Lilford's wall lizard (''Podarcis lilfordi)'' 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), ...

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 ...

. The species is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only 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 foun ...

to the

Gymnesian Islands The Gymnesians ( , ), or Gymnesic Islands (), is a collective name given to the two largest (and easternmost) Balearic Islands, Mallorca and Menorca, distinguishing them from the Pityuses (; ), or Pine Islands, Ibiza and Formentera. Etymology ...

, the easternmost of the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a Provinces of Spain, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain, ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. There are 27

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

that are recognized as being valid. Its 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 are temperate Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rocky areas, and rocky shores. Originally distributed throughout the Gymnesians, the introduction of alien species which started with the Romans has confined the species to the uninhabited islets around the major

islands This is a list of the lists of islands in the world grouped by country, by continent, by body of water, and by other classifications. For rank-order lists, see the #Other lists of islands, other lists of islands below. Lists of islands by count ...

, on almost each of which a local

has evolved. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

Etymology

''P. lilfordi'' is named in honour of Thomas Powys, 4th Baron Lilford, a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

ornithologist Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related discip ...

who studied the fauna of the Balearics.

Description

Lilford's wall lizard grows to a maximum snout-to-vent length (SVL) of , but adults are usually a little smaller than this. The tail is about 1.8 times as long as the body. It is a robust streamlined lizard with a short head and rounded body with smooth, un

keeled scales Keeled Scales is an independent record label based in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 2014 by musicians Tony Presley (Real Live Tigers) and Seth Whaland (Literature, Tres Oui). The label has released over 60 albums from artists such as Buck Mee ...

. The

dorsal Dorsal (from Latin ''dorsum'' ‘back’) may refer to: * Dorsal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location referring to the back or upper side of an organism or parts of an organism * Dorsal, positioned on top of an aircraft's fuselage The fus ...

surface is usually greenish or brownish but varies much between different island subpopulations. There is usually a pale dorso-lateral stripe and there may be several dark streaks or three dark lines running along the spine. The flanks may be slightly reticulated and the underside is white, cream or pinkish. The throat may be blotched with darker colour. Juveniles sometimes have a blue tail.

Geographic range

Lilford's wall lizard is native to the Gymnesian Islands, including

Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The capital of the island, Palma, Majorca, Palma, i ...

Menorca Menorca or Minorca (from , later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Mallorca. Its capital is Maó, situated on the isl ...

, the Cabrera Archipelago to the south of Mallorca, and the neighbouring rocky islets, which united into a single landmass during the colder periods of the

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...

. In historical times it has been

extirpated Local extinction, also extirpation, is the termination of a species (or other taxon) in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinctions. Local extinctions mark a chan ...

from the two large islands and is now only present on the islets. It was never found on the

Pityusic Islands The Pityusic Islands, often referenced simply as the Pityuses ( , ; from the Greek πιτύα ''pitýa'', pine tree), or commonly but informally (and ambiguously) as the Pine Islands, is the name given collectively to the Balearic Islands of Ib ...

, west of the Gymnesian Islands.

Habitat

''P. lilfordi'' is found at low altitudes. It is a mainly ground-dwelling species and largely inhabits rocky areas and scrubland, although it is found in woodland on Cabrera.

Behaviour

Lilford's wall lizard is a relatively tame lizard and easy to approach. It mainly feeds on insects, spiders and other arthropods, snails and some vegetable matter. This includes flowers and fruits, nectar and pollen. Some plants

to the Gymnesian Islands depend on this lizard for pollination. Other plants known to be pollinated by it include the mastic tree (''

Pistacia lentiscus ''Pistacia lentiscus'' (also lentisk or mastic) is a dioecious evergreen shrub or small tree of the genus '' Pistacia'' native to the Mediterranean Basin. It grows up to tall and is cultivated for its aromatic resin, mainly on the Greek isl ...

