Description: The Common spotted whiptail grows to 6.5 to 11 inches in total length (including tail). It is typically a tan brown or green-brown in color, with a pattern of seven distinct grey or white stripes that run the length of the body, and stop at the tail, with light colored spots along the sides. The underside is uniformly white in color. Males often have a red-colored throat, blue belly, and black or blue patches on the chest, while females have only a pink-colored throat. The tail is long compared to the body, usually close to three times the body length. The tail is usually a uniform peach or tan color.

Habitat: It is highly active and found in a wide variety of habitats, from grassland and semi-arid regions, to canyons and rocky terrain, typically not far from a permanent water source.

Range: A. gularis is found in New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas, and in the Mexican states of Aguascalientes, Campeche, Coahuila, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nuevo León, Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, and Veracruz.

Found in these States: AZ | NM | TX

Diet: A. gularis is diurnal and insectivorous.

Reproduction: Oviparous. Bisexual species. Breeding of sexually mature A. gularis occurs in the spring, and a clutch of 1-5 eggs is laid in the early summer.

Status: Listed as Least Concern in view of the very wide range probably relatively stable extent of occurrence, area of occupancy, number of subpopulations, and population size. No major threats are known.

Subspecies: 6, with just one in our region:
   Mexican Spotted Whiptail - (Aspidoscelis gularis colossus)
   Texas Spotted Whiptail - (Aspidoscelis gularis gularis)
   Pallid Spotted Whiptail - (Aspidoscelis gularis pallidus)
   Zacatecan Spotted Whiptail - (Aspidoscelis gularis semiannulatus)
   No Common Name - (Aspidoscelis gularis semifasciatus)
   Mexican Plateau Spotted Whiptail - (Aspidoscelis gularis septemvittatus)

Taxonomy: