EPOW - Ecology Picture of the Week

Agama By Any Name

Mwanza Flat-Headed Rock Agama (Agama mwanzae), Family Agamidae, or
Red-Headed Rock Agama (Agama agama), Family Agamidae
Sinya Wildlife Management Area, Tanzania

Explanation:  Well, I'm unsure of the species identification here, in this photo I took while crossing a dried streambed in Sinya Wildlife Management Area, near Kilimanjaro, in northern Tanzania, not far from the border with Kenya.  But I have plenty of names to play with!

This might be a female Mwanza flat-headed rock agama -- ha, also called the Spider-Man agama because the males are a red coloration like the Spider-Man comic-book character.

Or it's a female red-headed rock agama -- yes, the female does not have a red head -- also called a rainbow agama, or common agama.

Regardless, it is a species common to the more arid dry savannah woodlands and scrublands of sub-Saharan East Africa.  Both species live in social groups and are quite territorial.  And often just hang out on the rocks in the sunshine.  

So, yeah, indeed, an Agama By Any Name!