormoratus [sic] — BURKHOLDER & WALKER 1973
Cnemidophorus tigris marmoratus — MASLIN & SECOY 1986
Cnemidophorus marmoratus marmoratus — HENDRICKS & DIXON 1986: 374
Cnemidophorus marmoratus — CONANT & COLLINS 1991: 125
Cnemidophorus marmoratus — CROTHER 2000
Cnemidophorus tigris marmoratus — DIXON 2000
Aspidoscelis tigris marmorata — REEDER et al. 2002
Aspidoscelis tigris marmorata — LINER & CASAS-ANDREU 2008
Aspidoscelis marmorata marmorata — CROTHER et al. 2012
Aspidoscelis marmoratus — PYRON & BURBRINK 2013
Aspidoscelis marmorata — FELDMAN et al. 2015
Aspidoscelis marmorata — LEMOS-ESPINAL 2015
Aspidoscelis marmoratus marmoratus — TAYLOR 2023

Aspidoscelis marmoratus pulcher (WILLIAMS, SMITH & CHRAPLIWY 1960)
Cnemidophorus tigris pulcher WILLIAMS, SMITH & CHRAPLIWY 1960: 43
Cnemidophorus tigris pulcher — SMITH et al. 1964: 47
Cnemidophorus tigris pulcher — BURKHOLDER & WALKER 1973
Cnemidophorus marmoratus pulcher — HENDRICKS & DIXON 1986: 380
Cnemidophorus tigris pulcher — MASLIN & SECOY 1986
Aspidoscelis tigris pulchra — REEDER et al. 2002
Aspidoscelis tigris pulchra — LINER & CASAS-ANDREU 2008
Aspidoscelis marmoratus pulcher — TAYLOR 2023

Aspidoscelis marmoratus reticuloriens (HENDRICKS & DIXON 1986)
Cnemidophorus marmoratus reticuloriens HENDRICKS & DIXON 1986: 376
Cnemidophorus marmoratus reticuloriens — TANNER 1987
Cnemidophorus marmoratus reticuloriens — BARTLETT & BARTLETT 1999: 260
Aspidoscelis tigris reticuloriens (VANCE 1978) — COLLINS & TAGGART 2009
Aspidoscelis marmorata reticuloriens — CROTHER et al. 2012
Aspidoscelis marmorata reticuloriens — NICHOLSON et al. 2025

Aspidoscelis marmoratus variolosus (COPE 1863)
Cnemidophorus variolosus COPE 1863: 39
Cnemidophorus variolosus — COPE 1892
Cnemidophorus marmoratus variolosus — HENDRICKS & DIXON 1986: 382
Cnemidophorus marmoratus nigroriens HENDRICKS & DIXON 1986: 383
Cnemidophorus tigris variolosus — MASLIN & SECOY 1986
Aspidoscelis tigris nigroriens — LINER & CASAS-ANDREU 2008
Aspidoscelis tigris variolosa — REEDER et al. 2002
Aspidoscelis tigris variolosa — LINER & CASAS-ANDREU 2008
Aspidoscelis marmoratus variolosus — TAYLOR 2023 
DistributionUSA (SW New Mexico, Texas)
Mexico (Coahuila, Chihuahua, Durango)

Type locality: “Between San Antonio and El Paso”. Restricted to El Paso, Texas (by Burger 1950)

nigroriens (invalid): Mexico (Coahuila); Type locality: Mexico, Coahuila, 11 miles E Paredon, 25'56' N, 100'50' W.

pulcher: Mexico (Chihuahua); Type locality: Mexico: 1.2 mi NW Carrillo, Chihuahua.

reticuloriens (invalid): USA (Texas), Mexico (Nuevo Leon); Type locality: 24.7 mi. NW Fort Stockton, Pecos Co., Texas; 31° 06' N latitude, 103° 13' W longitude; south side of U. S. Highway 285 near roadside park; elevation 2850 feet.

variolosus: Mexico (S Coahuila, NE Durango); Type locality: Mexico, Coahuila, Alamo de Parras.  
Reproductionoviparous (sexual reproduction) 
TypesLectotype: USNM 3024a, holotype: USNM 3024, designated by Burt 1931: 147, see also Burger 1950 and Hendricks & Dixon 1986.
Holotype: TCWC) 43403 (Texas Cooperative Wildlife Collection); adult male, obtained by Fred S. Hendricks and Burl Hendricks on 15 June, 1973; orignial number FSH-2679 [nigroriens]
Holotype: INHS (= UIMNH) 43762, adult male; P. S. Chrapliwy and K. L. Williams; August 1, 1958 [pulcher]
Holotype. TCWC 39509 (Texas Cooperative Wildlife Collection); adult male, obtained by Fred S. Hendricks on 1 June 1972; original number FSH-871. [reticuloriens]
Holotype: USNM 3066; male; Lt. D. N. Couch [variolosus]



