Missouri’s rocky glades, tallgrass prairies, and hardwood forests support a surprising variety of scaled residents. According to the Washington University Missouri’s Natural Heritage program, the state is home to eleven native lizard species, all of which are harmless to humans. Older Missouri Department of Conservation materials cite thirteen species, a difference tied to decades of taxonomic revisions that split or renamed several populations.
This guide covers six of the state’s most recognizable types of lizards in Missouri, from the boldly colored eastern collared lizard of the southern glades to the legless glass lizard that gets mistaken for a snake. Each one has adapted to a specific slice of Missouri’s landscape, and learning their distinguishing marks makes backyard and trail encounters far more interesting.
| Lizard | Typical Length | Preferred Habitat | Key Identifying Feature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Collared Lizard | Up to 14 inches | Rocky glades, southern Missouri | Two dark neck “collars” |
| Texas Horned Lizard | 2.5-4 inches | Sandy, open ground, southwest corner | Head “horns” and spiky sides |
| Six-lined Racerunner | 6-9 inches | Open, sunny ground statewide | Six pale stripes, fast sprinter |
| Prairie Lizard | 4-7 inches | Open woods, fences, rock piles | Blue throat and belly patches on males |
| Common Five-lined Skink | 5-8 inches | Statewide, woodland edges | Blue tail in juveniles |
| Glass Lizard | Up to 3 feet | Prairies, grasslands | Legless body, visible eyelids |
1. Eastern Collared Lizard
The eastern collared lizard (Crotaphytus collaris) is one of the showiest reptiles in the state, with a chunky body, an oversized head, and a coloring that can shift from green to yellow depending on the individual and the season. Bird Watching HQ notes that eastern collared lizards can be found in southern Missouri in desert shrubland, open juniper-pinon forest, and grassland, and they prefer areas with rocks for basking, open space for running, and lots of sunlight.
The species gets its common name from a distinctive marking described by Washington University’s Natural Heritage project: the eastern collared lizard is a medium-sized, colorful lizard with a large head and powerful jaws perfect for capturing grasshoppers, beetles, spiders and sometimes other lizards, and its name comes from the two black lines, or “collars,” around its neck. Those jaws are strong enough to matter to anyone tempted to pick one up.
Older Missouri Department of Conservation records confirm the lizard’s role near the top of its local food chain, noting that the eastern collared lizard is an important predator of other lizards. The same source cautions that collared lizards have a larger head and strong jaws and can cause a superficial bite that may bleed slightly if handled. Anyone comparing regional variants may also want to see how the species differs from populations covered in a guide to types of lizards in Texas, where collared lizards occupy a much larger range.
Pro Tip: Look for eastern collared lizards perched on exposed limestone or dolomite rock in Missouri’s glade country during the warmest part of the day. They bask openly and rarely retreat until approached within a few feet.
2. Texas Horned Lizard
The Texas horned lizard (Phrynosoma cornutum) is the rarest of Missouri’s native lizards and the one most likely to surprise a first-time observer. The Missouri Department of Conservation describes it as a stocky, short-tailed lizard with several large “horns” protruding from the back of the head, with a general color of tan, grayish brown, or reddish brown. Its defenses are equally unusual: the species defends itself by puffing up its body with air to look larger, or it can eject a small amount of blood from the inner corners of each eye to confuse a predator, a trait that has earned it the nickname “horny toad.”
Range is the biggest challenge for anyone hoping to spot one. The Department of Conservation notes the species is limited to the far southwestern corner of the state, where the Texas horned lizard is rare in Missouri but once lived in several southwestern counties. Bird Watching HQ adds that Texas horned lizards are found in southwestern Missouri in open, sandy land without much plant life, with habitat that is mostly rocky with loose soil or sand to burrow in and lay eggs. Readers researching the species’ broader range may find it useful to compare notes with a guide to types of lizards in Arizona, where horned lizards are far more widespread.
Important Note: Because Texas horned lizard populations have declined sharply in Missouri, sightings should be reported to local conservation offices rather than handled or collected. This species is considered a conservation priority in the state.
3. Six-lined Racerunner
The six-lined racerunner (Aspidoscelis sexlineata) is built for speed rather than camouflage. Its diet leans heavily on one particular insect: Bird Watching HQ reports that six-lined racerunners are insectivores, and their primary food source is termites, though they also eat beetles, ants, and spiders, making them useful neighbors for anyone dealing with a backyard pest problem, including the wasps and beetles cataloged in guides to Missouri beetles and Missouri wasps.
Its common name is not an exaggeration. The same source notes that the six-lined racerunner lives up to its name, clocking speeds at up to 18 miles per hour, and it has no problem outmaneuvering predators and curious humans. Coloring helps with quick identification too: coloring is light reddish-brown with a light brown stripe down the spine, and orange or red coloring on the lips and chin is sometimes present. This species ranges across most of Missouri and shows up frequently in gravel driveways, open fields, and sandy riverbanks, much like the whiptail-family lizards discussed in a guide to Arizona’s desert lizard species.
4. Prairie Lizard
The prairie lizard (Sceloporus consobrinus) is Missouri’s most frequently encountered lizard around homes, barns, and woodpiles. It carries a complicated naming history worth understanding before identifying one in the field. As the Missouri Department of Conservation explains, this Missouri lizard used to be called the northern fence lizard, a subspecies of eastern fence lizard, but biologists have revised its taxonomy, and now it’s considered a distinct species, the prairie lizard. Many longtime residents and older field guides still call it a fence lizard out of habit.
