New Mexico whiptail
| New Mexico whiptail | |
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| Three species of whiptail: little striped whiptail, (C. inornatus), New Mexico whiptail (C. neomexicanus) and western whiptail (C. tigris). | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Sauria |
| Family: | Teiidae |
| Genus: | Cnemidophorus |
| Species: | C. neomexicanus |
| Binomial name | |
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Cnemidophorus neomexicanus Lowe & Zweifel, 1952 |
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| Synonyms | |
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Cnemidophorus perplexus |
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Cnemidophorus perplexus
Baird & Girard, 1852
Aspidoscelis neomexicana
Reeder, 2002
The New Mexico whiptail (Cnemidophorus neomexicanus) is a female-only species of lizard found in the southern United States in New Mexico and Arizona, and in northern Mexico in Chihuahua. It is the official state reptile of New Mexico. It is one of many lizard species known to be parthenogenic. Individuals of the species can be created either through the hybridization of the little striped whiptail (C. inornatus) and the western whiptail (C. tigris), or through the parthenogenic reproduction of an adult New Mexico whiptail.
The hybridization of these species prevents healthy males from forming whereas males do exist in both parent species (see Sexual differentiation). Parthenogenesis allows the resulting all-female population to reproduce and thus evolve into a unique species capable of reproduction. This combination of interspecific hybridization and parthenogenesis exists as a reproductive strategy in several species of whiptail lizard within the Cnemidophorus genus to which the New Mexico whiptail belongs.
The New Mexico whiptail grows from 16.5 to 23 cm (6.5 to 9.1 in) in length, and is typically overall brown or black in color with seven pale yellow stripes from head to tail. Light colored spots often occur between the stripes. They have a white or pale blue underside, with a blue or blue-green colored throat. They are slender bodied, with a long tail.
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