victoriaapaldetti's Identifications

So cute and cuddly.

http://www.californiaherps.com/lizards/pages/p.blainvillii.html

Adults are 2.5 - 4.5 inches long from snout to vent (6.3 - 11.4 cm).
A flat-bodied lizard with a wide oval-shaped body, scattered enlarged pointed scales on the upper body and tail, and a large crown of horns or spines on the head. The two center horns are the longest. Males have enlarged postanal scales and a swollen tail base during the breeding season.
Females are larger in size than males. Each side of the body has two rows of pointed fringe scales. (Stebbins, 2003)
Each side of the throat has two or three rows of enlarged pointed scales. (Stebbins, 2003)
Color and Pattern
Color is reddish, brown, yellow, or gray, with dark blotches on the back and large dark spots on the sides of the neck.
The belly is cream, beige, or yellow, usually with dark spots, and the belly scales are smooth.

Activity: Diurnal. Active during periods of warm weather, retreating underground and becoming inactive during extended periods of low temperatures or extreme heat.

Range: Historically found in California along the Pacific coast from the Baja California border west of the deserts and the Sierra Nevada, north to the Bay Area, and inland as far north as Shasta Reservoir, and south into Baja California. Ranges up onto the Kern Plateau east of the crest of the Sierra Nevada. The range has now been severely fragmented due to land alteration.

Adult resting near Pacific Crest Trail, south of Highway 74.

http://www.californiaherps.com/lizards/pages/p.blainvillii.html

Adults are 2.5 - 4.5 inches long from snout to vent (6.3 - 11.4 cm).
A flat-bodied lizard with a wide oval-shaped body, scattered enlarged pointed scales on the upper body and tail, and a large crown of horns or spines on the head. The two center horns are the longest. Males have enlarged postanal scales and a swollen tail base during the breeding season.
Females are larger in size than males. Each side of the body has two rows of pointed fringe scales. (Stebbins, 2003)
Each side of the throat has two or three rows of enlarged pointed scales. (Stebbins, 2003)
Color and Pattern
Color is reddish, brown, yellow, or gray, with dark blotches on the back and large dark spots on the sides of the neck.
The belly is cream, beige, or yellow, usually with dark spots, and the belly scales are smooth.

Activity: Diurnal. Active during periods of warm weather, retreating underground and becoming inactive during extended periods of low temperatures or extreme heat.

Range: Historically found in California along the Pacific coast from the Baja California border west of the deserts and the Sierra Nevada, north to the Bay Area, and inland as far north as Shasta Reservoir, and south into Baja California. Ranges up onto the Kern Plateau east of the crest of the Sierra Nevada. The range has now been severely fragmented due to land alteration.

Adult, approx. 4 in, resting near side of trail.

http://www.californiaherps.com/lizards/pages/p.blainvillii.html

Adults are 2.5 - 4.5 inches long from snout to vent (6.3 - 11.4 cm).
A flat-bodied lizard with a wide oval-shaped body, scattered enlarged pointed scales on the upper body and tail, and a large crown of horns or spines on the head. The two center horns are the longest. Males have enlarged postanal scales and a swollen tail base during the breeding season.
Females are larger in size than males. Each side of the body has two rows of pointed fringe scales. (Stebbins, 2003)
Each side of the throat has two or three rows of enlarged pointed scales. (Stebbins, 2003)
Color and Pattern
Color is reddish, brown, yellow, or gray, with dark blotches on the back and large dark spots on the sides of the neck.
The belly is cream, beige, or yellow, usually with dark spots, and the belly scales are smooth.

Activity: Diurnal. Active during periods of warm weather, retreating underground and becoming inactive during extended periods of low temperatures or extreme heat.

Range: Historically found in California along the Pacific coast from the Baja California border west of the deserts and the Sierra Nevada, north to the Bay Area, and inland as far north as Shasta Reservoir, and south into Baja California. Ranges up onto the Kern Plateau east of the crest of the Sierra Nevada. The range has now been severely fragmented due to land alteration.

Juvenile, approx. 1.5-2 inches running across the trail. It stopped for 2 seconds for snapshot.

Blainville's Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma blainvillii) a.k.a San Diego Horned Lizard, is a species of phrynosomatid lizard native to southern and central California and northern Baja California in Mexico. The range has been severely fragmented due to urbanization and habitat loss.
Description: Adults are 2.5 - 4.5 inches long from snout to vent (6.3 - 11.4 cm). It is a flat-bodied lizard with a wide oval-shaped body, scattered enlarged pointed scales on the upper body and tail, and a large crown of horns or spines on the head. The two center horns are the longest. Males have enlarged postanal scales and a swollen tail base during the breeding season.
Females are larger in size than males. Each side of the body has two rows of pointed fringe scales. Each side of the throat has two or three rows of enlarged pointed scales.
Color and Pattern: Color is reddish, brown, yellow, or gray, with dark blotches on the back and large dark spots on the sides of the neck. The belly is cream, beige, or yellow, usually with dark spots, and the belly scales are smooth.
Activity: Diurnal. Active during periods of warm weather, retreating underground and becoming inactive during extended periods of low temperatures or extreme heat.
Diet and Feeding: Eats mainly ants, especially harvester ants, but also consumes other small invertebrates such as spiders, beetles, termites, flies, honeybees, moth larvae, and grasshoppers.

Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles of California: http://www.californiaherps.com/lizards/pages/p.blainvillii.html