Coachella Valley fringe-toed lizard  (Uma inornata)

The Coachella Valley fringe-toed lizard is well adapted to its sandy habitat, with the fringes on the feet providing not only fast movement over the sand, but enabling the lizard to effectively ‘swim’ through the sand as it buries deep to escape either the hottest parts of the day or predators (2). When not buried in sand, or sheltering in abandoned rodent burrows (4), the Coachella fringe-toed lizard may dash between patches of shade as it feeds on a diet consisting largely of insects, but also parts of succulent plants (2). The exact composition of the diet of this lizard has been observed to vary depending on the times of the year, with flowers and plant-dwelling arthropods being consumed in abundance during spring when many plants bloom, and then as these foods decline, more leaves, ants and ground arthropods being eaten (5). The hatchlings of other lizards are also sometimes eaten, as well as shed skin, which is believed to help the lizard conserve vital protein (5).

Between April and August, the Coachella Valley fringe-toed lizard lays clutches of two to four eggs, with hatchlings appearing between June and September. This lizard reaches sexual maturity at the age of two (4). Periods of drought are known to reduce reproduction in the Coachella Valley fringe-toed lizard (4).