Blue-headed Tree Agama (male)
Acanthocercus atricollis
-0.183075, 29.9809
Field Notes
Description:
Males: Tend to be bigger than the females, with a large head and a broad yellow/green vertebral stripe, their main colouration being a grey/brown. They display a Blue head during breeding season, when feeding and at the hottest parts of the day. Male Atricollis have large teeth at the jaw apex this helps them to chew bigger prey. Their colours change very quickly due to their scaling. A full size adult male will be around the 15 inches head to tail, the tail making up more than half of the total length. Nose to vent in an adult male being 5-6 inches.
Females: They tend to be an olive colour with black marbling, the patterning on their backs being very distinctive. They also display, mainly when gravid, two series of orange to yellow dorsal spots.
Habitat:
Queen Elisabeth National Park, cant remember the exact place for the find.
Notes:
Agamas are mainly insectivorous but may eat grass, berries, seeds and the eggs of other smaller lizards.
Most agamas are polygamous. Males may hold six or more females in their territory for breeding. During courtship, the male bobs his head to impress the female. Occasionally, females initiate courtship by offering their hindquarters to the male and then running until he is able to catch up. Eggs are laid in clutches of up to twelve.
According to The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species:
Taxonomic Notes: There are a few subspecies, here are some examples:
A. atricollis atricollis (Smith, 1849)
A. atricollis gregorii (Günther, 1894)
A. atricollis kiwuensis (Klausewitz, 1957)
A. atricollis loveridgei (Klausewitz, 1957)
A. atricollis minutus (Klausewitz, 1957)
A. atricollis ugandaensis (Klausewitz, 1957).
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