The Tree lizard (Urosaurus ornatus) is a species of lizard native to the southwestern United States, and northern Mexico. The species has been used to research the physiological changes in the body during the fight-or-flight response as related to stress and aggressive competition PMID 9145930. Also, its life history and costs of reproduction have been documented in field populations in New Mexico. (Landwer, 1994) Oecologia
The Ornate Tree Lizard feeds on mostly insects and their larvae.
A group of one male and one or more females typically inhabit an area that contains one or more large tree or shrub. The male copulates with each female and the female deposits eggs approximately two weeks after mating. In many parts of the Tree Lizard's range females may lay more than one clutch of eggs a year.
- Texas Tree Lizard, Urosaurus ornatus ornatus (Baird & Girard, 1852)
- Urosaurus ornatus caeruleus (Smith, 1935)
- Urosaurus ornatus chiricahuae (Mittleman, 1941)
- Urosaurus ornatus lateralis (Boulenger, 1883)
- Smooth Tree Lizard, Urosaurus ornatus levis (Stejneger, 1890)
- Lined Tree Lizard, Urosaurus ornatus linearis (Baird, 1859)
- Big Bend Tree Lizard, Urosaurus ornatus schmidti (Mittleman, 1940)
- Schott's Tree Lizard, Urosaurus ornatus schottii (Baird, 1858)
- Colorado River Tree Lizard, Urosaurus ornatus symmetricus (Baird, 1858)
- Northern Tree Lizard, Urosaurus ornatus wrighti (Schmidt, 1921)
United States: California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas.
Mexico: Sonora, Sinaloa, Chihuahua, and Coahuila.