Appearance
Adults may attain a snout to vent length of 10.5 cm, or a total length, including the tail, of 26 cm. The dorsal scales are keeled and pointed. "L. carinatus" resembles lizards of the genus "Sceloporus", but with the tail usually curled upward, especially when the lizard is in a horizontal position on rocks or on the ground.
Naming
13 subspecies are recognized, including the nominate race:⤷ "L. c. carinatus" Gray, 1827
⤷ "L. c. aquarius" Schwartz & Ogren, 1956
⤷ "L. c. armouri" Barbour & Shreve, 1935
⤷ "L. c. cayensis" Schwartz, 1959
⤷ "L. c. coryi" K.P. Schmidt, 1936
⤷ "L. c. granti" Rabb, 1957
⤷ "L. c. hodsdoni" K.P. Schmidt, 1936
⤷ "L. c. labrossytus" Schwartz, 1959, South Central Cuba, Playa Larga
⤷ "L. c. microcyon" Schwartz, 1959
⤷ "L. c. mogotensis" Schwartz, 1959
⤷ "L. c. varius" Garman, 1887, Grand Cayman
⤷ "L. c. virescens" Stejneger, 1901
⤷ "L. c. zayasi" Schwartz, 1959
Behavior
An active, robust lizard, it is mostly terrestrial and will retreat into a burrow or cavity when frightened. It prefers sunny areas with loose rubble and rock. In the Cayman Islands a large captured specimen was observed to consistently burrow completely under the sand in a holding tank, even though a rock retreat was provided. The lizard also "played dead" when handled and remained completely motionless for a short while after being put down.References:
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