I came across this secretive lizard of arid and semi-arid habitats this week. It is not often seen. During the day it may be found under fallen debris of desert plants and under rocks. It is usually found near yucca plants.

This is the tiniest lizard in the Mojave Desert, reaching 1½ to 2¾ inches long, with a tail roughly the same length. The lizard’s coloring is usually gray, yellow-brownish or olive.  It is a slim, velvet-skinned lizard.

Despite their name, night lizards are active during the day. They are good climbers and usually eats termites, small insects, spiders and other invertebrates. They are the only lizards in the southwest that do not have eyelids, so like snakes, their eyes are always open.

Like all night lizards, the Desert Night Lizard does not lay eggs, instead it gives birth to live young, producing 1 to 3 young from August to December.

The Desert Night Lizard displays unusual behavior for a lizard in that it forms family social groups with a father-mother pair and offspring. The baby lizards may stay with their parents for years before going out on their own.

Third Eye Herp
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