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Ophisaurus attenuatus

Cope, 1880

Slender Glass Lizard

G5Secure Found in 2 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
MediumThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.103178
Element CodeARACB02010
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassReptilia
OrderSquamata
FamilyAnguidae
GenusOphisaurus
Other Common Names
slender glass lizard (EN)
Concept Reference
McConkey, E. H. 1954. A systematic study of the North American lizards of the genus Ophisaurus. American Midland Naturalist 51:133-169.
Taxonomic Comments
Prior to 1954 (McConkey 1954), all glass lizards (including species now known as Ophisaurus attentuatus, O. compressus, and O. mimicus) were referred to as Ophisaurus ventralis. Palmer (1987) described O. mimicus as a distinct species. Subspecies longicaudus was proposed as a distinct species by Collins (1991), who expressed the opinion that any allopatric subspecies that is in some way morphologically distinct should be treated as a distinct species, but most authors maintain longicaudus as a subspecies of O. attenuatus.

Molecular data support recognition of the family Anniellidae and anguid subfamilies Gerrhonotinae and Anguinae as monophyletic groups (Macey et al. 1999). Within the Anguinae, Ophisaurus apparently is not monophyletic; among various taxonomic alternatives available to remedy the situation, Macey et al. (1999) favored placing all members of the subfamily in a single genus (Anguis).
Conservation Status
Review Date2005-05-13
Change Date1996-10-23
Edition Date2005-05-10
Edition AuthorsHammerson, G.
Threat ImpactMedium
Range Extent200,000 to >2,500,000 square km (about 80,000 to >1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences81 to >300
Rank Reasons
Globally secure, largely on the basis of the extensive range.
Range Extent Comments
The eastern segment of the range (subspecies longicaudus) encompasses the southeastern United States, from Virginia and Kentucky to the Gulf Coast and southern Florida, east of the Mississippi River; the western part of the range (subspecies attenuatus) extends from southeastern Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Indiana south to the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana, west of the Mississippi River in the south (Conant and Collins 1991).
Occurrences Comments
Many occurences.
Threat Impact Comments
Conversion of habitat to human uses, especially intensive agriculture, is probably the major threat.
Ecology & Habitat

Description

A limbless lizard with external ear openings, movable eyelids, and narrow, dark longitudinal stripes below the lateral groove and under the tail (stripes are more prominent in the young than in adults); young and medium-sized individuals have a dark middorsal stripe or series of dashes; old adults may be brown with irregular dark-bordered crossbands on the back and tail; white marks on the scales are on the middle of the scales; in some areas, females are strongly patterned but males become flecked with whitish when nearing adult size (old males may have a salt-and-pepper appearance); total length of adults generally is 57-107 cm, head-body maximum is 29 cm (Conant and Collins 1991).

Habitat

Habitats include open grassland, prairie, woodland edge, open woodland, oak savannas, longleaf pine flatwoods, scrubby areas, fallow fields, and areas near streams and ponds, often in habitats with sandy soil. This species often appears on roads in spring. During inactivity, it occurs in underground burrows. In Kansas, slender glass lizards were scarce in heavily grazed pastures, increased as grass increased with removal of grazing, and declined as brush and trees replaced grass (Fitch 1989).

Eggs are laid underground, under cover, or under grass clumps (Ashton and Ashton 1985); in cavities beneath flat rocks or in abandoned tunnels of small mammals (Scalopus, Microtus) (Fitch 1989).

Ecology

Kansas: tends to stay in familiar area, but home range is not well defined; adult males range more widely than do females and immatures; average home range is about 0.44 ha in adult males, 0.14 ha in juveniles; peak density is about 100 per ha; important predators include carnivores, hawks, and snakes; annual mortality is about 40% in adults and adolescents (Fitch 1989).

Reproduction

In Kansas, mating occurs in May. Lays clutch of 3-17 (average 12 in Arkansas, 10 in Kansas) eggs in June or July (usually first week of July in Kansas). Female stays with eggs until hatching in late summer, after 7-8 weeks in Kansas. Sexually mature in 2 years (Arkansas, Trauth 1984) or 3-4 years (Fitch 1970, Fitch 1989). In Kansas, individual females do not breed every year (Fitch 1989).
Terrestrial Habitats
Woodland - HardwoodWoodland - ConiferWoodland - MixedShrubland/chaparralSavannaGrassland/herbaceousCropland/hedgerow
Palustrine Habitats
Riparian
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
ArkansasS3Yes
MississippiS2Yes
IllinoisS4Yes
LouisianaS3Yes
VirginiaS4Yes
WisconsinS1Yes
OklahomaSNRYes
TennesseeSNRYes
FloridaS4Yes
MissouriS5Yes
NebraskaS1Yes
GeorgiaS3Yes
IowaS1Yes
South CarolinaS4Yes
North CarolinaSNRYes
IndianaS3Yes
KentuckySNRYes
TexasS3Yes
AlabamaSNRYes
KansasS5Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
2 - Agriculture & aquaculture——High (continuing)
2.1 - Annual & perennial non-timber crops——High (continuing)
2.3 - Livestock farming & ranching——High (continuing)

