Identification
This long, slender species has no visible limbs and because of this it has a
snake like appearance. Features that differentiate this speicies as a lizard,
and not a snake, include the presence of external ear openings, and moveable
eyelids. The Western Slender Glass Lizard has a long tapering head and bluntly
pointed snout, and the iris, or eye, is dark yellow. The body color varies in
shades of brown, bronze, olive, tan or buff, and two dark brown or blacking
stripes extend from the lateral fold behind the ear to the tail. The sides of
the head are light and mottled, or speckled. The tail of the Western Slender
Glass Lizard is long, consisting of more than 66 percent of the total body length.
Distribution and Status
The natural range for the Western Slender Glass Lizard is from northwestern
Indiana, south and west through western Louisiana to southern Texas, and north
to the southern edge of Nebraska (US
distribution map; Midwest
distribution map). In the Midwest, this species is listed as
State Endangered in Wisconsin and Iowa. The Western Slender Glass Lizard is
also found in Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri.
Ecology
Named because of its ability to voluntarily detach, or shatter its tail in several
pieces, the Western Slender Glass Lizard occurs in prairie habitats across its
range.
Resources
General reference guides and websites.
Links to information on the Western Slender Glass Lizard outside the Herp Center
Illinois Natural History Survey
Bruce Kingsbury, Director
Center for Reptile and Amphibian Conservation and Management
Science Building
Indiana-Purdue University
2101 East Coliseum Blvd.
Fort Wayne, IN 46805-1499