Aspidoscelis tigris
Silhouette: Jose Carlos Arenas-Monroy · PhyloPic
In 3 days >90%
The western whiptail (Aspidoscelis tigris) is a species of lizard in the family Teiidae. The species is found throughout most of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Most of its populations appear stable, and it is not listed as endangered in any of the states comprising its range. It lives in a wide variety of habitats, including deserts and semiarid shrubland, usually in areas with sparse vegetation; it also may be found in woodland, open dry forest, and riparian growth. It lives in burrows. Major differences between this species and the checkered whiptail (Aspidoscelis tesselatus) include the lack of enlarged scales anterior to the gular fold and the presence of enlarged postantebrachial scales. It was previously known as Cnemidophorus tigris, until phylogenetic analyses concluded that the genus Cnemidophorus was polyphyletic. Since it does not migrate, a number of forms have developed in different regions, several of which have been given subspecific names – for example the California whiptail, Aspidoscelis tigris munda.
Including the nominotypical subspecies, 16 subspecies of Aspidoscelis tigris are recognized as being valid. A... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joshua Tree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Zion National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Death Valley National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Grand Canyon National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 7 | Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Yosemite National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Bahía de Loreto National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phoenix | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Sacramento | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Salt Lake City | 🇺🇸 United States |
No species of the same family or order lives in Joshua Tree National Park, so these are its closest relatives here: other reptiles.
Very likely
About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Western Whiptail sighting in Joshua Tree National Park on a given day, based on 823 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 4th most-seen of the 39 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April–June and August
In those months about 80% of wildlife watchers report a Western Whiptail in Joshua Tree National Park on a given day, against about 10% in December and January, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Western Whiptail sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 9 parks where we can rate Western Whiptail sightings, Joshua Tree National Park has the highest daily chance: about 70%. Next come Zion National Park (United States, about 50%) and Death Valley National Park (United States, about 40%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Western Whiptail is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Joshua Tree National Park (823 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
