Simony's giant lizard: Difference between revisions
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| status = CR |
| status = CR |
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| status_system = IUCN3.1 |
| status_system = IUCN3.1 |
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| status_ref = <ref name=IUCN>Jose Antonio Mateo Miras, Valentin Pérez-Mellado, Iñigo Martínez-Solano 2009. Gallotia simonyi. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2009: e.T8881A12935900. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2009.RLTS.T8881A12935900.en. Downloaded on 13 April 2019.</ref> |
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| genus = Gallotia |
| genus = Gallotia |
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| species = simonyi |
| species = simonyi |
Revision as of 11:43, 13 April 2019
Simony's giant lizard | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Family: | Lacertidae |
Genus: | Gallotia |
Species: | G. simonyi
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Binomial name | |
Gallotia simonyi (Steindachner, 1889)
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Synonyms | |
See text |
Gallotia simonyi, also known as Simony's lizard, is a species of lacertid (wall lizard) that can be found on the Canary Islands. The species was once present throughout much of the islands, but one of the two subspecies is extinct, while the other, the Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard is now confined to a few small areas of cliff with sparse vegetation. It is currently restricted to the southern end of the Risco de Tibataje in la Fuga de Gorreta, located between Guinea and the so-called Paso del Pino (an area of about four hectares). The species was also successfully reintroduced to the Roque Chico de Salmor in 1999, and subsequent reintroductions have taken place at Julan and at la Dehesa.(Miras & Pérez-Mellado 2005b)
It is omnivorous. It eats plants - notably verode and Lavandula abrotanoides - as well as insects (ARKive 2006). Mating begins in May and 5 to 13 eggs are laid from June until the end of August. Their eggs hatch after 61 days.
Etymology
The specific name, simonyi, is in honor of Viennese naturalist Oskar Simony (1852–1915).[2]
Systematics
Two subspecies are recognised:
- Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard, Gallotia simonyi simonyi - extinct (c.1930s)
- El Hierro giant lizard or Hierro giant lizard (Spanish: Lagarto Gigante de El Hierro), Gallotia simonyi machadoi
Gallotia simonyi includes the La Palma giant lizard and the La Gomera giant lizard as subspecies (Miras 2005, Miras & Pérez-Mellado 2005a); the latter is known to be very closely related to the extant population (Maca-Meyer et al. 2003) and its specific distinctness is not universally accepted (e.g. Bischoff 2000). Subfossil remains from El Hierro that were assigned to the prehistorically extinct Gallotia goliath apparently belong to the present species (Barahona et al. 2000), but the population referred to G. goliath from Tenerife was distinct (Maca-Meyer et al. 2003).
The population of this species is about 300 to 400 animals in the wild (including re-introduced populations), and it is classified as critically endangered by the 2006 IUCN Red List. This lizard's major threat is predation by feral cats, and possibly also by dogs and rats.
References
- ^ Jose Antonio Mateo Miras, Valentin Pérez-Mellado, Iñigo Martínez-Solano 2009. Gallotia simonyi. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2009: e.T8881A12935900. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2009.RLTS.T8881A12935900.en. Downloaded on 13 April 2019.
- ^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Lacerta simonyi, p. 244).
External links
- lacerta.de: Gallotia simonyi machadoi image gallery. Retrieved 2007-FEB-25.