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.
