The Yucatán spiny-tailed iguana (''Cachryx defensor'') is a species of

lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...

in the family Iguanidae. It is endemic to northern Yucatán, Mexico.

Habitat

Its natural habitat is

tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest The tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest is a habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature and is located at tropical and subtropical latitudes. Though these forests occur in climates that are warm year-round, and may receive ...

Conservation status

It is threatened by habitat loss.

In the United States

A foot-long specimen was found scurrying across a loading dock on July 29, 2010 at Ford Motor Co.'s Van Dyke Transmission Plant in Sterling Heights, Michigan. The creature was a stowaway in parts crates shipped from the Yucatán peninsula in Mexico. The creature was moved to an enclosure at the Detroit Zoo which it will share with a female black iguana.Detroit Free Press. 2010
Scaly stowaway in auto parts finds home at the zoo
Downloaded on 26 August 2010.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q276853 Cachryx Endemic reptiles of Mexico Fauna of the Yucatán Peninsula Reptiles described in 1866 Taxa named by Edward Drinker Cope Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN