Warren's girdled lizard

Warren’s girdled lizard (Smaug warreni) is a relatively large, flattened lizard from the Lebombo Mountains in northeastern South Africa and eastern Swaziland. It is found in rock outcrops on wooded mountain slopes. This shy species eats large arthropods and small vertebrates.

The species has a snout to vent length of 105-130 mm. The back is dark brown with small yellow spots forming bands. The belly is light brown and the throat and lips are mottled. Males have 10-12 femoral pores. The tail is spiny and slightly longer than the body length.

The Barberton girdled lizard (Cordylus barbertonensis), Waterberg girdled lizard (Cordylus breyeri), Zoutpansberg girdled lizard (Cordylus depressus), Mozambique girdled lizard (Cordylus mossambicus), and the regal girdled lizard (Cordylus regius) were formerly considered subspecies of the Warren’s girdled lizard.

Warren’s girdled lizards were formerly available in the pet trade, possibly exported from Mozambique. Most specimens were labeled Cordylus warreni depressus and should be considered Cordylus depressus.