Loxopholis southi
Silhouette: Jose Carlos Arenas-Monroy · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Loxopholis southi, also known commonly as the northern spectacled lizard and the southern leposoma, is a species of lizard in the family Gymnophthalmidae. The species is native to southeastern Central America and northwestern South America. There are two recognized subspecies.
The specific name, southi, is in honor of John Glover South (1873–1940), who was an American physician and diplomat. L. southi is found in Costa Rica, Panama, and Colombia. They inhabit forested environments, particularly tropical moist forest, and are typically found in leaf litter on the forest floor.
L. southi is oviparous. Two subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies: Loxopholis southi orientalis (Taylor, 1955) Loxopholis southi southi (Ruthven & Gaige, 1924) Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Loxopholis.
Goicoechea N, Frost DR, De la Riva I, Pelligrino KCM, Sites J Jr, Rodrigues MT, Padial JM (2016). "Molecular systematics of teioid lizards (Teioidea/Gymnophthalmoidea... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Piedras Blancas National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 2 | Corcovado National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 3 | Soberanía National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama |
No species of the same family or order lives in Soberanía National Park, so these are its closest relatives here: other reptiles.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Root Teju sighting in Soberanía National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 48th most-seen of the 52 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February, June, August and October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Root Teju in Soberanía National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March–May, July, September and November–January, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Northern Root Teju sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
Among the best
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Northern Root Teju sightings, Soberanía National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Piedras Blancas National Park (Costa Rica, about 10%) and Corcovado National Park (Costa Rica, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Northern Root Teju is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Soberanía National Park (7 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.