 
DiagnosisUnfortunately we had to temporarily remove additional information as this was scraped by multiple AI companies who sell that data. These details, e.g. detailed descriptions are available for collaborators and contributors. We will relaease that material sometime next year. Please contact us if you need any of this data earlier than that. 
CommentHybridization: Aspidoscelis (inornata) arizonae and A. (tigris) marmoratus hybridized in captivity (COLE et al. 2010). A. marmoratus and A. tigris hybridize in a contact zone in SW New Mexico (Dessauer & Cole 1991). A. marmorata and A. arizonae are the parental species of the unisexual A. neomexicanus (Ho et al. 2025). Using genome-wide sequence data and ecological niche modelling, Singhal et al. (2026) found that A. tesselatus likely arose from a single hybrid speciation event between A. scalaris and A. marmoratus less than 500,000 years ago.

Genome: Ho et al. 2025.

Synonymy: Taylor 2023 suggested to synonymize reticuloriens with marmoratus. 
EtymologyNamed after Latin marmoratus = marbled. 
References
  • Acre, Matthew R; Daniel J Leavitt, and Christopher M Schalk 2012. A Patternless Morph of the Marbled Whiptail (Aspidoscelis marmorata; Squamata: Teiidae) in New Mexico. Southwestern Naturalist 57 (2): 206-207 - get paper here
  • Alvarez, G., Sellers, S. L., Mata-Silva, V., & Johnson, J. D. 2026. Pitfall Traps with Motion-activated Cameras in the Study of Terrestrial Lizards and Snakes. Herpetological Conservation and Biology, 21(2), 454-463 - get paper here
  • Baeza-Tarín, F., Hernández, T., Herr, M., Giovanetto, L., Lazcano, D., & Graham, S. P. 2025. NEW DISTRIBUTION RECORDS OF AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES OF MADERAS DEL CARMEN, COAHUILA, MEXICO. The Southwestern Naturalist, 68(4), 257-262 - get paper here
  • Baird, S.F. and Girard,C. 1852. Characteristics of some new reptiles in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, part 2. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 6: 125-129 - get paper here
  • Bartlett, R. D. & Bartlett, P. 1999. A Field Guide to Texas Reptiles and Amphibians. Gulf Publishing Co., Houston, Texas, 331 pp.
  • Burger, W. Leslie 1950. New, revived, and reallocated names for North American whiptailed lizards, Genus Cnemidophorus. Natural History Miscellanea, Chicago Acad. Sci. (65): 1-9
  • Burkholder, G.L. & J.M. Walker 1973. Habitat and Reproduction of the Desert Whiptail Lizard, Cnemidophorus tigris Baird and Girard in Southwestern Idaho at the Northern Part of Its Range Herpetologica 29 (1): 76-83. - get paper here
  • Chafin, T. K., Douglas, M. R., Anthonysamy, W. J., Sullivan, B. K., Walker, J. M., Cordes, J. E. and Douglas, M. E. 2021. Taxonomic hypotheses and the biogeography of speciation in the tiger whiptail complex (Aspidoscelis tigris: Squamata, Teiidae). Frontiers of Biogeography 13: e49120 - get paper here
  • COLE, CHARLES J.; LAURENCE M. HARDY, HERBERT C. DESSAUER, HARRY L. TAYLOR, AND CAROL R. TOWNSEND 2010. Laboratory Hybridization among North American Whiptail Lizards, Including Aspidoscelis inornata arizonae × A. tigris marmorata (Squamata: Teiidae), Ancestors of Unisexual Clones in Nature. American Museum Novitates 3698: 1-43 - get paper here
  • Conant,R. & Collins,J.T. 1991. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern/Central North America, 3rd ed. Houghton Mifflin (Boston/New York), xx + 450 p.
  • Cope, E.D. 1892. A synopsis of the species of the teiid genus Cnemidophorus. Trans. Am. Phil. Soc. (ser. 2) 17 (1): 27-52 [1893] - get paper here
  • Cosentino, Bradley J.; Robert L. Schooley; Brandon T. Bestelmeyer; Herman Campos; Laura M. Burkett 2019. Does habitat disturbance promote geographical parthenogenesis in whiptail lizards? Evolutionary Ecology - get paper here
