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Climatic envelope models have predicted the extinction of populations, but few studies have provided accounts of responses of individual species to climate change. Herein, we report on the geographical and temporal variation of growth rates, age at sexual maturity and longevity of two populations of a South American lizard, Tropidurus torquatus. The equator-ward site (forest) was 1-2 degrees C warmer than the pole-ward (urban) site, but both have experienced an increase of similar to 1-2 degrees C over the last four decades. Operative temperatures revealed warmer microenvironments in the urban area than in the forest. Data on growth confirmed that contemporary lizards were larger than specimens collected in the 1960s. Lizards collected in the 1960s attained sexual maturity at 5 years of age at the urban site and 6-7 years at the forest site, whereas in 2012 animals achieved the minimum adult size 2 years earlier at both localities. Juveniles grew more slowly and adults lived longer in the forest. Lifespan did not show any temporal variation; therefore, the reproductive period has increased in both populations over the last four decades. Although short-term effects might be beneficial to lizards such as T. torquatus, further warming could eventually curtail the hours of activity and ultimately affect species fitness and even survival.