Acanthodactylus longipes

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Acanthodactylus longipes
Acanthodactylus longipes Front.jpg

Acanthodactylus longipes

Systematics
Superordinate : Scale lizards (Lepidosauria)
Order : Scale reptiles (Squamata)
Family : Real lizards (Lacertidae)
Subfamily : Lacertinae
Genre : Fringed lizards ( Acanthodactylus )
Type : Acanthodactylus longipes
Scientific name
Acanthodactylus longipes
Boulenger , 1918

Acanthodactylus longipes is a species of the genus fringed lizards and is assigned to the Acanthodactylus scutellatus species group. It is common in drifting sand areas of the Sahara .

features

As with many fringed lizards, the overall appearance is reddish-yellow-brown in color with light spots and a gracefully elongated body with noticeably long fingers with fringed scales ("fringed scales"), which give the genus its name. The distinction from Duméril's fringed lizard is based on the color, because the latter has contrasting dark spots. Differentiating Acanthodactylus scutellatus is a challenge even for herpetologists . A good assessment of the biotope at the site is therefore necessary for an assessment .

As with four other Acanthodactylus species ( A. scutellatus , A. beershebensis , A. boskianus and A. schreiberi ), the color of the tail end changes, depending on the age, but only slightly, from yellow in the young to straw-colored in the adult stage . In young animals this enables a good differentiation from Acanthodactylus scutellatus , which have a blue tip of the tail.

Habitat and distribution area

The habitat of Acanthodactylus longipes consists of arid desert areas . Acanthodactylus longipes prefers the drifting sand areas, especially in the sand dunes, which can be used to differentiate.

Occurrences exist in southern Morocco , Algeria (Sashara), Tunisia , Libya , Mauritania , Western Sahara , northern Mali , northern Niger , northern Chad and northern Egypt .

In Tunisia there are four more of the same genus in addition to the species ( A. boskianus , A. pardalis , A. savignyi and A. inornatus ). Several species of the genus have also been described in Morocco. At Erg Chebbi and M'hamid El Ghizlane , she appears together with Dumérils Fringed Lizard . In Tafilalet come together and A. boskianus and A. scutellatus ago. However, these closely related species do not share the same habitat preference.

The terra typica is Ouargla in Algeria.

Reproduction

Acanthodactylus longipes is egg-laying and produces one generation per year ( univoltin, single brood ).

threat

It is unclear whether predators like skinks play a role; in any case, parts of Acanthodactylus longipes were found in the stomach of a pharmacist's drink.

Anthropogenic changes in the biotope through grazing can reduce the sparse vegetation to such an extent that there are not enough cover options and Acanthodactylus longipes does not appear there.

literature

  • U. Schlüter: Fringed finger lizards (Acanthodactylus) in nature and in the terrarium. Part 5b: The Acanthodactylus scutellatus group. In: Reptilia , 15, No. 4, 2010, pp. 62-66.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Acanthodactylus longipes in The Reptile Database ; accessed on August 16, 2015.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k www.lacerta.de: Acanthodactylus longipes BOULENGER, 1918 , accessed on August 16, 2015.
  3. ^ A. Salvador: A revision of the lizards of the genus Acanthodactylus (Sauria: Lacertidae). In: Bonner Zoologische Monographien, Bonn , 16, 1982, pp. 1–167.
  4. ↑ a b P.-A. Crochet, P. Geniez, I. Ineich: A multivariate analysis of the fringe-toed lizards of the Acanthodactylus scutellatus group (Squamata: Lacertidae): systematic and biogeographical implications. In: Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , 137, 2003, pp. 117-155.
  5. ↑ U. Schlüter: Fringed lizards (Acanthodactylus) in nature and in the terrarium. Part 5b: The Acanthodactylus scutellatus group. In: Reptilia , 15, No. 4, 2010, pp. 62-66.
  6. ↑ a b c d e Morocco herps.com: Lagartija de Merzouga , accessed on August 15, 2015.
  7. ^ A b c S. M. Baha El Din: The occurrence of Acanthodactylus longipes BOULENGER, 1918 in Egypt, with remarks on its identification and ecology. In: Zoology in the Middle East, Heidelberg , 12, 1996, pp. 53-58.
  8. ^ A b C. P. Blanc, I. Ineich: Etudes sur les Acanthodactyles de Tunisie: VI. - Les Acanthodactyles de l´extreme-sud Tunisien. In: Amphibia-Reptilia , 6, No. 1, 1985, pp. 45-52.
  9. ↑ a b Dror Hawlena: Colorful tails fade when lizards adopt less risky behaviors. In: Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 64, No. 2, 2009, pp. 205-213, doi : 10.1007 / s00265-009-0837-z .
  10. ↑ a b c V. Pérez-Mellado: Ecology of lacertid lizards in a desert area of ​​eastern Morocco. In: Journal of Zoology , 226, No. 3, 1992, pp. 369-386.
  11. ^ S. Nouira, CP Blanc: Biodiversité et Biogéographie des Reptiles de Sud Tunisia. In: Biogeographica , 69, No. 3, 1993, pp. 89-104.
  12. ↑ CP Blanc; Etudes sur les Acanthodactyles de Tunisie: III. - Variability morphologique et ses implications systématiques. In; Bulletin de la Société zoologique de France , 104, 1979, pp. 445-465.
  13. ↑ Omar Attum, Charles Covell, Perri Eason: The comparative diet of three Saharan sand dune skinks. In: African Journal of Herpetology Volume 53, No. 1, 2004, pp. 91-94, doi : 10.1080 / 21564574.2004.9635501 .
  14. ↑ Omar A. Attum, Perri K. Eason: Effects of vegetation loss on a sand dune lizard. In: Journal of Wildlife Management 70, No. 1, 2006, pp. 27-30, doi : 10.2193 / 0022-541X (2006) 70 [27: EOVLOA] 2.0.CO; 2 .

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