You will need to print out or copy 3 sets of Lizard Cast Cards (you may have a few extra but these can be used later on). The correct card will be distributed to the students after they have received a lizard role so that they can learn about how to play that species.

1.GILA MONSTER (Heloderma suspectum)

HABITAT: You are fossorial (live in burrows) and terrestrial (live on the ground).

DEFENSE: You rely on crypsis (camouflage) to avoid predation when inactive. When active this same color and pattern serves as a warning to others that you are venomous and that the venom you carry is extremely unpleasant (possibly life-threatening). When a predator approaches you, show them the back of this card (shows the color pattern) and they have to leave you alone.

DIET: You feed on the eggs of other reptiles and ground-nesting birds, along with baby birds and baby rodents. When the temperature is in your active range, look for eggs in burrows and nests.

ACTIVITY RANGE: You are diurnal.  Your active temperature range is or 70 to 86º F. However, you prefer to spend your time in burrows and deep crevices. In fact, you only come out of the burrow to feed.

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR:  You do not interact with the other species much, no head bobs, push-ups or any other social communications. You are the biggest lizard out there, so if another lizard comes into your burrow and there is not room for them, you can tell them to leave. If there is room for other lizards, you don’t bother them and they don’t bother you. You can gape (open your mouth wide) at other lizards if they are bothering you.

2. REGAL HORNED LIZARD   (Phrynosoma solare) – two students

HABITAT: You are terrestrial. You like to hang out away from trees because you don’t like to climb. You do like to hang out in open, flat areas.

DEFENSE: You rely on camouflage, large horns around the perimeter of your head, and the ability to squirt blood from a sinus behind the eye through a pore in your eyelid at predators.  You do not attempt to run away from snakes; instead you turn the widest part of your body to the would-be predator. The snake will then think you are bigger than it and leave you alone. If the roadrunner tries to eat you, stay very still and try to blend in to your surroundings. If the roadrunner still tags you, call heads or tails and toss your coin. If it lands on the side you called, your camouflage worked and the predator has to pretend that it did not see you. If it doesn’t land on the side that you called, the predator sees you and can eat you. No lizards can eat you.

DIET: You eat ants. You are a sit-and-wait predator that does not chase food very far. You may hang out near the bottom of creosote bushes to wait for ants. If ants come on the scene, try to tag a few for a meal.  

ACTIVITY RANGE: You are diurnal and generally active in the morning when it is still fairly cool outside. Your active temperature range is 72 to 86º F.  When the temperature is outside your range, you must find shelter, like a burrow.

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR: You do not interact with the other species much, no head bobs, push-ups or any other communication behaviors.  In fact you are kind of timid and cannot compete with other species speed and power. If you are in a burrow and another lizard needs your space, you must give it up and try to find another burrow. 

3.SONORAN SPOTTED WHIPTAIL LIZARD (Aspidoscelus – Cnemidophorus –  sonorae)

HABITAT: You are terrestrial. You hang out in open areas. You are very active and always moving around while looking for food.

DEFENSE: You are very fast. You rely on speed to avoid predation. Your predators are the coachwhip and the roadrunner. If a predator tries to eat you, you can power walk away from them and try to duck into a burrow before they tag you. If the burrow is full of lizards that are larger than you are, you may not hide there.

DIET: You mostly eat insects, like crickets. You actively search for prey and chase it down once it is in sight.  If crickets are not available, you may tag lizards that are smaller than you for a meal. Only the Tree lizard and Side-blotched lizard are smaller than you are, so you may eat them. All other lizards are larger than you are.

ACTIVITY RANGE: You are diurnal. At night, you are in a burrow. Your active temperature range is 72° F to 98° F. Anything hotter or colder than these temperatures and you are in a burrow.

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR You don’t interact with the other lizards much in a social context.  You are very small. If you need to be in a burrow, you can only push out the Tree lizard and Side-blotched lizard because they are smaller than you are.

4. DESERT SPINY LIZARD (Sceloporus magister) – two students

HABITAT: You are arboreal, meaning you like to hang out in trees and bushes. You can also hang out on rocks if necessary, as long as you are off the ground.

DEFENSE:   You use great vision to detect predators and try to run into a burrow when one comes on the scene. You must beware of snakes and roadrunners. Once the predator has passed, you must get back to higher ground, in a tree or on a rock. You have tail autotomy, which means that the first time you are tagged by a predator, you can give it your tail and get away. The second time you are tagged, you no longer have a tail to give away, so consider yourself eaten.

