Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My boyfriend often catches fencetail and alligator lizards where he works at an airport in Marin County, CA. Though he usually releases them, we decided to keep the most recent captive! He is a teen, very aggresive and fairly thin. The body is about two and half inches long, and the tail is over four inches, and has obviously never been shed.

After looking at a lot of pictures online, he resembles the Oregon Alli liz the most. Is it unlikely to find an oregon lizard this far into california?

Since he's still small, we got him a 5.5 gal tank and filled it with repti-bark bedding, a big piece of driftwood, and a heatlamp. I put mealworms in a bowl with reptocal and scattered tiny crickets around the tank. It's been a few hours, and he's just hanging out.

Questions:
If he doesn't eat, how long before I should be concerned?
Is it necessary to buy an undertank heater?

In Marin County it could either be a Southern alligator lizard (California subspecies) or a Northern (I believe San Francisco subspecies in Marin)

The way to tell them apart is by the lines on the belly.

If they run down the middle of the scales, it is southern - between the scales, northern.

Here are photos of San Francisco subspecies of Northern:

www.californiaherps.com/lizards/pages/e.c.coerulea.html

Here are photos of California subspecies of Southern:

www.californiaherps.com/lizards/pages/e.m.multicarinata.html
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6.8 L. getula californiae - 11 eggs (Cal. King)
1.2 L. getula nigrita (MBK)
1.0 L. getula floridana (Brooksi)
1.0 Pantherophis guttatus guttatus (Corn)
0.1 Pituophis catenifer catenifer (Pacific gopher)
3.3 Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata - 14 eggs (Cal. Alligator Lizard)

What line are you talking about Funky? I don't see it.

BTW... Will a Southern mate with a Northern?

Another way to tell is that Southern has crocodile eyes and that means they are yellow.
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Northern and Southern Alligator lizards have lines that run down the length of their belly.

I have no idea if they can be convinced to hybridize. Given that southern are egg layers and northern are live bearing, it may not be possible.

My personal *unscientific* suspicion is that both species have the genetic capability in their genes for both, and that there is a genetic switch that is set to live bearing for northern and egg laying for southern. But I don't know. I don't really see much point in attempting a hybrid though.
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6.8 L. getula californiae - 11 eggs (Cal. King)
1.2 L. getula nigrita (MBK)
1.0 L. getula floridana (Brooksi)
1.0 Pantherophis guttatus guttatus (Corn)
0.1 Pituophis catenifer catenifer (Pacific gopher)
3.3 Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata - 14 eggs (Cal. Alligator Lizard)

I forgot all about Northern and that they don't lay eggs. What classify them as the family of Alligator Lizards then?
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I will be back!

They are alligator lizards.
In fact, I believe northern and southern are closer related to each other evolution wise than they are to other species of alligator lizards.

There are several families of lizards for which both types of reproduction exist. Skinks, spiny lizards, horned lizards, probably others too - have species that are egg laying and species that are live bearing.

In fact I believe there is a species of skink that is known to do both.
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6.8 L. getula californiae - 11 eggs (Cal. King)
1.2 L. getula nigrita (MBK)
1.0 L. getula floridana (Brooksi)
1.0 Pantherophis guttatus guttatus (Corn)
0.1 Pituophis catenifer catenifer (Pacific gopher)
3.3 Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata - 14 eggs (Cal. Alligator Lizard)

He is definitely a southern alligator lizard, as he has yellow eyes, and his markings most closely resemble the Oregon subspecies.

He seems to be doing ok; he finally got the courage up to climb and bask on the driftwood. But he still doesn't seem interested in the crickets or mealworms. I can't tell if he's eaten any crickets, since they hide, but he definitely hasn't touched the mealworms.

Should I be worried?

And does anyone know if I should get an undertank heater?

When I found my first one, it was so skinny and barely could move.

I recommend you put it in an environment with no substrates. Just leave the floor bare and throw couple of mealworms infront of his face. I pour water next to it and it starts to drink it up.

That is how I got mine eat and drink water.
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I will be back!