Northern alligator lizard

Description:

Sierra alligator lizards are medium-sized slender lizards. Adults reach a snout-to-vent length of about 10 cm (3.9 in) and a total length of roughly 27.5 cm (10.8 in). They have a distinct skin fold on their sides, separating the keeled scales on the back from the smooth ventral scales. This skin varies in color, but can be brown and white or greenish yellow and brown. They are brownish in color and often have dark blotches that sometimes blend together into bands. The throat and mouth area of some young individuals can be yellow. The belly is light gray. The eyes are dark. Their typical diet includes crickets, mealworms, and moths, but they will also take larger prey, such as small lizards, and will even eat small baby mice if given the opportunity.

Habitat:

The Northern alligator lizard occurs along the Pacific Coast and in the Rocky Mountains from southern British Columbia through Washington, northern Idaho and western Montana south through Oregon to the coastal range and the Sierra Nevada in central California. As the map shows, the different subspecies have quite different ranges, with E. c. principis being the most widely distributed, whereas the E. c. coerulea subspecies occurs mainly around the San Francisco area but they are also found farther north into Humboldt County. The species is widely distributed along the Pacific coast and can be found from sea level up to elevation of about 3,350 m (10,990 ft). It is found in a variety of forested habitats and montane chaparral.