Guatemalan Beaded Lizards can attain a total length of up to 60 cm. The tail is short relative to body size and the extremities are also short. Individuals have a black ground color with four or five yellow rings on the tail. The average adult weight is around 80 g, with rare individuals exceeding 2 kg. The head is flat and triangular; jaw muscles and venom glands are well developed giving the head its large aspect. The snout is blunt and thick; the tongue is pink and bifurcated, and the eyes are small. Sexual dimorphism is minimal although some differences are apparent in the shape of the preanal scales.
The breeding season occurs between September and October; oviposition takes place during the months of October and December, and hatching in the months of June and July. The diet of Guatemalan Beaded Lizards includes the eggs of birds and of other reptiles, the larvae and remains of adult beetles, baby birds, small rodents, lizards, and snakes.
