Machodoe's girdled lizard
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SVL 60-70 mm, max SVL 78 mm
This species is similar to, and once treated as an isolated race of, the Transvaal girdled lizard, C.vittifer.It is a small girdled lizard in which the first row of dorsal is also elongated. The body is very flattened and the triangular head has rough head shields.The nasals are in contact, separating the small rostral from the frontonasal. The dorsal scales are small and strongly keeled, in 26-28 transverse and 22-23 longitudinal rows. The smooth ventrals are in 16 rows. males have 6-7 femoral pores on each thigh. It is uniform dirty yellow-brown above, and paler on the sides of the body, tail and belly. the head is dark brown above but the lips are paler. Biology and breeding : Solitary or in pairs, living in cracks in small rock outcrops and calcrete outcrops. Habitat : Arid savannah. Range : Huila province, S.Angola to extreme N.Kaokoveld, Namibia.