DIET:  You mostly eat crickets. You generally only pursue food once it has been seen moving, rather than actively foraging for it. If crickets come on the scene, you can try to tag a few for a meal.

ACTIVITY RANGE: You are diurnal and active for a large part of the day, but avoid really hot temperatures. Your active temperature range is 72 to 90° F. Outside of this temperature range, you must take shelter in a tree

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR: You are a large lizard. Only the Chuckwalla and the Gila monster are bigger than you and can ask you to leave a crowded burrow. You are the same size as the Desert Iguana, so neither of you can ask the other to leave a crowded burrow. All of the other lizards have to leave the burrow if you ask them to (because you are bigger than the rest). You can talk to your partner by doing head-bobs, push-ups, and gapes (opening your mouth very wide). You love to show off your blue throat and belly. You will also inflate your body to look larger than you really are.

5. DESERT IGUANA (Dipsosaurus dorsalis)

HABITAT:   You are terrestrial and like fairly open sandy habitat. You generally do not go on rocks or in trees.

DEFENSE:  You are one of the longest, fastest lizards around, and you have good camouflage to avoid detection. The roadrunner and the coachwhip are your predators. If a predator comes on the scene, you can try to get into a burrow OR you can try your camouflage technique: stay very still and try to blend in to your surroundings. If you try camouflage and the predator still picks you, call heads or tails and toss your coin. If it lands on the side you called, your camouflage worked and the predator has to pretend that it did not see you. If it doesn’t land on the side that you called, the predator sees you and can eat you.

DIET:  You are an omnivore that prefers creosote flowers, but can eat other plant matter and insects.  During your active temperature range, try to find flowers on the creosote bush.

ACTIVITY RANGE: You are diurnal, active throughout much of the day, and like it fairly hot. Your active temperature range is 75 to 107° F. Outside of this range, you must find shelter in a burrow.

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR:  You do not interact much with other lizards. Only the chuckwalla and Gila monster are larger than you and can ask you to leave a burrow. You can ask any of the other lizards to leave a burrow if it is full and you need shelter.

6. TREE LIZARD (Urosaurus ornatus)

HABITAT:   You are arboreal and live in trees. You only come out of the tree to find food or to go to another tree.

DEFENSE:  You use camouflage and burrows to avoid predation.  The roadrunner and the coachwhip are your predators. If a predator comes on the scene, you can try to get into a burrow OR you can try your camouflage technique: stay very still and try to blend in to your surroundings. If you try camouflage and the predator still picks you, call heads or tails and toss your coin. If it lands on the side you called, your camouflage worked and the predator has to pretend that it did not see you. If it doesn’t land on the side that you called, the predator sees you and can eat you.

You also have tail autotomy, which means that the first time you are tagged by a predator, you can give it your tail and get away. The second time you are tagged, you no longer have a tail to give away, so consider yourself eaten.

DIET:  You chase and eat small insects, like ants and crickets.  If some come on the scene, try to tag a few for a meal.

ACTIVITY RANGE: You are diurnal and active mainly in the morning and late afternoon.  Your active temperature range is 70 to 88° F.  Outside of this range go under the bark of the tree (hold the bark over you like a shield) or try to find shelter in a burrow.

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR: You are a small lizard. Only the banded gecko is smaller than you are. All other lizards can ask you to leave a crowded burrow if there is not enough room. You can talk to your partner by showing them your blue belly or by doing four-legged push-ups.

7. SIDE-BLOTCHED LIZARD (Uta stansburiana)

HABITAT:   You are terrestrial. You hang out around small shrubs and things you can hide under usually in fairly open, flat areas. 

DEFENSE:  You use camouflage and burrows to avoid predation.  The roadrunner and the coachwhip are your predators. If a predator comes on the scene, you can try to get into a burrow OR you can try your camouflage technique: stay very still and try to blend in to your surroundings. If you try camouflage and the predator still picks you, call heads or tails and toss your coin. If it lands on the side you called, your camouflage worked and the predator has to pretend that it did not see you. If it doesn’t land on the side that you called, the predator sees you and can eat you.

You also have tail autotomy, which means that the first time you are tagged by a predator, you can give it your tail and get away. The second time you are tagged, you no longer have a tail to give away, so consider yourself eaten.

