Cordylus niger
| Black girdled lizard | |
|---|---|
| |
| A black girdled lizard on Table Mountain (with a millipede on its nose) | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Family: | Cordylidae |
| Genus: | Cordylus |
| Species: | C. niger |
| Binomial name | |
| Cordylus niger Smith, 1844 | |
Cordylus niger, the black girdled lizard, is a medium-sized lizard restricted to Table Mountain on the Cape Peninsula and a second, isolated population near Langebaan.
Black girdled lizards inhabit rocky outcrops on Table Mountain, South Africa. Unlike many other lizard species in the area, these particular Cordylus lizards are not social and are usually seen alone. They are spiny, flat, and pitch black in colour.
Their colour helps these unique lizards to absorb sufficient heat from the sun, in what is one of the darkest, least sunny parts of South Africa. [2]
Gallery
Black girdled lizard, Cape of Good Hope
Close up of the head of a black girdled lizard
Black girdled lizard on a rock, Table Mountain.
References
- ^ Bates, M.F.; Mouton, P.L.F.N. (2018). "Cordylus niger". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T110159757A115675004. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T110159757A115675004.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- ^ "Cordylus niger". Archived from the original on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2010-12-15.
Further reading
- Branch, B., 1998. Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa: Ralph Curtis Books Publishing, Sanibel Island, Florida, 399 p.
- Fitzsimons, V. F., 1943. The Lizards of South Africa: Transvaal Museum Memoir, Pretoria.