Leiolepis ngovantrii (Vietnamese

Vietnamese language

Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...

: Nhông cát trinh sản, meaning "parthenogenic sand iguana") is a species of lizard

Lizard

Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with nearly 3800 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica as well as most oceanic island chains...

 that is all female, reproducing clonally

Parthenogenesis

Parthenogenesis is a form of asexual reproduction found in females, where growth and development of embryos occur without fertilization by a male...

. The species is named after the herpetologist Ngo Van Tri of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology

Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology

The Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology is a large national university in Vietnam. It was founded in 1975 as the Vietnam Academy of Science, and renamed the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology in 2008. Its infrastructure spans Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hai Phong, Nha Trang, Da Lat, and...

, and is believed to be related to two other Vietnamese lizard species, Leiolepis guttata and Leiolepis guentherpetersi.

Description

L. ngovantrii are known to grow to a length of approximately 11.5 cm (almost 5 inches). The lizard's back is covered with brown spots with pairs of yellow stripes running along her sides. Her coloring provides adequate camouflage

Camouflage

Camouflage is a method of concealment that allows an otherwise visible animal, military vehicle, or other object to remain unnoticed, by blending with its environment. Examples include a leopard's spotted coat, the battledress of a modern soldier and a leaf-mimic butterfly...

 in coastal sandy soil, as well as the mangrove

Mangrove

Mangroves are various kinds of trees up to medium height and shrubs that grow in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics – mainly between latitudes N and S...

 forests during the dry season when grasses and leaves turn pale yellow.

Scientific discovery

Though the lizard has been long known to and enjoyed by locals in Vietnam's Mekong River Delta, scientists first discovered the species in 2010 after seeing them sold and eaten in many remote Vietnamese village restaurants in Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu Province, South Vietnam.