THE WORLD (Coos Bay, Oregon) 18 October 13 Alligator lizards may live in your yard (Marty Giles)
She sent me a few photos of a small lizard curled in the bottom of a glass jar. Smooth and slender, the handsome lizard was dark brown with a very broad copper-tan stripe running the length of its three-inch-long body and tail.
I double-checked to make sure before I responded: Yes, it was a juvenile alligator lizard.
This youngster was probably out hunting for small invertebrates, insects, spiders, wood lice, and the like, around her home above the lower Coos River. Or perhaps it was basking in the sun when the curious humans interrupted.
Both juvenile and adult alligator lizards are agile hunters. And, yes, they can deliver a whopping bite to people who handle them.
Of course, rough handling is hazardous for the lizard, too. As with some other lizards, alligator lizards can cast off their tails to distract would-be predators. Even detached, the tail writhes and twitches for several minutes, drawing attention while the tail’s previous owner escapes. The stub eventually grows a replacement tail.
Juvenile alligator lizards are quite differently colored than the adults. Like the juveniles, adult alligator lizards are dark tan, olive- or honey- or coppery-brown down the top of the back and tail; their sides are darker and their bellies are lighter. However, adult backs and sides are further decorated with an irregular black/brown and white herringbone pattern.
Eye color is a key feature to distinguish the northern alligator lizard (Elgaria coerulea) from its cousin, the southern alligator lizard (Elgaria multicarinata). While the northern and southern alligator lizards are easier to tell apart when they’re adults, the eye color distinction holds true during their entire lives: the southern alligator lizards have yellowish eyes and the northern alligator lizards have brown eyes.
In addition to the eye color, the slightly larger (up to 12 inches long) yellow-eyed southerns have smoother scales and appearance; the slightly smaller (up to 10 inches long) brown-eyed northerns have rougher scales and appearance.
A fundamental characteristic distinguishing them from other lizards, both northern and southern alligator lizards have a long fold in the skin where the sides meet the belly.
The two closely related lizards are different in other ways, too. Southern alligator lizards are egg layers; northern alligator lizards retain the fertilized eggs within their bodies until they hatch, in effect giving birth to live young. Apparently, hauling the eggs around with them to sun-basking spots has given the northern alligator lizard an advantage in populating the cooler, wetter north. Northern alligator lizards generally hibernate during the coldest part of the winter in rock cracks or logs; southern alligator lizards do not hibernate.
This person’s backyard resident was a young brown-eyed northern alligator lizard. Inland Coos County is believed to be about the northern limit on the coast for the southern alligator lizard; the northern alligator lizard is found throughout western Oregon and Washington, including the coast.
We’ve found both juvenile and adult alligator lizards at our Coos Bay home in Octobers past. As the days get cooler, many animals — including lizards — may appear in or near our homes, seeking warmer shelter.
Keep an eye out for your smaller neighbors as they seek cozier digs for the oncoming winter!
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