The reptiles that inhabit El Salvador include snakes, lizards, crocodilians and turtles. El Salvador has a herpetofauna that includes 141 species of reptiles, which are grouped into 3 orders and 26 families.

Table of contentsTurtles: Cheloniidae · Dermochelyidae · Emydidae · Geoemydidae · Kinosternidae · StaurotypidaeCrocodilians: Crocodylidae · AlligatoridaeLizards: Anguidae · Corytophanidae · Dactyloidae · Gekkonidae · Iguanidae · Phrynosomatidae · Scincidae · Teiidae · Gymnophthalmidae · XantusiidaeSnakes: Leptotyphlopidae · Typhlopidae · Boidae · Loxocemidae · Colubridae · Dipsadidae · Natricidae · Elapidae · ViperidaeNotes       References

Turtles (Testudines)

Cheloniidae

Order: Testudines · Family: Cheloniidae

Sea turtles (Cheloniidae) are a family of large turtles found in all tropical seas and some subtropical and temperate seas. Sea turtles developed from land turtles about 120 million years ago and are well adapted to life in the sea. They feed mainly on jellyfish, crustaceans and squid. There are 5 or 6 species worldwide, of which at least 5 are currently endangered.

Caretta caretta (Linnaeus, 1758) [EN] Chelonia agassizii Bocourt, 1868Currently, most taxonomic authorities consider Chelonia agassizii as a subspecies of green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas agassizi) that inhabits the Pacific. See: [EN] Chelonia mydas (Linnaeus, 1758) [EN] Eretmochelys imbricata (Linnaeus, 1766) [CR] Lepidochelys olivacea (Eschscholtz, 1829) [VU]

Dermochelyidae

Order: Testudines · Family: Dermochelyidae

The leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) is the largest of all living turtles, reaching a length of and weighing more than . It is found in all tropical or subtropical seas. Unlike most sea turtles, leatherbacks are often found in the colder waters of temperate zones. It is the only species within the Dermochelyidae family and is critically endangered. All other species are only known as fossils.

Dermochelys coriacea (Vandelli, 1761) [CR]

Emydidae Order: Testudines · Family: Emydidae

The emydidae (Emydidae) are a family of carnivorous aquatic and semi-aquatic turtles. They live most of the time in ponds, reservoirs and rivers, coming to land when they have to find suitable places to lay their eggs. This family is made up of 10 genera that contain more than 50 species. four of them occur in El Salvador.

Trachemys emolli (Legler, 1990) Trachemys grayi (Bocourt, 1868) Trachemys scripta (Thunberg in Schoepff, 1792) Trachemys venusta (Gray, 1855)

Geoemydidae The geoemydidae (Geoemydidae) are a family of turtles made up of 69 species distributed throughout the world. One of them occurs in El Salvador:

Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima (Gray, 1855)

Kinosternidae

Order: Testudines · Family: Kinosternidae

Chinosternidae (Kinosternidae), or swamp turtles, are a family of turtles native to America. They are mostly small turtles that inhabit bodies of water with soft, muddy bottoms with an abundance of vegetation. All members of the family are carnivorous and feed on crustaceans, aquatic insects, mollusks, annelids, amphibians, small fish and sometimes carrion. The Kinosternidae family has a total of 4 genera and 25 species. Two species occur in El Salvador.

Kinosternon scorpioides (Linnaeus, 1766) Staurotypus salvinii (Gray, 1864)

Crocodilians (Crocodylia)

Crocodylidae

Order: Crocodylia · Family: Crocodylidae

Crocodilians (Crocodylidae) are a family of archosaur sauropsids (reptiles) commonly known as crocodiles. It includes 14 species of large semi-aquatic reptiles that inhabit tropical areas of the world. Crocodiles tend to congregate in freshwater habitats, such as rivers, lakes, wetlands, and sometimes brackish water. Crocodiles are ambush hunters, waiting for fish or land animals to approach, to pounce on the prey. As cold-blooded predators, they have a very slow metabolism and can therefore survive long periods without food. They feed mainly on vertebrates such as fish, reptiles and mammals, and sometimes invertebrates such as mollusks and crustaceans, depending on the species. Despite their slow appearance, crocodiles are very fast over short distances, even out of water.

