''Uromastyx princeps'', commonly known as the princely mastigure, princely spiny-tailed lizard, or Somalian mastigure, is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of lizard in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Agamidae
Agamidae is a family (biology), family of over 300 species of iguanian lizards indigenous to Africa, Asia, Australia, and a few in Southern Europe. Many species are commonly called dragons or dragon lizards.
Overview
phylogenetics, Phylogenetic ...
.
Geographic range and habitat
The species is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to the
Horn of Africa
The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...
. It is not known with certainty from localities outside of
Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...
.
[ Probably it could be also present in eastern ]Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
(Eritrea
Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...
).Catalogue of life
/ref> It lives in rocky areas of the coastal rocky plateaus of volcanic origin,[ hiding in the cracks of rocks and crevices between the stones, usually blocking the entrance with the tail .]
Description
''Uromastix princeps'' can reach a body length (including the tail) of about .[
The tail is ellipsoidal and significantly shorter (35–53% of the body length) than in other members of the genus,][ but it shows longer and sharper spikes arranged in 9–14 whorls. All scales on the upper side of the tail have spikes.][ The tail can be used as a defense.]
Biology
''U. princeps'' is an oviparous lizard. Mating occurs in May–June. Pregnancy lasts about one month. The females lay in July up to 14 eggs. This species feeds almost entirely on flowers, fruits and other plants, but also on insects.[''Longmann's Animal Encyclopedia''.]
Bibliography
* O'Shaughnessy AWE (1880). "Description of a new Species of ''Uromastix'' ic. ''Proc. Zool. Soc. London'' 1880: 445-446 + Plate XLIII. ("''Uromastix'' ic''princeps'' ", new species).
*Boulenger, G.A. (1885) Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Nat. Hist.) I. Geckonidae, Eublepharidae, Uroplatidae, Pygopodidae, Agamidae., London: 450 pp
*Cherchi, M. A. 1954. una nuova sottospecie di Uromastix princeps O’Schaug. Atti Soc. ital. Sci. nat. Milano 93: 538-544 + 1 plate
*Loveridge,A. (1942), Bull. Mus. comp. Zool., Cambridge, 91: 49, 50, 54, 55
References
Uromastyx
Agamid lizards of Africa
Reptiles of Somalia
Endemic fauna of Somalia
Reptiles described in 1880
Taxa named by Arthur William Edgar O'Shaughnessy
{{agamidae-stub