Zebra-tailed lizards live in open desert with fairly hard-packed soil, scattered vegetation and scattered rocks, typically desert flats, washes and plains. These lizards are grey to sandy brown, usually with series of paired dark gray spots down the back, becoming black bands on the tail. The underside of tail is white with black bands. Males have a pair of black blotches on the side, extending to blue patches on the belly. Females have no blue patches, and the black bars are either faint or completely absent.
Ten Facts about Zebra-tailed Lizard
- They range from 2.5 to 4 inches (63 to 100 mm) in length.
- They rise early and are active in all but the hottest weather.
- When threatened they will run swiftly with their toes curled up and tails raised over their backs exposing the stripes.
- In summer, 2 to 8 eggs are typically laid, hatching anywhere from July to November.
- Being a prey species for many animals, including birds, other lizards, and mammals, they have a fairly high reproductive potential.
- It feeds on a variety of prey from insects, such as moths, ants and bees, as well as spiders and other smaller lizards.
- The zebra-tailed lizard is common and widely distributed throughout the southwestern United States, ranging from the Mojave and Colorado deserts north into the southern Great Basin.
- Home ranges varied from 0.35-0.60 ha (0.88-1.50 ac).
- Zebra-tailed lizards are the fastest lizards in the desert.
- They can reach an age of up to 10 years.
