THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY


Reptilia    Squamata (part)    Teiidae  

Orange-throated Whiptail
Aspidoscelis hyperythrus (Cope, 1863)

SSAR 9th Edition Comments:
For the change in the ending of the species name, see note under Aspidoscelis.

Range maps are based on curated specimens and provided gratis by CNAH.
(Created by Travis W. Taggart; Version: 2023.04.08.10.32.03)
Download GeoJSON polygon range file: - 0.31 MB

Province/State Distribution:
USA: California

First instance(s) of published English names:
Cape St. Lucas Striped Lizard (Verticaria hyperythra: Yarrow, Henry C. 1882. Check list of North American Reptilia and Batrachia with catalogue of specimens in U. S. National Museum. Bulletin of the United States National Museum (24):1-249); Belding's Orange-throat (Verticaria hyperythra beldingi: Van Denburgh, John. 1897. The reptiles of the Pacific Coast and Great Basin: An account of the species known to inhabit California, and Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Nevada. Occasional Papers of the California Academy of Sciences 5():9-236); Carmen Island Verticaria (Verticaria caerulea: Van Denburgh, John. 1922. The Reptiles of Western North America: An Account of the Species Known to Inhabit California and Oregon, Washinton, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, British Columbia, Sonora, and Lower California. Volume I. Lizards. California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco. 556pp.); Espiritu Santo Island Verticaria (Verticaria espiritensis: Van Denburgh, John. 1922. The Reptiles of Western North America: An Account of the Species Known to Inhabit California and Oregon, Washinton, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, British Columbia, Sonora, and Lower California. Volume I. Lizards. California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco. 556pp.); San Francisco Island Verticaria (Verticaria franciscensis: Van Denburgh, John. 1922. The Reptiles of Western North America: An Account of the Species Known to Inhabit California and Oregon, Washinton, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, British Columbia, Sonora, and Lower California. Volume I. Lizards. California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco. 556pp.); Cape Orange-throated Lizard (Verticaria hyperythra hyperythra: Van Denburgh, John. 1922. The Reptiles of Western North America: An Account of the Species Known to Inhabit California and Oregon, Washinton, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, British Columbia, Sonora, and Lower California. Volume I. Lizards. California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco. 556pp.); Schmidt's Orange-throat (Verticaria hyperythra schmidti: Van Denburgh, John. 1922. The Reptiles of Western North America: An Account of the Species Known to Inhabit California and Oregon, Washinton, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, British Columbia, Sonora, and Lower California. Volume I. Lizards. California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco. 556pp.); Orange-throated Race Runner (Cnemidophorus hyperythrus: Schmidt, Karl P. 1953. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. 6th Edition. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 280pp.); Orange-throated Race Runner (Cnemidophorus hyperythrus beldingi: Schmidt, Karl P. 1953. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. 6th Edition. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 280pp.);

Taxon Links:

  
Catalog of American Amphibians and Reptiles
  
The Reptile Database
  
NatureServe
  
iNaturalist
  
GenBank
  
USGS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database

Selected References:
1863 Cope, Edward D. Descriptions of new American Squamata in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 15(1863):100-106
1931 Burt, Charles E. A study of the teiid lizards of the genus Cnemidophorus with special reference to their phylogenetic relationships. Bulletin of the United States National Museum (154):1-286
1970 Gorman, George C. Chromosomes and the systematics of the family Teiidae (Sauria, Reptilia). Copeia 1970(2):230-245
1998 Thompson, J. S., Crother, Brian I., and Price, Andrew H. Cnemidophorus hyperythrus Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles (655):1-6
1999 Grismer, L. Lee. Phylogeny, taxonomy, and biogeography of Cnemidophorus hyperythrus and C. ceralbensis (Squamata: Teiidae) in Baja California, Mexico. Herpetologica 55(1):28-42
2002 Reeder, Tod W., Charles J. Cole, and Herbert C. Dessauer. Phylogenetic relationships of Whiptail lizards of the genus Cnemidophorus (Squamata: Teiidae): A test of monophyly, reevaluation of karyotypic evolution, and review of hybrid origins. American Museum Novitates (3365):1-61
2021 Walker, J. Martin, Brian K. Sullivan, and James E. Cordes. Sanctioned nomenclature for triploid parthenogenetic Colorado Checkered Whiptail and for other taxa of the lizard genus Aspidoscelis (Family Teiidae). Herpetological Review 52(3):550–558

THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY — Accessed: Monday 19 May 2025 18:25 CT