The Mozambique girdled lizard or flame-bellied armadillo lizard (''Smaug mossambicus'') is a large, flattened, girdled lizard found on

Mount Gorongosa Mount Gorongosa is an inselberg in Sofala Province of central Mozambique. Its highest peak, Gogogo, reaches an elevation of 1,863 meters (6,112 feet). It was created by Karoo Volcanism. The upper zone of the mountain (above 700 meters) was mad ...

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

and low elevations in the

Chimanimani Mountains The Chimanimani Mountains are a mountain range on the border of Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The mountains are in the southern portion of the Eastern Highlands, or Manica Highlands, a belt of highlands that extend north and south along the internatio ...

at the border of

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

and

. It lives in rock outcrops in

grasslands A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natural ...

and dry, wooded mountain slopes. The Mozambique girdled lizard is also called the Gorongosa girdled lizard or ''Cordylus gorongosa'' (not a valid taxon name). Individuals are exported through Mozambique for the pet trade. They eat a wide variety of small insects (especially beetles and grasshoppers), millipedes, spiders, and occasional small vertebrates.

Description

Mozambique girdled lizards reach 137.5 mm from snout to vent and 281 mm in total length (based on a captive individual). Males are dark brown to black above with bright orange undersides and black throats. Females and juveniles are dark brown above with small cream spots scattered on the neck and back. The bellies and sides are gray with orange and black mottles on the lower jaws and throat. Males are distinguished from the closely related regal girdled lizard (''

Smaug regius Smaug regius (also known as the regal girdled lizard) is a species of lizard in the family Cordylidae. It is a small lizard found in Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast ...

'') by the black chin and throat (yellow chin, mottled throat in ''S. regius'') and the presence of a brown patch in front of the cloaca on the belly. Females and juveniles of ''S. regius'' and ''S. mossambicus'' are nearly identical. In ''S. regius'', their heads are pale brown. Both species were once considered to be

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

of the Warren's girdled lizard ('' Smaug warreni''). Cordylus mossambicus female

References

* Branch, B., 1998. Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa. Ralph Curtis Books Publishing, Sanibel Island, Florida, 399 p. * Broadley, D. G., 1962. On some reptile collections from the north-western and north-eastern districts of southern Rhodesia 1958-61, with descriptions of four new lizards. Occasional Papers from the Museum of Southern Rhodesia, 48(1): 787-843. * FitzSimons, V., 1958. A New ''Cordylus'' from Gorongoza, Mocambique. Annals of the Natal Museum, 14(2): 351-353. {{Taxonbar, from=Q3486907 Smaug (genus) Lizards of Africa Reptiles of Mozambique Reptiles of Zimbabwe Reptiles described in 1958 Taxa named by Vivian Frederick Maynard FitzSimons