GLASS LIZARD - Facts About the Western Slender Glass Lizard
Like 3 Dislike 0 Published on 30 Jan 2015
Stopping to appreciate a glass lizard found in northwest Oklahoma. The western slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus attenuatus).
A glass lizard is a legless lizard. Unlike snakes, this they have Eyelids and ear openings. Glass lizards exhibit tail autotomy: Autotomy (from the Greek auto- "self-" and tome "severing"). That means it can sever it's tail. During a predator attack the tail is dropped often in several places appearing to shatter like glass. Nerves make tail fragments wiggle vigorously distracting the predator and helping the lizard escape. The lizard's tail eventually regenerates.