NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Four-toed Tegu
Teius teyou (Daudin, 1802)
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
Teius teyou, the four-toed tegu, is one of the most common South American lizards. It belongs to the genus Teius and the family Teiidae.
It is found from southern Brazil to Argentina. It lives on open land and often takes cover in rocky areas. It makes a tunnel for itself under soil and rocks to hide from enemies. It feeds on insects and spiders.
Wikipedia contributors, Teius teyou; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:08:50.079784+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Teius teyou (Daudin, 1802)
- Name authority
- (Daudin, 1802)
- Common name
- Four-toed Tegu
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Teiidae
- Genus
- Teius
- 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
- familyTeiidae
- genusTeius
- speciesTeius teyou (Daudin, 1802)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Teius. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Teius suquiensis Avila & Martori, 1991 | TeiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Teius oculatus (d'Orbigny & Bibron, 1837) | TeiidaeChordata | 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 |
|---|---|
| Teius teyou cyanogaster Müller, 1928 Müller, 1928 | synonym |
| Lacerta teyou Daudin, 1802 Daudin, 1802 | synonym |
| Teius viridis Merrem, 1820 Merrem, 1820 | synonym |
| Tejus tejou cyanogaster Müller, 1928 Müller, 1928 | synonym |
| Ameiva caelestis Bibron ex d'Orbigny, 1847 Bibron ex d'Orbigny, 1847 | ambiguous 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=Teius&species=teyou 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:5554V. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.