Hoplocercidae

Enyalioides rubrigularis, males

The Hoplocercidae are a family of Panama to Peru occurring the iguana -like ( Iguania ).

Features

The lizards reach a head -body length of 16 centimeters and have characteristic spiny tails. The zygomatic bone ( Jugale ) and the squamosal ( squamosal ) have each other no broad contact. The roof of the parietal bone ( parietal ) is trapezoidal. The teeth on the upper and lower jaws are pleurodont, ie not fused in adult animals with the supporting bone. Teeth on the palatine bone missing, on the wing leg but teeth are present. With the exception of Hoplocercus the animals can shed their tail at predetermined breaking points in dangerous situations.

Habitat and behavior

The species of the genera Enyalioides and Morunasaurus live in tropical rain forests, Enyalioides in the western Amazon region, Morunasaurus on the Pacific coast of Panama to Ecuador. The nocturnal Hoplocercus spinosus occurs only in the dry forests of the Brazilian Cerrado. All Enyalioides - types are available for the data sleep at night on tree trunks and branches. The Hoplocercidae are mainly bottom dwellers, some species burrow in the ground. They primarily eat termites and locusts, Hoplocercus spinosus also beetles.

System

The Hoplocercidae were initially as a family of iguanas ( Iguanidae ) until they were in 1989 by Frost and Etheridge elevated to the rank of a family. There are ten species in three genera:

• Genus Enyalioides Enyalioides azulae
• Enyalioides binzayedi
• Enyalioides cofanorum
• Enyalioides heterolepis
• Enyalioides laticeps
• Enyalioides microlepis
• Enyalioides oshaughnessyi
• Enyalioides palpebralis
• Enyalioides praestabilis

• Hoplocercus spinosus

• Morunasaurus annularis
• Morunasaurus GROI