Doumergue's fringe-fingered lizard (''Acanthodactylus spinicauda''), also known
commonly as Doumergue's fringe-toed lizard, is a
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of
lizard
Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...
in the
family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
Lacertidae
The Lacertidae are the family of the wall lizards, true lizards, or sometimes simply lacertas, which are native to Afro-Eurasia. It is a diverse family with at about 360 species in 39 genera. They represent the dominant group of reptiles found ...
.
[
]
Geographic range
''A. spinicauda'' is found in Algeria
Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...
.[
]
Habitat
The natural habitat
In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, 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 manifestation of its ...
s of ''A. spinicauda'' are open stony and flat sandy places.
Reproduction
''A. spinicauda'' is oviparous
Oviparous animals are animals that reproduce by depositing fertilized zygotes outside the body (i.e., by laying or spawning) in metabolically independent incubation organs known as eggs, which nurture the embryo into moving offsprings kno ...
, and the average clutch
A clutch is a mechanical device that allows an output shaft to be disconnected from a rotating input shaft. The clutch's input shaft is typically attached to a motor, while the clutch's output shaft is connected to the mechanism that does th ...
size is 8 eggs
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo begins to develop.
Egg, EGG or eggs may also refer to:
Biology
* Egg cell, the female reproductive cell (gamete) in oogamous organisms
Food
* Eggs as food
Places
* Egg, Austria
* Egg, Switzerland ...
.
Conservation status
The species ''A. spinicauda'' is considered "Critically Endangered
An IUCN Red List critically endangered (CR or sometimes CE) species is one that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. As of December 2023, of t ...
" because of small geographic range, fragmented distribution within that range, and habitat loss. The species was collected for the first time in 1901. After more than a century no individuals were ever discovered again until recently in 2015, a discovery was made by an Algerian zoological team (D. Boualem, 2016).
References
Further reading
* Doumergue F (1901). ''Essai sur la faune erpétologique de l'Oranie avec des tableaux analytiques et des notations pour la détermination de tous les reptiles et batraciens du Maroc, de l'Algérie et de la Tunisie.'' Oran: L. Fouque. 104 pp. + Plates I-XXVII. (''Acanthodactylus pardalis'' var. ''spinicauda'', new variation, pp. 169–173 + Plate XI, Figures 6–9). (in French).
*Salvador, Alfredo (1982). "A revision of the lizards of the genus ''Acanthodactylus'' (Sauria: Lacertidae)". ''Bonner Zoologische Monographien'' (16): 1–167. (''Acanthodactylus spinicauda'', pp. 97–101, Figures 53–56, Map 20a). (in English, with an abstract in German).
Acanthodactylus
Endemic fauna of Algeria
Reptiles described in 1901
Taxa named by François Doumergue
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
{{lacertidae-stub