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Unidentified Urosaurus Lizard

Habitat:

Hot patio near dense cover; no big trees nearby.

Notes:

I photographed this Urosaurus lizard at the Boyce Thompson Arboretum in Pinal Co. It's either an Ornate Tree or Long-tailed Brush Lizard. I am having a little difficulty in identifying it. Help would be appreciated.

6 Comments

Hema  Shah
Hema Shah 7 years ago

Thanks so much for your feedback! and once again it was nice to see you back!Good luck with college!

JoshuaGSmith
JoshuaGSmith 7 years ago

Kestrels are practically the size of Mourning Doves and Peregrines are larger than Cooper's. It's probably a Sharp-shinned, but I can't tell from the photo.

Hema  Shah
Hema Shah 7 years ago

This bird is probably not a merlin because of it's coloration. I am more inclined to think that it is a sharpie due to the tail tips ending in black.It was smaller than a coopers and look at the eye too. Not a peregrine or kestrel?

JoshuaGSmith
JoshuaGSmith 7 years ago

Hi! Nice to talk again. I've been extremely busy with college but decided to check on how PN is doing. Your bird very well might be a Merlin, but can you rule out Cooper's or Sharp-shinned Hawk?

Hema  Shah
Hema Shah 7 years ago

nice to see you back Joshua.
Any guesses on this one?
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/160...

Urosaurus ornatus has 10 recognized subspecies, and your spot could be U. o. linearis or U. o. symmetricus, because its distribution in Arizona.

JoshuaGSmith
Spotted by
JoshuaGSmith

San Tan Valley, Arizona, USA

Spotted on May 13, 2016
Submitted on Jun 8, 2016

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