Mexican beaded lizard generic name "Heloderma" means "studded skin", from the Ancient Greek words "hêlos" (ἧλος)—the head of a nail or stud—and "dérma" (δέρμα), meaning skin. Its specific name, "horrĭdum", is the Latin word meaning rough or rude. The four subspecies of beaded lizard, elevated to full species in 2013, are: Adult beaded lizards range from in length. They are substantially larger than the Gila monster, which only reaches lengths of . The snout-to-vent length of a beaded lizard averages . The average body mass of an adult beaded lizard is , about 45% heavier than the average mass of a gila monster,
Northern alligator lizard coast and can be found from sea level up to elevation of about . It is found in a variety of forested habitats and montane chaparral. Northern alligator lizard The northern alligator lizard ("Elgaria coerulea") is a medium-sized lizard that occurs on the North American west coast. The northern alligator lizard was formerly known by the scientific name of "Gerrhonotus coeruleus" , but is nowadays assigned to the genus "Elgaria". Four subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies: "Nota bene": A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than