  • Crother, B. I. (ed.) 2012. Standard Common and Current Scientific Names for North American Amphibians, Turtles, Reptiles, and Crocodilians, Seventh Edition. Herpetological Circular 39: 1-92
  • Dessauer,H.C. & Cole,C.J. 1991. Genetics of whiptail lizards (Reptiia: Teiidae: Cnemidophorus) in a hybrid zone in southwestern New Mexico. Copeia 1991 (2): 622-637 - get paper here
  • Dixon, James R. 2000. Amphibians and reptiles of Texas, second edition. Texas A&M University Press, 421 pp.
  • Gadsden, Hector and Gamaliel Castañeda. 2013. Life history of the Marbled Whiptail Lizard Aspidoscelis marmorata from the central Chihuahuan Desert, Mexico. Acta Herpetologica 8 (2): 81-91 - get paper here
  • Hendricks,F.S. & Dixon,J.R. 1986. Systematics and biogeography of Cnemidophorus marmoratus (Sauria: Teiidae). Texas Journal of Science 38: 327-402 - get paper here
  • Hernandez T, Herr MW, Stevens S, Cork K, Medina-Nava C, Vialpando CJ, Warfel T, Fields N, Brodie C, Graham SP 2019. New distribution records for amphibians and reptiles in eastern Chihuahua, Mexico. Check List 15(1): 79-86 - get paper here
  • Ho, D. V., Odell, A., Tormey, D., Deimler, N., Patterson, V., Tsuchiya, D., ... & Baumann, P. 2025. Ancestral chromosome-level assemblies reveal post-hybridization genome evolution in the New Mexico whiptail lizard (Aspidoscelis neomexicanus). Genome Biology and Evolution, evaf228 - 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
  • Lazcano D, Nevárez-de los Reyes M, García-Padilla E, Johnson JD, Mata-Silva V, DeSantis DL, Wilson LD. 2019. The herpetofauna of Coahuila, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation status. Amphibian & Reptile Conservation 13(2) [General Section]: 31–94 (e189) - get paper here
  • Lemos-Espinal JA, Smith GR, Gadsden-Esparza H, Valdez-Lares R, Woolrich-Piña GA 2018. Amphibians and reptiles of the state of Durango, Mexico, with comparisons with adjoining states. ZooKeys 748: 65-87 - get paper here
  • Lemos-Espinal, Julio A. (ed.) 2015. Amphibians and Reptiles of the US - Mexico Border States / Anfibios y Reptiles de los Estados de la Frontera México - Estados Unidos. Texas A&M University Press, College Station, Texas. x + 614 pp.; ISBN 978-1-62349-306-6. - get paper here
  • Maslin, T. & Secoy, D.M. 1986. A checklist of the lizard genus Cnemidophorus (Teiidae). Contr. Zool. Univ. Colorado Mus. 1: 1-60
  • Mata-Silva, Vicente, Aurelio Ramirez-Bautista, and Jerry D. Johnson. 2010. Reproductive Characteristics of Two Syntopic Species of Whiptail Lizards (Aspidoscelis marmorata and Aspidoscelis tesselata) from the Northern Chihuahuan Desert. Southwestern Naturalist 55:125-129 - get paper here
  • Mata-Silva, Vicente, Charles R. Bursey and Jerry D. Johnson. 2008. Gut Parasites of Two Syntopic Species of Whiptail Lizards (Aspidoscelis marmorata and Aspidoscelis tesselata) from the Northern Chihuahuan Desert. Boletin de la Sociedad Herpetologica Mexicana 16(1):1-4 - get paper here
  • Mata-Silva, Vicente, Jerry D. Johnson, and Aurelio Ramirez-Bautista 2013. Comparison of Diets of Two Syntopic Lizards, Aspidoscelis marmorata and Aspidoscelis tesselata (Teiidae), from the Northern Chihuahuan Desert of Texas. Southwestern Naturalist Jun 2013, Vol. 58, No. 2: 209-215 - get paper here
  • Nevárez-de-los-Reyes, Manuel, David Lazcano, Elí García-Padilla, Vicente Mata-Silva, Jerry D. Johnson and Larry David Wilson. 2016. The Herpetofauna of Nuevo León, Mexico: Composition, Distribution, and Conservation. Mesoamerican Herpetology 3 (3): 558–638 - get paper here
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  • Pyron, R. Alexander; Frank T. Burbrink 2013. Early origin of viviparity and multiple reversions to oviparity in squamate reptiles. Ecology Letters 17 (1): 13–21 (published online 2013, in print 2014), DOI: 10.1111/ele.12168 - get paper here
