Phrynosoma douglasii (BELL, 1829)
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Phrynosoma douglasii
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| Higher Taxa | Phrynosomatidae, Phrynosomatinae, Phrynosomatini; Iguania, Sauria, Squamata (lizards) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Pigmy Short-horned Lizard G: Zwerg-Kurzhorn-Krötenechse douglasii: Pigmy Short-horned Lizard |
| Synonym | Agama Douglassii BELL 1829: 105 Phrynosoma Douglassi — WAGLER 1830: 146 Tapaya Douglassi GIRARD 1858: 397 Phrynosoma douglassi pygmaea YARROW 1882: 443 Phrynosoma Douglassi — GENTRY 1885: 140 Phrynosoma douglassii — BOULENGER 1885: 240 Phrynosoma douglassii douglassii — COPE 1900: 412 Phrynosoma douglassii — PRESCH 1969 Phrynosoma douglassii — STEBBINS 1985: 141 Phrynosoma douglassi — HAMMERSON & SMITH 1991 Phrynosoma douglassii — LINER 1994 Phrynosoma douglasii — COLLINS & TAGGART 2009 Phrynosoma (Tapaja) douglasii — CROTHER et al. 2012 Phrynosoma douglasii — MONTANUCCI 2015: 45 Phrynosoma douglasii — KÖHLER 2021 |
| Distribution | Canada (SC British Columbia, possibly extinct), USA (Washington, Oregon, N California, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, W North Dakota, W South Dakota, W Nebraska, N California, N Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, W Texas), Mexico (Chihuahua) Type locality. somewhere along the Columbia River, Washington. |
| Reproduction | ovovivparous (Lambert & Wiens 2013). |
| Types | Holotype: MCZ 5951; also given as MCZ 5952 or 5953 or BMNH 1946.8.10.52-53 Holotype: USNM 23993 [brachycercum] Syntypes: USNM 9199, 10918, 11473 [Phrynosoma douglassi pygmaea] |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis: Phrynosoma douglasii can be distinguished from other members of the species complex by the following combination of adult characters: (1) snout short, 44.6% ± 1.04 (36.6–49%) of orbit to rostral scale distance; (2) rostrofrontal profile strongly rounded or angular with a steep, nearly vertical, incline; (3) frontal rim not elevated, or only slightly elevated above the occipital shelf; (4) enlarged frontal rim scales 0.66 ± 0.21 (0–2) / 0.73 ± 0.20 (0–2); (5) temporal shelf short, 7.4% ± 0.86 (2.0–19.5%) in males, 10.3% ± 0.66 (1.9–17.5%) in females; (6) temporal shelf surface moderately to strongly convex (rounded); (7) cephalic horns very short, third temporal horn length 8.0% ± 0.13 (4.6–10.6%); (8) cephalic horns directed upward (ca. 45°) to vertical; (9) tympanum elliptic, typically narrow, or small and rounded; (10) tympanum exposed, or partly or entirely concealed by granular scales; (11) tail moderately short 214% ± 5.36 (158–255%) in males, 167% ± 4.14 (123–225%) in females; (12) dorsal spots small to moderately large, wedge-shaped, slightly rounded, or forming transverse bands; (13) light-colored borders of dorsal spots confined to posterior edges; (14) dorsolateral white spots absent; (15) gular area with gray to charcoal suffusion or flecks (melanin-dispersed phase); (16) abdomen with scattered melanistic flecks or a gray suffusion, no melanistic spots (melanin-dispersed phase); (17) melanistic subcaudal bands absent (melanin-dispersed phase). From Montanucci 2015: 46. |
| Comment | Subspecies: The former subspecies Phrynosoma douglassii hernandesi (Girard, 1858) has been elevated to species status by Zamudio et al. 1997. The subspecies P. d. brevirostre, ornatissimum, and P. d. ornatum have been synonymized with P. hernandesi following Zamudio et al. 1997. Phrynosoma douglassii brachycercum has been assigned to Phrynosoma ornatissimum by Montanucci 2015. Habitat: montane Group: Belongs to the Tapaja clade fide LEACHE & MCGUIRE 2006. Distribution: see map in Montanucci 2015: 24 (Fig. 6). Not in Sonora fide Lemos-Espinal et al. 2019. Not in Durango fide Lemos-Espinal (2018). Not listed for Mexico by Liner 2007. P. (d.) hernandesi is in S Alberta and S Sasketchewan [fide BOULENGER 1887] but not douglasii proper. There is only one single credible report from S. British Columbia (Fannin 1898) but the species only been found there once (in 1957) since then (Powell & Russell 1998, Ryder et al. 2006). Publication date: some sources say 1828, but the cover page on the journal says 1829. Diet: a large percentage of the diet of this species (10-30%) consists of ants (Lucas et al. 2023). |
| Etymology | Named after David Douglas (1799-1834), a botanist and traveler who collected in North America (1823-1834) and Hawaii (1834) for the Royal Horticultural Society, London. Agama Douglassii is the original spelling, and Bell repeatedly referred to “Mr. Douglass” although his correct name was “Douglas”. |
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