Sudan/Great/Western/Rough-Scaled/Round-Nosed Plated Lizard

ANIMAL:
Sudan/Great/Western/Rough-Scaled/Round-Nosed Plated Lizard Broadleysaurus major

Type of Animal:
Plated Lizard

Habitat:
Rocky areas (especially semiopen areas), rock piles/crevices, rocky hills, termite mounds, small rocky mounds, burrows, coastal woodlands, thickets, savanna, semiarid grasslands, steppes, rocky desert, scrubland, flat areas, can be found from sea level to 5,577.428 ft

Location(s):
Ranges from Ghana E to Ethiopia & Somalia down to SE Africa

Appearance:
Heavily armored, stout body, short limbs, broad tail, body/tail covered in transverse bands of plate-like keeled scales, color ranges from tawny to grayish brown to dark brown w/ pale underside, males sometimes brighter in throat during breeding season, juveniles darker than adults

Food/Diet:
Insects, insect larvae, spiders, worms, grubs, fruits, vegetation, flowers, smaller lizards, rodents, berries, millipedes, centipedes, birds’ eggs, snails, greens, vegetables, leaves

Status in Wild:
Stable

Conservation:
Breeding in zoos & herpetoculture

Lifestyle:
Solitary or small groups of a male w/ 2-10 females

Additional Info:

Called:
Male
Female
Young: Hatchling
Group: Colony

Weight:
1 lb

Gestation:
3-4 months 

Life Span:
10 years in wild, 20 years in captivity

Body Length:
Adult: 1-2 ft
Young: 0.5 ft

Tail Length:
1 ft

Main predators are larger reptiles, carnivorous/omnivorous mammals, & predatory birds.
 
Females usually lay 2-6 eggs.
 
Active during the day (diurnal).
 
Often share space w/ other species.
 
Sexually mature at 2 years old.
 
Sometimes kept as pets.
 
Fairly shy but many individuals can tame down.
 
Coloration aids in camouflage.
 
Most heavily plated lizard of all the plated lizards.

Fun Fact(s):
Has scaleless fold running down body, which can help expand body if they eat a lot or if threatened & wants to make itself look bigger. Gravid females utilize this mechanism too.
 
Like many lizards, they can drop tail if threatened & regenerate it.
 
Head scales fused to skull.
 
When threatened, they’ll run for cover & wedge themselves in tight rocky areas. Can also use plated tail as whip. Armored skin itself works very well too.
 
Besides defense, armored skin protects it from climate.