''Darevskia valentini'', also known
commonly as the Caucasian rock lizard or Valentin's lizard, is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of
lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...
in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Lacertidae
The Lacertidae are the family (biology), family of the wall lizards, true lizards, or sometimes simply lacertas, which are native to Afro-Eurasia. It is a diverse family with at least 300 species in 39 genera. They represent the dominant group o ...
. The species is native to southeastern
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and western
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
. There are three recognized
subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
.
Etymology
The
specific name Specific name may refer to:
* in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database
In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules:
* Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...
, ''valentini'', is in honor of naturalist
Jean Valentin (1868–1898), who was associated with the ''
Senckenberg Naturmuseum''.
[ Beolens B, Watkins M, ]Grayson M
Grayson may refer to:
Places Canada
* Grayson, Saskatchewan
* Rural Municipality of Grayson No. 184, Saskatchewan
United States
* Grayson, California
* Grayson, Georgia
** Grayson High School
* Grayson, Kentucky
* Grayson, Louisiana
* Gray ...
(2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Darevskia valentini'', p. 271).
Geographic range
''D. valentini'' is found in
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
,
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, and
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
.
Habitat
The preferred natural
habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
s of ''D. valentini'' are rocky areas,
grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...
, and
shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It m ...
, at altitudes of .
[
]
Reproduction
''D. valentini'' is oviparous
Oviparous animals are animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of most fish, amphibians, most reptiles, and all pterosaurs, dinosaurs (including birds), and ...
.[
]
Subspecies
Three subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
.[
*'' Darevskia valentini lantzicyreni''
*'' Darevskia valentini spitzenbergerae''
*''Darevskia valentini valentini''
'']Nota bene
(, or ; plural form ) is a Latin phrase meaning "note well".
It is often abbreviated as NB, n.b., or with the ligature
and first appeared in English writing . In Modern English, it is used, particularly in legal papers, to draw the atten ...
'': A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
other than ''Darevskia''.
References
Further reading
* Arnold EN, Arribas O, Carranza S (2007). "Systematics of the Palaearctic and Oriental lizard tribe Lacertini (Squamata: Lacertidae: Lacertinae), with Descriptions of eight new genera". ''Zootaxa'' 1430: 1–86. (''Darevskia valentini'', p. 41).
* Boettger O (1892). "''Kriechthiere der Kaukasusländer, gesammelt durch die Radde-Valentin'sche Expedition nach dem Karabagh und durch die Herren Dr. J. Valentin und P. Reibisch'' ". ''Bericht über die Senckenbergische Naturforschende Gesellschaft in Frankfurt am Main'' 1892: 131–150. (''Lacerta muralis'' var. ''valentini'', new variety, pp. 145–146). (in German and Latin).
* Darevsky IS, Eiselt J (1967). "''Ein neuer Name für ''Lacerta saxicola mehelyi'' Lantz & Cyrén 1936'' ". ''Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien'' 70: 107. ("''Lacerta saxicola lantzicyreni nom. nov.''", replacement name). (in German).
*Eiselt J, Darevsky IS, Schmidtler JF (1992). "''Untersuchungen an Felseidechsen ''(Lacerta saxicola'' - Komplex; Reptilia: Lacertidae) in der östlichen Turkei. 1. ''Lacerta valentini'' Boettger'' ". ''Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien, Serie B'' 93: 1–18. (''Lacerta valentini spitzbergerae'', new subspecies, p. 13). (in German).
* Petrosyan VG, Osipov FA, Bobrov VV, Dergunova NN, Danielyan FD, Arakelyan MS (2019). "New records of ''Darevskia armeniaca'' ( Méhely, 1909) and ''Darevskia valentini'' (Boettger, 1892) (Squamata, Sauria, Lacertidae) from Armenia and updated geographic distribution maps". ''Check List'' 15 (1): 21–31.
Darevskia
Reptiles described in 1892
Taxa named by Oskar Boettger
{{Lacertidae-stub