Compare two species

Plateau Fence Lizard vs. Prairie Lizard

Both were once one species (Sceloporus undulatus) and look nearly the same. A: the Plateau Fence Lizard tends to have four distinct light stripes (two along the back, two lower on the sides) flanking crisp dark chevron bands, a more contrasting pattern; the Prairie Lizard varies from crisp four-striped forms (especially females) to plain, blotched or uniform brown. B: male Plateau Fence Lizards' blue belly patches are often separated along the midline only by a narrow band of black or white, and can nearly meet; male Prairie Lizards' are usually widely separated down the middle. In hand: Plateau Fence Lizards average slightly more back scales (about 38 to 46+ from the back of the head to the tail base, vs 35 to 43) and femoral pores (13 to 17 per thigh, vs 12 to 16), but the ranges overlap. In Wyoming the Plateau Fence Lizard lives in the south and southwest, the Prairie Lizard in the southeast.

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Plateau Fence Lizard

Sceloporus tristichus

Prairie Lizard

Sceloporus consobrinus

Photographs via iNaturalist under Creative Commons licences; the photographers are credited on the sheet.

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