Daily Activity Patterns in Leiolepis rubritaeniata (Squamata: Leiolepididae)

Based on 220 hours of video footage recorded during the months of April through July 2020 we examined the daily activity pattern in the lizard species Leiolepis rubritaeniata at a site in northeastern Thailand. The lizards open their burrows mostly between 06:30 and 8:30 h. Then, for usually less than 30 minutes, the lizard typically remained in a position with only the head or the head and forebody outside the hole, observing its environment. Having left the burrow completely, it spread the ribs to stretch the lose skin fold along the sides of the body in order to increase surface area exposed to the sunlight to increase body temperature. After this thermoregulatory period the lizard started to move around to feed or to interact with conspecifics. During the rest of the active part of the day, the lizard showed active periods of foraging and moving across its home range as well as periods of inactivity when the animal was documented to sit motionless near its burrow opening or had disappeared into the burrow. Any disturbance prompted it to quickly retreat into the burrow. In the evening the lizards usually close their burrow with a plug of lose substrate and open it again on the next morning to resume activity.