Crocodylus acutus Cuvier, 1807 [VU]

Alligatoridae

Order: Crocodylia · Family: Alligatoridae

The alligatoridae (Alligatoridae) are a family of crocodilian sauropsids (reptiles) native to the Americas, including alligators and caimans. It includes the extant genera Alligator, Caiman, Melanosuchus and Paleosuchus, as well as numerous extinct genera. Of the 7 species that inhabit America, one occurs in El Salvador.

Caiman crocodilus Linnaeus, 1758

Lizards (Squamata – suborder Lacertilia)

Anguidae Order: Squamata · Family: Anguidae

The anguids (Aguidae), popularly known as glass lizards, are a family of lacertilian reptiles characterized by atrophy of the legs, although they are not directly related to snakes; This is, therefore, a notable case of evolutionary convergence. The distribution of Anguidae spans the old and new world. It is absent only in Australia. Most species are terrestrial and live in the leaf litter on the forest floor. The anguid family is divided into three subfamilies, eight genera and contains 94 species, of which 5 occur in El Salvador.

Abronia montecristoi Hidalgo, 1983 Abronia salvadorensis Hidalgo, 1983 Celestus bivittatus (Boulenger, 1895) Diploglossus atitlanensis (Smith, 1950) Mesaspis moreletii (Bocourt, 1872)

Corytophanidae

Order: Squamata · Family: Corytophanidae

The corytophanids (Corytophanidae) are a family of scaly reptiles from the suborder of lizards. They typically present helmet-shaped front crests, which are sexually dimorphic characters in species of the genus Basiliscus, since only males develop them, while in the species of Corytophanes and Laemanctus they are present in both males and females. Its distribution area includes Mexico, Central and South America up to Ecuador. There are 9 known species of corythophanids, 3 of them occur in El Salvador.

Basiliscus vittatus Wiegmann, 1828 Corytophanes cristatus (Merrem, 1820) Corytophanes percarinatus Duméril, 1856

Dactyloidae

Order: Squamata · Family: Dactyloidae

Anolis biporcatus (Wiegmann, 1834) Anolis capito Peters, 1863 Anolis crassulus Cope, 1864 Anolis laeviventris (Wiegmann, 1834) Anolis lemurinus Cope, 1861 Anolis limifrons Cope, 1862 Anolis macrophallus Werner, 1917 Anolis serranoi (Köhler, 1999) Anolis sminthus Dunn & Emlen, 1932 Anolis tropidonotus Peters, 1863 Anolis wellbornae Ahl, 1940

Gekkonidae

Order: Squamata · Family: Gekkonidae

Geconids or geckos (Gekkonidae) are a family of scaly sauropsids (reptiles), which includes small to medium-sized species found in temperate and tropical climates around the world. They have several peculiar features that clearly distinguish them from other lizards. They are unique in their vocalization, as they make screeching noises in their interactions with other geckos. They are nocturnal, with large eyes and equipped with vertical lobed pupils that allow an extraordinary margin of variation in their opening. Many species have sticky pads on the soles of their feet and can climb smooth vertical surfaces and even navigate ceilings. The geconids form a large family of lizards with a total of approximately 1500 species. 6 species occur in El Salvador.

