Greater Earless Lizard

About the Greater Earless Lizard

The Greater Earless Lizard is a flat-bodied desert lizard with no external ear openings - an adaptation for burrowing headfirst into sand. Males in breeding condition are showy: pink and green washes along the flanks and two bold black bars near the groin. The underside of the tail is barred black and white.

When it runs - and it is fast - the lizard curls that banded tail up over its back and wags it, a signal to predators that they have been seen and the chase is not worth it. It hunts insects in short dashes between rocks and thrives in full midday heat that drives other animals to shade.

In Texas it is a lizard of the western two-thirds of the state, common on rocky flats and washes in the Hill Country west through the Trans-Pecos.