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Roadless Areas (2)
Florida (2)
AreaForestAcres
Gum BayApalachicola National Forest11,645
Long BayApalachicola National Forest5,726
References (19)
  1. Ashton, R. E., Jr., and P. S. Ashton. 1985. Handbook of reptiles and amphibians of Florida. Part two. Lizards, turtles & crocodilians. Windward Pub., Inc., Miami. 191 pp.
  2. Collins, J. T. 1982. Amphibians and reptiles in Kansas. Second edition. Univ. Kansas Mus. Nat. Hist., Pub. Ed. Ser. 8. xiii + 356 pp.
  3. Collins, J. T. 1990. Standard common and current scientific names for North American amphibians and reptiles. 3rd ed. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. Herpetological Circular No. 19. 41 pp.
  4. Collins, J. T. 1991. Viewpoint: a new taxonomic arrangement for some North American amphibians and reptiles. SSAR Herpetol. Review 22:42-43.
  5. Conant, R. and J. T. Collins. 1991. A field guide to reptiles and amphibians: eastern and central North America. Third edition. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Massachusetts. 450 pp.
  6. Conant, R., and J. T. Collins. 1998. A field guide to reptiles and amphibians: eastern and central North America. Third edition, expanded. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Massachusetts. 616 pp.
  7. Crother, B. I. (editor). 2008. Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North America north of Mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. Sixth edition. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles Herpetological Circular 37:1-84. Online with updates at: http://www.ssarherps.org/pages/comm_names/Index.php
  8. Crother, B. I. (editor). 2012. Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North America north of Mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. 7th edition. SSAR Herpetological Circular 39:1-92.
  9. Crother, B. I. (editor). 2017. Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North America north of Mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. 8th edition. SSAR Herpetological Circular 43:1-104. [Updates in SSAR North American Species Names Database at: https://ssarherps.org/cndb]
  10. Fitch, H. S. 1970. Reproductive cycles of lizards and snakes. Univ. Kansas Museum Natural History Miscellaneous Publication 52:1-247.
  11. Fitch, H. S. 1989. A field study of the slender glass lizard, <i>Ophisaurus attenuatus</i>, in northeastern Kansas. Occas. Pap. Mus. Nat. Hist. Univ. Kansas 125:1-50.
  12. Holman, J. A. 1971. <i>Ophisaurus compressus</i>. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles113.1-113.2.
  13. Johnson, T. R. 2000. The amphibians and reptiles of Missouri. Second edition. Missouri Department of Conservation, Jefferson City. 400 pp.
  14. Macey, J. R., J. A. Schulte, II, A. Larson, B. S. Tuniyev, N. Orlov, and T. J. Papenfuss. 1999. Molecular phylogenetics, tRNA evolution, and historical biogeography in anguid lizards and related taxonomic families. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 12:250-272.
  15. McConkey, E. H. 1954. A systematic study of the North American lizards of the genus <i>Ophisaurus. </i>American Midland Naturalist 51:133-169.
  16. Mitchell, J. C. 1991. Amphibians and reptiles. Pages 411-76 in K. Terwilliger (coordinator). Virginia's Endangered Species: Proceedings of a Symposium. McDonald and Woodward Publishing Company, Blacksburg, Virginia.
  17. Trauth, S. E. 1984. Seasonal incidence and reproduction in the western slender glass lizard, <i>Ophisaurus attenuatus</i> <i>attenuatus</i> (Reptilia, Anguidae), in Arkansas. Southwest. Nat. 29:271-275.
  18. Trauth, S. E., H. W. Robison, and M. V. Plummer. 2004. The amphibians and reptiles of Arkansas. University of Arkansas Press.
  19. Vogt, R. C. 1981c. Natural history of amphibians and reptiles of Wisconsin. Milwaukee Public Museum. 205 pp.