Common Agama

Its size varies from 13 to 30 cm (5.1 to 11.8 in) in total length. Males are typically 7.5 to 12 cm (3.0 to 4.7 in) longer than the average female. The agama lizard can be identified by having a white underside, brown back limbs and a tail with a light stripe down the middle. The stripe on the tail typically possesses about six to seven dark patches along its side. Females, adolescents and subordinate males have an olive green head, while a dominant male has a blue body and yellow tail.

The common agama is native to countries such as Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, Tanzania and Uganda. However, it has been introduced through the reptile trade to southern Florida, where it has become extremely common. Agama agama is well-adapted to arid conditions. These lizards remain active throughout the day except for the hottest hour, when even shaded spots can reach 38 °C (100 °F).

Common agamas are primarily insectivores, but they have been known to eat small mammals and reptiles and vegetation such as flowers, grasses, and fruits. Their diet consists of mainly ants, grasshoppers, beetles and termites. They catch their prey using their tongue, the tip of which is covered by mucous glands that enable the lizard to hold to smaller prey.