THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY

Reptilia    Squamata (part)    Iguanidae  

Common Chuckwalla
Sauromalus ater Duméril, 1856

SSAR 9th Edition Comments:
 Sumarli et al. (2024, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 141: 572–588) presented results based on genomic RADseq data indicating that populations formerly included in S. ater from most of the Baja California peninsula are potentially a different species from those in the United States and Sonora (and northeastern Baja California), Mexico, although that finding does not affect the name of the species covered in this list.

Range maps are based on curated specimens and provided gratis by CNAH.
(Created by Travis W. Taggart; Version: 2023.04.10.13.21.22)
Download GeoJSON polygon range file: - 0.95 MB

Province/State Distribution:
USA: Arizona California Nevada Utah

First instance(s) of published English names:
Fat Lizard (Euphryne obesa: Cooper, James G. 1869. The fauna of California and its geographical distribution. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 4():61-81); Alderman Lizard (Sauromalus ater: 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); Chuck-walla (Sauromalus ater: Stejneger, Leonhard H. 1893. Annotated list of the reptiles and batrachians collected by the Death Valley Expedition in 1891, with descriptions of new species. North American Fauna 7():159–228); Chuck-walla (Sauromalus ater: 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); Northern Chuckwalla (Sauromalus ater: 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.); Chuckwalla (Sauromalus obesus: Schmidt, Karl P. 1953. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. 6th Edition. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 280pp.); Chuckwalla (Sauromalus obesus obesus: Schmidt, Karl P. 1953. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. 6th Edition. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 280pp.); Gila Mountain Chuckwalla (Sauromalus obesus tumidus: 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:
1856 Dumeril, Auguste H. A. Description des reptiles nouveaux ou imparfaitement connus de la collection du Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle et remarques sur la classification et les charactères des reptiles. [Description of new or imperfectly known reptiles in the collection of the Natural History Museum and remarks on the classification and characteristics of reptiles.] Archives du Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris 8(56):437—588
1945 Shaw, Charles E. The Chuckwallas, genus Sauromalus. Transactions of the San Diego Society of Natural History 10(15):269-306
1964 Tanner, Wilmer W. A new Sauromalus obesus from the upper Colorado Basin of Utah. Herpetologica 20(1):38-42
1964 Tanner, Wilmer W. and David F. Avery. A new Sauromalus obesus from the upper Colorado Basin of Utah. Herpetologica 20(1):38-42
1975 Stewart, Glenn R. and Ronald S. Daniel. Microornamentation of lizard scales: Some variations and taxonomic correlations. Herpetologica 31(1):117-130
2000 Montanucci, Richard R. Comments on the restriction of the type locality and nomenclature of the Chuckwalla, Sauromalus ater Dumril, 1856. Herpetological Review 31(3):138-142
2017 Bezy, Robert L., Philip C. Rosen, Thomas R. Van Devender, and Erik F. Enderson. Southern distributional limits of the Sonoran Desert herpetofauna along the mainland coast of northwestern Mexico Mesoamerican Herpetology 4(1):138-167

THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY — Accessed: Sunday 27 April 2025 11:37 CT