The Maasai girdled lizard is a rock-dwelling species that tends to prefer rock outcroppings in savannas or temperate forests.[citation needed]
Reproduction
The Maasai girdled lizard reproduces both sexually and asexually.[3] It is an ovoviviparous species, meaning that the female parent produces eggs that hatch in the body, resulting in a live birth.[4] Usually 1-5 young are born.[citation needed]
Captivity
Because of the Maasai girdled lizard's timid behavior and ability to easily reproduce asexually in captivity, it is quite common in the pet trade. It is the second most common girdled lizard bred in captivity behind the East African spiny-tailed lizard (Cordylus tropidosternum), and both species tend to fall under the same name of armadillo lizard, though unlike the real species of that name (Ouroborus cataphractus), this species does not grasp its tail and form a ball for defense.[citation needed]
^Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN978-1-4214-0135-5. (Cordylus beraduccii, p. 23).