NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Ornate Sandveld Lizard
Nucras ornata (Gray, 1864)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Nucras ornata, the ornate sandveld lizard or ornate scrub lizard, is a wall lizard in the family of true lizards (Lacertidae). It is found in Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, south to KwaZulu-Natal, west to the Cape Province, Botswana, and Namibia.
Wikipedia contributors, Nucras ornata; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T10:09:24.778107+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Nucras ornata (Gray, 1864)
- Name authority
- (Gray, 1864)
- Common name
- Ornate Sandveld Lizard
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Lacertidae
- Genus
- Nucras
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderAutarchoglossa
- familyLacertidae
- genusNucras
- speciesNucras ornata (Gray, 1864)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Nucras. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Bluetail Scrub LizardNucras caesicaudata Broadley, 1972 | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Spotted Sandveld LizardNucras intertexta (Smith, 1838) | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Delalande's Sandveld LizardNucras lalandii (Milne-Edwards, 1829) | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Karoo Sandveld LizardNucras livida (Smith, 1838) | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lambert’s Bay Sandveld LizardNucras aurantiaca Bauer, Childers, Broeckhoven & Mouton, 2019 | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Angolan Sandveld LizardNucras broadleyi Branch, Conradie, Vaz-Pinto & Tolley, 2019 | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Nucras margaritae Bauer, Childers & Burger, 2025 | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Boulenger’s scrub lizardNucras boulengeri Neumann, 1900 | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Holub’s Sandveld LizardNucras holubi (Steindachner, 1882) | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Scaled Sandveld LizardNucras scalaris Laurent, 1964 | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Albany Sandveld LizardNucras taeniolata (Smith, 1838) | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Striped Sandveld LizardNucras tessellata (Smith, 1838) | LacertidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Lacerta cameranoi Bedriaga, 1886 Bedriaga, 1886 | synonym |
| Teira ornata Gray, 1864 Gray, 1864 | synonym |
| Lacerta tessellata pseudotessellata Bedriaga, 1886 Bedriaga, 1886 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Nucras&species=ornata Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:482PM. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.