This lizard is native to the rocky desert of Sudan. They have been known to reach 45–70 cm (16 to 28 inches) in length, where the tail is less than half the length and can live up to 10 years in captivity.

These omnivores (eat both meat and vegetation) are active during the day and eat mostly leaf matter and insects and on occasion small vertebrates like other lizards and rodents.
– Here we feed ours crickets, wax worms, and fresh salad
They are also known as the Western plated lizard or the great plated lizard