  • REEDER, T.W.; CHARLES J. COLE AND HERBERT C. DESSAUER 2002. Phylogenetic Relationships of Whiptail Lizards of the Genus Cnemidophorus (Squamata: Teiidae): A Test of Monophyly, Reevaluation of Karyotypic Evolution, and Review of Hybrid Origins. American Museum Novitates 3365: 1-64 - get paper here
  • Singhal, Sonal; Maggie R Grundler, Danielle Rivera, Sam Fisher, Alexander S Hall, Kathleen Currie, Adrián Nieto Montes de Oca, Corey Roelke, Adam D Leaché, Matthew K Fujita 2026. The evolutionary origins of the parthenogenetic lizard Aspidoscelis tesselatus. Journal of Heredity, 2026; esag077 - get paper here
  • Smith, H.M. & Taylor,E.H. 1950. An annotated checklist and key to the reptiles of Mexico exclusive of the snakes. Bull. US Natl. Mus. 199: 1-253 - get paper here
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  • Taylor, H.L. 2023. Taxonomic Distinctiveness of Subspecies of Aspidoscelis marmoratus (Marbled Whiptail: Squamata: Teiidae) as Revealed by Canonical Variate Analyses. Herpetological Review 54 (4): 542–546
  • Taylor, H.L. & Livio, L.J. 2023. Origins of Multiple Color-pattern Classes in an Array of Parthenogenetic Aspidoscelis neotesselatus (Colorado Checkered Whiptail) and Ecological Implications. Herpetological Review 54 (2): 17–26
  • Taylor, H.L.; Charles J. Cole; Laurence M. Hardy; Herbert C. Dessauer; Carol R. Townsend; James M. Walker; and James E. Cordes 2001. Natural hybridization between the teiid lizards Cnemidophorus tesselatus (parthenogenetic) and C. tigris marmoratus (bisexual) : assessment of evolutionary alternatives. American Museum Novitates 3345: 1-64 - get paper here
  • Taylor, H.L.; Taylor, D.W. 2023. Natural history notes: Aspidoscelis marmoratus marmoratus. Color variant. Herpetological Review 54 (4): 659-662.
  • Taylor, H.L.; Taylor, D.W. 2024. Natural history notes: Aspidoscelis marmoratus reticuloriens (Eastern Marbled Whiptail). Extraordinary color variant. Herpetological Review 55 (1): 94-96; erratum in HR 55 (2): 292
  • Taylor, Harry L. 1968. The occurrence of the teiid lizard Cnemidophorus tigris marmoratus in Arizona. Herpetologica 24 (2): 162-168 - get paper here
  • Taylor, Harry L.; Charles J. Cole, Glenn J. Manning, James E. Cordes, and James M. Walker 2012. Comparative Meristic Variability in Whiptail Lizards (Teiidae, Aspidoscelis): Samples of Parthenogenetic A. tesselata Versus Samples of Sexually Reproducing A. sexlineata, A. marmorata, and A. gularis septemvittata. American Museum Novitates (3744): 1-24. - get paper here
  • Tucker, Derek B.; Guarino R. Colli, Lilian G. Giugliano, S. Blair Hedges, Catriona R. Hendry, Emily Moriarty Lemmon, Alan R. Lemmon, Jack W. Sites Jr., R. Alexander Pyron 2016. Methodological congruence in phylogenomic analyses with morphological support for teiid lizards (Sauria: Teiidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 103: 75-84 - get paper here
  • Valdez-Lares, R.; R. Muñiz-Martínez; E.Gadsden; G. Aguirre-León; G. Castañeda-Gaytán; R. Gonzalez-Trápaga 2013. Checklist of amphibians and reptiles of the state of Durango, México. Check List 9 (4):714-724 - get paper here
  • Vance, Thomas 1978. A field key to the whiptail lizards (genus Cnemidophorus) Part I: The whiptails of the United States. Bull. Maryland Herp. Soc. 14 (1): 1-9 - get paper here
  • Walker, James M., Cordes, James E. and Lockwood, Mark W. 2016. Aspidoscelis marmorata (Marbled Whiptail) in Monahans Sandhills State Park of Texas: xtraordinary variation in color patterns. Herpetological Review 47 (4): 568-574 - get paper here
  • Williams, Kenneth L.;Smith, Hobart M.;Chrapliwy, Pete S. 1960. Turtles and lizards from Northern Mexico. Transactions of the Illinois State Academy of Science 53 (1/2): 36-45
  • Zweifel, Richard G. 1958. Cnemidophorus tigris variolosus, a revived subspecies of whiptail lizard from Mexico. Southwestern Naturalist 9: 94-101 - get paper here
 
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