DIET:  You chase and eat small insects, like crickets, that you see on the ground.  If some crickets come on the scene, try to tag a few for a meal.

ACTIVITY RANGE:  You are diurnal and active during morning and late afternoon, avoiding really hot times of the day.  Your active temperature range is 70 to 102° F. Outside of this temperature range, try to get into a burrow.

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR: You are a small lizard. Only the Banded gecko is smaller than you are, so you can ask it to leave if a burrow is crowded. The Tree lizard is the same size as you, so neither of you can push out the other. All the other lizards are bigger than you and can ask you to leave a crowded burrow. You can talk to your partner by doing vigorous four-legged push-ups and small shudders.

8. CLARK’S SPINY LIZARD (Sceloporus clarkii)

HABITAT:  You are arboreal, which means you are found mostly in trees, but you can also go on rocks. You only go on the ground to feed and to get to other trees or rocks. 

DEFENSE: You use camouflage and burrows to avoid predation.  The roadrunner and the coachwhip are your predators. If a predator comes on the scene, you can try to get into a burrow OR you can try your camouflage technique: stay very still and try to blend in to your surroundings. If you try camouflage and the predator still picks you, call heads or tails and toss your coin. If it lands on the side you called, your camouflage worked and the predator has to pretend that it did not see you. If it doesn’t land on the side that you called, the predator sees you and can eat you.

DIET:  You eat insects, like crickets. If some crickets come on the scene, try to tag a few for a meal.

ACTIVITY RANGE: You are diurnal and active throughout the morning and then again in the afternoon. Your temperature range is 75 to 97° F.  Outside of this range go under the bark of the tree (hold the bark over you like a shield) or try to find shelter in a burrow.

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR: You are a medium sized lizard. The Gila monster, Desert spiny lizard, Desert Iguana and Chuckwalla are all larger than you and can ask you to leave a crowded burrow. The Tree lizard, Side-blotched lizard, and the banded gecko are smaller than you are so you can ask them to leave a crowded burrow or find different bark. All the other lizards are the same size as you. You can talk to your partner with vigorous head bobs, push ups, and a gape (open you mouth really wide).

9. ZEBRA-TAILED LIZARD (Callisaurus draconoides) – two students

HABITAT:  You are terrestrial and love the open, sandy ground.

DEFENSE:  Your first line of defense against predators (like the roadrunner and the coachwhip) is tail autotomy, which means that your black and white banded tail can be used as a sacrifice to avoid being eaten. The first time you are tagged by a predator, you can give it your tail and get away. If a second predator comes on the scene and you no longer have a tail, try to get to a burrow. The second time you are tagged, you no longer have a tail to give away, so consider yourself eaten.

DIET: You eat small insects, like crickets. If some come on the scene, try to tag a few for a meal.

ACTIVITY RANGE:  You are diurnal and active even when it gets pretty hot out.  Your temperature range is 75 to 100° F. Outside of this range try to find shelter in a burrow.

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR:  You are a medium sized lizard. The Gila monster, Desert spiny lizard, Desert Iguana and Chuckwalla are all larger than you and can ask you to leave a crowded burrow. The Tree lizard, Side-blotched lizard, and the banded gecko are smaller than you are so you can ask them to leave a crowded burrow. All the other lizards are the same size as you. You can talk to your partner with push-ups and shudders.

10. CHUCKWALLA (Sauromalus obesus)

HABITAT: You are saxicolous, which means you are a rock dweller. You like living among rocky crevices, rarely venturing from the safety they offer. 

DEFENSE:   The roadrunner is your predator. If one tries to get you, you inflate the air pouches at your sides to wedge yourself into a crevice. If a predator tries to tag you, get to the crevice and puff up your body and put your arms and legs out so that they can not pull you out of the crevice. Let them try to pull you out a couple times, but eventually you can tell them to give up. They will not be able to get you out.

DIET:  You eat vegetation, especially flowers.  When the temperature is within your active range, wander around looking for flowers to eat.

ACTIVITY RANGE:You are diurnal and can take more heat than any other lizard.  Your active temperature range is 75 to 110° F. Outside of this temperature range, take shelter in the rock crevice. 

CHARACTERISTICS AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR:  You are the second largest lizard around. Only the Gila monster is bigger than you and can ask you to leave your rock crevice. All other lizards are smaller than you are so they cannot ask you to leave your crevice. You can talk to your partner with head-bobs and push-ups.