Morphology of the femoral glands in the lizard Ameiva ameiva (teiidae) and their possible role in semiochemical dispersion.

Many lizards have epidermal glands in the cloacal or femoral region with semiochemical function related to sexual behavior and/or territorial demarcation. Externally, these glands are recognized as a row of pores, opening individually in the center of a modified scale. In many species the pores are used as systematic characters.