Sex-based color differences make this species easy to tell apart once you know what to look for. The Department of Conservation notes that males are either dark gray or brown on the back, with little or no pattern, and the belly is strongly marked with deep iridescent blue bordered with black, and the throat is also blue, while females have distinct wavy lines crossing their backs, with some orange or red at the base of the tail, and the belly is white with faint dark spots.
Prairie lizards are also surprisingly athletic. Bird Watching HQ observes that these spiny lizards are one of the best climbers in their family, and in Missouri, prairie lizards spend most of their time off the ground perched in trees, on fences, and even on sunflowers.
The species is common enough that the Department of Conservation calls it relatively common in appropriate habitats, and often the most common lizard observed by people around homes and buildings, with a range that runs throughout the southern half of the state and into northeastern Missouri in the Mississippi River Hills. Anyone comparing fence lizard populations further south may want to check a guide to types of lizards in Tennessee, where a closely related species occupies similar habitat across the Mississippi River.
Key Insight: Prairie lizards were once lumped in with the eastern fence lizard as a single species. DNA testing is now the only reliable way to separate the two where their ranges might overlap near Missouri’s eastern border.
5. Common/Five-lined Skink
The common five-lined skink (Plestiodon fasciatus) is the lizard most people in Missouri have actually seen up close, usually darting under a porch step or woodpile. The Missouri Department of Conservation describes it as one of Missouri’s most abundant skinks, often called the blue-tailed skink for the coloration of juveniles, and it occurs nearly statewide.
Color changes dramatically with age and sex, which can confuse casual observers. According to the Department of Conservation, adult males are uniform olive or tan with a faint dark stripe along the side, but during the breeding season the male’s head is bright red orange; adult females are normally brown with a dark brown stripe, five tan stripes, and a blue or blue-gray tail; and hatchlings and young adults are black with five yellow stripes and a bright blue tail.
The species stays active for most of the warm season, with the Department noting that in Missouri, this species is active from March to October, with a peak from April into early June, and its diet covers a variety of insects, spiders, snails, and smaller lizards, overlapping with the arachnid populations detailed in a guide to Missouri spiders.
Missouri’s skink diversity extends well beyond this one species, including the great plains skink, southern coal skink, broad-headed skink, and little brown skink. Readers curious about how far this family extends across the country can look at a comparable roundup of types of lizards in Florida, where several additional skink species occupy similar leaf-litter habitat.
6. Glass Lizard
The western slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus) is the species most likely to be mistaken for a snake, and it’s the one exception to the “four legs” rule that defines most Missouri lizards. The Missouri Department of Conservation is direct about this distinction: the western slender glass lizard, which lives in many Missouri counties, is legless, but has eyelids and ear openings, which snakes lack. Those two features remain the fastest way to separate a glass lizard from an actual snake in the field.
Glass lizards also break from typical lizard reproductive habits. Most Missouri lizards abandon their eggs after laying them, but the Department of Conservation notes that skinks and glass lizards lay their eggs under a flat rock or inside a rotten log and stay with the eggs until they hatch. Washington University’s Natural Heritage project confirms this parental behavior is unusual among the state’s herpetofauna, since most Missouri lizards will lay eggs in loose soil, under a rock, or in a rotten log and leave them, except for skinks and glass lizards, which actually wait and protect the eggs until they hatch.
Pro Tip: If a “snake” seems to blink or has visible ear openings on the side of its head, it is very likely a glass lizard rather than a true snake. Glass lizards also tend to have a distinct groove running along each side of the body, which snakes lack entirely.
Protecting Missouri’s Lizard Populations
All six of these species face pressure from habitat loss, particularly the glade and prairie specialists whose remaining range has shrunk over the past century. House cats compound the problem: the Missouri Department of Conservation reports that skunks, badgers, and raccoons dig up and consume lizard eggs, and unfortunately, house cats have proven to be a primary predator of all species of lizards. Natural predators such as hawks and the increasingly familiar eagles covered in a guide to Missouri’s eagle species also take a share, alongside snakes; a comparison with the state’s types of snakes in Missouri shows how closely these reptile communities overlap in diet and habitat.
Homeowners who want to support local lizard populations can leave brush piles and flat rocks in place, avoid pesticide use near garden edges, and keep cats indoors during warm months when lizards are most active. Anyone hoping to keep a lizard as a pet should know that wild-caught Missouri species are a poor choice: the Department of Conservation states plainly that Missouri’s lizards are not recommended as pets, since they have special needs including warm temperatures of 82 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit and natural ultraviolet light. Reptile keepers interested in captive-bred alternatives can find species-specific care information in a guide to common pet reptiles.
Common Mistake: Removing a wild lizard from its habitat to keep as a pet almost always shortens its lifespan and disrupts local populations of species that are already limited to small patches of glade or prairie. Observation and photography are better ways to enjoy Missouri’s lizards without harming them.
Missouri’s lizard community is smaller than what you’d find in warmer states, but each of these six species fills a distinct niche in the state’s forests, glades, and prairies. Whether it’s the collared lizard’s bold markings, the horned lizard’s spiky defenses, or the glass lizard’s snake-like disguise, learning to identify them turns a routine hike into a genuine wildlife encounter. Missouri’s amphibian community, including the state’s salamander species, shares many of the same glade and forest habitats and makes a natural next stop for anyone building out their knowledge of the state’s herpetofauna.