Mimic Glass Lizard

Ophisaurus mimicus

Reptiles & AmphibiansIn the app

A legless lizard that reaches 15-26 inches in length and has smooth, shiny scales. It is generally smaller than other species of glass lizard. Although it strongly resemb…

How to identify

A legless lizard that reaches 15-26 inches in length and has smooth, shiny scales. It is generally smaller than other species of glass lizard. Although it strongly resembles a snake, it differs by having movable eyelids, a inflexible jaw, and external ear holes. Its snout is strongly pointed, and it has a distinctly lizard-like face. Like all glass lizards, it has lateral grooves running the length of its body, where the ventral and dorsal scales meet. On the first several inches of its body, it has distinct speckling, primarily on its sides. This speckling organizes into several alternating black and white longitudinal lines, above the lateral grooves. It typically has a central black dorsal stripe as well. The rest of its back is tan to brown, and its ventrum is pale and unmarked. Its long tail makes up more than half of its total length.

Range

Narrow coastal range stretching south from central North Carolina, through southern Georgia, the Florida panhandle, and into southern Mississippi.

Habitat

This ground-dwelling species prefers dry habitats and is most often found slithering through leaf litter in longleaf pine flatwoods. It likes to hide under natural and manmade debris.

Variations

Some lizards have a dorsal stripe that's broken into speckles, while others lack the dorsal stripe entirely. The proximal speckling is sometimes present on the lizard's back, but is usually limited to its sides. Dorsal coloration ranges from light tan to deep brown.

Similar species

This species is almost identical to the slender glass lizard (*Ophisaurus attenuatus*), and strongly resembles the island glass lizard (*Ophisaurus compressus*) and eastern glass lizard (*Ophisaurus ventralis*).