The Ethiopian ridgeback agama (''Xenagama zonura''), is a species of lizard in the family

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 ...

. The species is endemic 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 among the largest species of

Xenagama ''Xenagama'' is a genus of lizards in the family Agamidae. Species of the genus are native to Ethiopia and Somalia. Species The following four species are recognized as being valid. www.reptile-database.org. *'' Xenagama batillifera'' – beave ...

, with snout-to-vent length of males up to 84.5mm.

Geographic range

''X. zonura'' is endemic to

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 ...

, in elevations between 2000 and 2500m. Comparatively to other Xenagama species, ''X. zonura'' resides at higher elevations. Wagner, Philipp & Mazuch, Tomas & Bauer, A.. (2013). An extraordinary tail - integrative review of the agamid genus Xenagama. Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research. 51. 10.1111/jzs.12016.

Reproduction

''X. zonura'' is

oviparous Oviparous animals are animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of most fish, amphibians, most reptiles, and all pterosaurs, dinosaurs (including birds), and ...

References

{{Taxobar, from=Q2822517 Reptiles described in 1895 Taxa named by George Albert Boulenger zonura