The Gran Canaria giant lizard (''Gallotia stehlini'') 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 ...

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 found in the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

Etymology

The specific name, ''stehlini'', is in honor of Swiss paleontologist

Hans Georg Stehlin Hans Georg Stehlin (1870–1941) was a Swiss paleontologist and geologist. Stehlin specialized in vertebrate paleontology, particularly the study of Cenozoic mammals. He published numerous scientific papers on primates and ungulates. He was presid ...

, who collected the

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of several ...

Description

''G. stehlini'' grows to a total length (including tail) of up to . It is among the largest reptiles within the family Lacertidae. The species comes in a variety of grays, browns, and reddish hues. Unlike their female counterparts, males exhibit sizable jowls, robust heads and overall greater body mass.

Diet

''G. stehlini'' is a true omnivore. The young often consume various invertebrates, vegetation and soft fruits. As they mature, their diet largely consists of plant matter.Carretero, Miguel & Roca, Vicente & Martín, Juan & Llorente, Gustavo & Montori, Albert & Santos, Xavier & Mateos, Judit. (2006). Diet and helminth parasites in the Gran Canaria giant lizard, Gallotia stehlini. Revista Española de Herpetología. 20. 105-117.

Geographic range

''G. stehlini'' is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Gran Canaria Gran Canaria (, ; ), also Grand Canary Island, is the third-largest and second-most-populous island of the Canary Islands, an archipelago off the Atlantic coast of Northwest Africa which is part of Spain. the island had a population of that co ...

in the Canary Islands of Spain but it has been introduced to

Fuerteventura Fuerteventura () is one of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, part of the North Africa region, and politically part of Spain. It is located away from the northwestern coast of Africa. The island was declared a biosphere reserve by UNES ...

Habitat

The natural habitats of ''G. stehlini'' are temperate

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 ...

, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rocky areas, rocky shores, and pastureland, at altitudes from sea level to .

Reproduction