One of the 15 lizards on WAnimals
Reptiles · Squamata · Xantusiidae
Desert Night Lizard
Xantusia vigilis
The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary
The desert night lizard is a tiny lizard that lives almost exclusively under the fallen leaves of the yuccas of the Mojave Desert. Despite its name it is not truly nocturnal but crepuscular. It is live-bearing and, most remarkably, lives in stable family groups: parents and young from several litters share the same refuge for years.
Weight
1 g on average
Size
4 cm – 7 cm
Lifespan
10 years
Diet
Insectivore
Feeds mainly on insects and other invertebrates.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
Family group
Lives in small family groups with close bonds.
Sighting difficulty
Easy
Fun facts
- It lives in families: parents and offspring from several litters share the same refuge under a yucca leaf for years, and genetic studies have confirmed that these are genuine kin groups, a social life very rare among lizards.
- Its whole life can be spent under the same fallen yucca leaf: marked individuals have been recaptured on the same fallen trunk years later.
- It is live-bearing and produces one or two young a year, an extremely slow rate for a lizard less than seven centimetres long.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (reptile)
- Habitat & environment
- Beneath fallen yucca and agave leaves in the deserts of the south-western United States and northern Mexico
- Size at birth
- About 2.5 cm of body at birth; it is viviparous
- Sexual maturity
- 2 years
- Gestation / incubation
- 3 months of gestation
- Litter / clutch size
- 2 live young
Sources consulted: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_night_lizard
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapBest time: All year in the south-western United States, though very hard to see: it lives under leaf litter and fallen yucca trunks.
Where to watch it
Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Desert Night Lizard — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Texas Horned Lizard
Phrynosoma cornutum
American Kestrel
Falco sparverius
Common Desert Iguana
Dipsosaurus dorsalis
California Kingsnake
Lampropeltis californiae
Common Chuckwalla
Sauromalus ater
Least ConcernCollared Lizard
Crotaphytus collaris
Keep exploring
Based on what we already know about desert night lizard.
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