However, a 2022 study using genetic methods recognized it as distinct species.

It is, as currently known, endemic to the Pacific lowlands of southwestern Mexico.

[1][2] However, its true range likely extends into Guatemala and possibly as far as northwestern El Salvador.

In contrast, Coleonyx elegans sensu stricto occurs on the lowlands of the Gulf of Mexico and the Yucatan Peninsula.

Genetic data suggest that the two lineages diverged in late Pliocene.