Short-tailed horned lizard

The short-tailed horned lizard (Phrynosoma braconnieri ) is an uncommon species of horned lizard endemic to Mexico. It has a very distinct, shortened tail, which is sometimes not apparent.

Short-tailed horned lizard
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Iguania
Family:	Phrynosomatidae
Genus:	Phrynosoma
Species:	P. braconnieri
Binomial name
Phrynosoma braconnieri A.H.A. Duméril & Bocourt, 1870[2]

Etymology

The specific epithet, braconnieri, is in honor of French naturalist Séraphin Braconnier.[3]

Description

P. braconnieri has a very short tail relative to its body length, the shortest of the horned lizards, or indeed of any lizard, thus its common name.[4]

Habitat

P. braconnieri inhabits pine-oak woodland and xeric thorn-scrub.[4] It can also be found in corn fields or other traditional agricultural areas.[5]

Geographic range

The short-tailed horned lizard is found in the Mexican states of Puebla and Oaxaca. It may also inhabit Veracruz.[4]

References

1. Canseco-Márquez L, Mendoza-Quijano F, Ponce-Campos P (2007). Phrynosoma braconnieri. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2007.RLTS.T64071A12741450.en
2. Phrynosoma braconnieri – Shorttail Horned Lizard. EOL.org
3. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Phrynosoma braconnieri, p. 36).
4. Hodges, Wendy. Phrynosoma braconnieri, Short-tailed Horned Lizard. Digimorph.org.
5. Phrynosoma braconnieri (Short-Tail Horned Lizard) . Zipcodezoo.com

Further reading

• Boulenger GA (1885). Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume II. Iguanidæ ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 497 pp. + Plates I-XXIV. (Phrynosoma braconnieri, p. 248).