chuckwallan.
/ˈtʃʌkwɒlə/ A large rock-dwelling iguanid lizard, Sauromalus obesus, common in the deserts of the south-western U.S. Also chuckwalla lizard.
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the world > animals > reptiles > order Squamata (lizards and snakes) > suborder Lacertilia (lizards) > [noun] > family Iguanidae > member of genus Sauromalus (chuckwalla)
chuckwalla1893
1893 N. Amer. Fauna VII. 174 The ‘chuck-walla’, by which name this remarkable lizard is universally known to both Indians and whites.., inhabits many of the Lower Sonoran Desert ranges in the southern part of the Great Basin.
1914 E. A. Brininstool Trail Dust 103 Let me see the chuckawalla and the Gila monster too.
1942 R. G. Lillard Desert Challenge 248 I reckon my critics never..lived on whang leather and Chuckawalla lizards.
1966 R. C. Stebbins Field Guide Western Reptiles & Amphibians 95 When disturbed, chuckwallas gulp air, distend their body, and wedge themselves in place.
1978 Sci. Amer. Aug. 88/3 Eugene C. Crawford and Billy J. Barber of the University of Kentucky found that the chuckwallah lizard exploits panting as a mechanism to lose heat if its skin temperature or deep-body temperature exceeds a certain level.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1993; most recently modified version published online March 2018).
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