About Sceloporus tristichus Cope, 1875
The plateau fence lizard (Sceloporus tristichus Cope, 1875) reaches a maximum snout-to-vent length of 80 millimetres (3.1 in). Its body coloration is grayish, brownish, or greenish. The upper surface of its body is covered in keeled scales, and a series of narrow dark brown cross-bands run along both sides of the body midline. An elongated metallic blue patch is present on each side of the belly, and one on each side of the throat. Like many squamates, males of this species are typically smaller than females; for populations in Montezuma County, Colorado, males have an average snout-to-vent length of 63 mm (2.5 in) while females average 67 mm (2.6 in). This lizard is distributed across central Arizona, southwestern Utah, western Colorado, the San Luis Valley, and parts of New Mexico and Wyoming. It most commonly inhabits rocky and wooded areas, including canyon walls, boulder-strewn hillsides, fallen tree trunks, and other debris and vantage points. The plateau fence lizard is inactive during cold periods and during the hottest part of the day in summer. Its diet consists mainly of insects, spiders, and other arthropods.
