Ctenophorus

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Not to be confused with Ctenophora.

Ctenophorus
Central Netted Dragon closeup at Sydney Wildlife World.jpg
Ctenophorus nuchalis, central netted dragon
Scientific classification e
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Iguania
Family: Agamidae
Subfamily: Amphibolurinae
Genus: Ctenophorus
Fitzinger, 1843[1]
Species

34 species, see text


Ctenophorus is a genus of lizards, also known as comb-bearing dragons, that contains the most diverse group of dragon lizards in Australia. It is the largest group of Australian lizards and it has an extensive radiation in the arid zones.[2] Many of these have been grouped by a similar morphology. The informal names and groupings within this genus — rock, crevice-, ground, sand-, and bicycle-dragon — are named after the mythological creature, the dragon.

Ctenophorus lizards may be confused with the Tympanocryptis and Diporiphora genera.[3]

Species[]

There are 34 recognized species in the genus.[4]

Polymorphism[]

Lizards of the genus Ctenophorus are known to display color polymorphism, more than one color type being found within a population. It is believed that color polymorphism in this group has evolved as a result of a combination of sexual selection and natural selection.[5]

References[]

  1. ^ "Ctenophorus ". Dahms Tierleben. www.dahmstierleben.de.
  2. ^ Doughty, Paul; Maryan, Brad (March 1, 2007). Jane Melville, Jeremy Austin. "A New Species of Ctenophorus (Lacertilia: Agamidae) from Lake Disappointment, Western Australia". Herpetologica. 63: 72–86. doi:10.1655/0018-0831(2007)63[72:ANSOCL]2.0.CO;2.
  3. ^ Swan, G., Shea, G., Sadlier, R. (2004) A Field Guide to Reptiles of New South Wales, Reed New Holland, Sydney, New South Wales, ISBN 187706906X
  4. ^ Ctenophorus, The Reptile Database. Accessed 7 October 2014.
  5. ^ Stuart-Fox DM, Moussalli A (2004). "Evolution of Color Variation in Dragon Lizards: Quantitative Tests of the Role of Crypsis and Local Adaptation". Evolution. 58 (7): 1549–1559. doi:10.1554/03-448. PMID 15341157. S2CID 9060145.

Further reading[]

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