Its natural habitat is pine flatwoods, xeric hammocks and longleaf pine - turkey oak. In the home landscape they can be found climbing on fences and logs, basking in the sun on rocks, and searching for food on wooden decks, garden borders, and trees. Southern fence lizards are diurnal and can be found hunting prey throughout the day. Fence lizards do not run after their prey, but rather sit and wait for it to stroll by and then pounce upon it. Their diet consists of ants, crickets, grasshoppers, spiders, centipedes, snails and beetles.
Ant hills are a favorite hunting ground.
Breeding occurs in early spring. Six to ten eggs are laid in a shallow nest at the base of a clump of vegetation or rotting log. A favorite nesting sight is sawdust. Eggs begin to hatch in early June and throughout the summer months into early fall. It is distinguished from the fence lizard by its habitat and coloration.