Coleonyx elegans Gray, 1845 Coleonyx mitratus (Peters, 1863) Gonatodes albogularis (Duméril & Bibron, 1836) Hemidactylus frenatus Schlegel, 1836 Phyllodactylus tuberculosus Wiegmann, 1834 Sphaerodactylus glaucus Cope, 1866

Iguanidae

Order: Squamata · Family: Iguanidae

The iguanids (Iguanidae) are a family of lizards whose distribution extends from the southern United States, Central America to Paraguay, and from the Caribbean islands to the Galapagos Islands and Fiji. Iguanids can reach lengths that vary between and . The tail is often longer than the rest of the body. They often have a dewlap that helps regulate body temperature, and dorsal spines that are more pronounced in males than in females. Some species are terrestrial, others prefer to live in trees or rocks. Males are usually territorial and defend their territory against other males, but tolerate females. All iguanas are oviparous. The nests are usually quite large, often several females lay their eggs in the proximity of other nests to facilitate their defense. Juveniles feed primarily on insects and other invertebrates, while adults, especially in larger species, switch to a primarily plant diet. Four iguanids occur in El Salvador.

Ctenosaura flavidorsalis Köhler & Klemmer, 1994 [EN] Ctenosaura quinquecarinata (Gray, 1842) Ctenosaura similis (Gray, 1831) Iguana iguana (Linnaeus, 1758)

Phrynosomatidae Order: Squamata · Family: Phrynosomatidae

Phrynosomatidae (Phrynosomatidae) are a family of lizards known as spiny lizards. They have a parietal eye. They live among rocks, on the ground, in bushy vegetation, under logs or under rocks. Its range includes southern Canada, the United States, Mexico and Central America. There are 136 recognized species, 4 of them occur in El Salvador.

Sceloporus acanthinus Bocourt, 1873 Sceloporus malachiticus Cope, 1864 Sceloporus squamosus Bocourt, 1874 Sceloporus variabilis Wiegmann, 1834

Scincidae Order: Squamata · Family: Scincidae

The scincids (Scincidae) are a family of scaly sauropsids (reptiles); It is the most diverse group of lizards. Includes skinks or skinks. It belongs to the superfamily or infraorder Scincomorpha, which also includes the true lizards (Lacertidae). The Scincidae family contains about 1,200 species of lizards that have a global distribution. 3 species occur in El Salvador.

Mesoscincus managuae (Dunn, 1933) Scincella assata (Cope, 1864) Scincella cherriei (Cope, 1893)

Teiidae

Order: Squamata · Family: Teiidae

The teiids (Teiidae) are a family of lizards with elongated bodies, well-developed limbs, provided with granular dorsal scales, and large, rectangular ventral plates; the head has large plates. All teiids have a forked tongue, similar to that of a snake. They are terrestrial and diurnal, and mainly insectivorous, although some species include a small amount of plant matter in their diet. They all lay eggs. Ten genera are distinguished with more than 230 species, of which 6 occur in El Salvador.

Aspidoscelis deppei (Wiegmann, 1834) Aspidoscelis motaguae (Sackett, 1941) Aspidoscelis sackii (Wiegmann, 1834) Cnemidophorus lemniscatus (Linnaeus, 1758) Holcosus festivus (Lichtenstein, 1856) Holcosus undulatus (Wiegmann, 1834)

Gymnophthalmidae Order: Squamata · Family: Gymnophthalmidae

Gymnophthalmidae is a family of lizards, also known as microtheids. They have transparent lower eyelids, allowing you to see with your eyes closed. They are related to the tiiids, but with their smooth scales they are more similar to scincids. They are generally small lizards, many species have reduced limbs. They live in a wide variety of habitats – from desert to mountains to rainforest – throughout Central and South America. They generally inhabit the forest floor or humid areas associated with tropical forests. They are nocturnal animals or are active intermittently during the day. They feed mainly on insects and other invertebrates. All species are oviparous. The family is made up of more than 220 species grouped into 40 genera. A species occurs in El Salvador.

Gymnophthalmus speciosus (Hallowell, 1871)

Xantusiidae Order: Squamata · Family: Xantusiidae

Lepidophyma flavimaculatum A. Duméril, 1851 Lepidophyma smithii Bocourt, 1876

Snakes (Squamata – suborder Serpentes)

Leptotyphlopidae

Order: Squamata · Family: Leptotyphlopidae