Sinharaja rough-nosed horned lizard (Ceratophora aspera): leaf-litter humidity requirements?
What microclimatic soil moisture levels and canopy cover sustain the endemic horned lizard Ceratophora aspera across the lowland rainforest floor?
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3 Answers from travellers
Ceratophora aspera (the Rough-nosed Horned Lizard) is a small ground-dwelling agamid point-endemic to wet-zone lowland rainforests like Sinharaja and Kanneliya. Unlike arboreal lizards, it lives exclusively within thick, undisturbed leaf litter on the rainforest floor. It requires high relative humidity (above 85%) and damp substrate temperatures between 22°C and 25°C beneath closed 80% canopy shade. Males possess a prominent cylindrical rostral horn covered in rough scales, used in territorial head-bobbing displays. They freeze motionless when approached, blending into rotting Dipterocarp leaves.
Leaf-litter disturbance from off-trail hiking crushes camouflaged individuals; visitors must remain strictly on established gravel conservation trails.
Illegal collection for the international exotic vivarium trade carries severe criminal penalties under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance.
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