Horvath's rock lizard (''Iberolacerta horvathi'') 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 in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Lacertidae. The species 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 else ...

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 subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

. Until recently, this species was assigned to the same

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

as the morphologically similar

sand lizard The sand lizard (''Lacerta agilis'') is a lacertid lizard distributed across most of Europe from France and across the continent to Lake Baikal in Russia. It does not occur in European Turkey. Its distribution is often patchy. In the sand lizard' ...

(''Lacerta agilis''). The 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 ''I. horvathi'' are temperate

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s and shrublands, and rocky areas.

Etymology

The specific name, ''horvathi'' is in honor of Hungarian entomologist

Géza Horváth Géza Horváth (; 23 November 1847 – 8 September 1937) was a Hungarian doctor and entomologist internationally recognized for his work on bugs ( Hemiptera). He also contributed extensively to the study of Hungarian scale insect fauna. He pub ...

.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Iberolacerta horvathi'', p. 126).

Conservation status

The geographic range of ''I. horvathi'' in central and

southern Europe Southern Europe is the southern region of Europe. It is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is essentially marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of Southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Alba ...

, in mountainous areas of southern

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, northeastern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, western

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

, and western

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, is fragmented, and believed to be a relict of a much larger range during the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...

. The small, fragmented range of this species is the main cause of concern for the survival of this

, which is why it is given

Near threatened A near-threatened species is a species which has been categorized as "Near Threatened" (NT) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as that may be vulnerable to endangerment in the near future, but it does not currently qualify f ...

status in the ''

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

'' and is also legally protected in the countries in which it lives.

Description

Horvath's rock lizard grows to a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of . It has a blunt snout and is dorso-ventrally flattened. The upper surface is pale greyish-brown contrasting sharply with the dark brown sides and the unspotted white or yellowish belly. There is sometimes a thin faint dark line along part of the spine or some dark speckles. The young lizards are similarly coloured but often have a greyish-green tail.

Geographic range

Horvath's rock lizard is native to northwestern Croatia, Slovenia and the adjoining parts of northeastern Italy and southern Austria. It has also been reported to be present in southern

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It may be under-reported because of its close resemblance to the more common wall lizard ''

Podarcis muralis ''Podarcis muralis'' (common wall lizard) is a species of lizard with a large distribution in Europe and well-established introduced populations in North America, where it is also called the European wall lizard. It can grow to about in tota ...

'' with which it co-exists in the lower part of its altitudinal range.

Habitat

The typical habitats of ''I. horvathi'' are cliffs, rocky outcrops, karst pavements, boulder fields, alpine scrub, damp open woodland, embankments, and bridges. It is normally found at altitudes of , usually between .

Behaviour

''I. horvathi'' is very much a rock specialist and is very agile, even leaping into the air to catch

prey Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill ...

. It prefers humid environments and may even be active under cloudy conditions.

Diet

Horvath's rock lizard feeds on a range of small

invertebrate Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...

s including flying forms.

Reproduction

Females of ''I. horvathi'' lay small clutches of four or five eggs which hatch after five to six weeks. The newly hatched young are about long from snout-to-vent and become mature at about two years of age.