''), rock samphire (''

Crithmum maritimum ''Crithmum'' is a monospecific genus of flowering plant in the carrot family, Apiaceae. The sole species, ''Crithmum maritimum'', is commonly known as rock samphire, sea fennel or samphire. It is found in parts of the Old World and is edib ...

''), wild leek (''

Allium ampeloprasum ''Allium ampeloprasum'' is a member of the onion genus ''Allium''. The wild plant is commonly known as wild leek or broadleaf wild leek. Its native range is southern Europe to southwestern Asia and North Africa, but it is cultivated in many othe ...

''), clustered carline thistle ('' Carlina corymbosa'') and the sea daffodil (''

Pancratium maritimum ''Pancratium maritimum'', or sea daffodil, is a species of bulbous plant native to both sides of the Mediterranean region and Black Sea from Portugal, Morocco and the Canary Islands east to Turkey, Syria, Israel and the Caucasus. In the parts o ...

''). It is opportunistic around birds' nests in the use of scraps of food that have been regurgitated by

gull Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the subfamily Larinae. They are most closely related to terns and skimmers, distantly related to auks, and even more distantly related to waders. Until the 21st century, most gulls were placed ...

s for their chicks. It also sometimes moves to the vicinity of nests of the

Eleonora's falcon Eleonora's falcon (''Falco eleonorae'') is a medium-sized falcon. It belongs to the hobby group, a rather close-knit number of similar falcons often considered a subgenus ''Hypotriorchis''. The sooty falcon is sometimes considered its closest rel ...

(''Falco eleonorae'') and feeds on the remains of its prey and the flies that accumulate around the nesting site. It is sometimes

cannibal Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecology, ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is also well ...

istic, eating juveniles and the tails of other lizards of its own species.

Reproduction

''P. lilfordi'' 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 ...

. Breeding takes place in the summer, and females may lay up to three clutches of one to four eggs with an average mass of 0.63 g, large for a lizard of this size. The eggs hatch in about eight weeks, and the emerging young measure about from snout to vent.

Conservation status

The population of this lizard seems to be in decline. It was at one time very numerous on Menorca and Mallorca but is no longer found on either. This extirpation may have been caused by the proliferation of cats and by other introduced predators, possibly the false smooth snake (''Macroprotodon cucullatus'') and the

weasel Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets, and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slend ...

(''Mustela nivalis''). Its total area of occupancy on all the small islands on which it is now present is less than ; so the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

lists it as being "

Endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

Subspecies

There are 27 recognized

many of which are found on only a single island: *'' Podarcis lilfordi lilfordi'' – Aire islet, off the southeastern coast of

Dragonera Dragonera (; ; "Dragon Island"), also called Sa Dragonera, is an uninhabited islet in the Balearic Islands, Spain, located just off the west coast of Majorca. It is currently a natural park, Parc Natural Sa Dragonera. Geography Geologically spe ...

islet, off east of

Majorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The capital of the island, Palma, Majorca, Palma, i ...

*'' Podarcis lilfordi hartmanni'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi hospitalis'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi imperialensis'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi isletasi'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi jordansi'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi kuligae'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi nigerrima'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi planae'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi probae'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi porrosicola'' – Porros islet, north of Menorca *'' Podarcis lilfordi rodriquezi'' – Ratas Island lizard – Formerly Ratas Island, in

Mahón Mahón (), officially Maó (, ; formerly spelled ''Mahó''), and also written as Mahon or Port Mahon in English, is the capital and second largest city of Menorca. The city is located on the eastern coast of the island, which is part of the ar ...

's harbour (Menorca).

Extinct Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

after island was demolished in harbour expansion. *'' Podarcis lilfordi sargantanae'' – islets located by the north coast of Majorca ( Sargantana, Ravells, Bledes and Tusqueta). *'' Podarcis lilfordi toronis'' *'' Podarcis lilfordi xapaticola'' ''

Nota bene ( ; plural: ) is the Latin language, Latin phrase meaning ''note well''. In manuscripts, ''nota bene'' is abbreviated in upper-case as NB and N.B., and in lower-case as n.b. and nb; the editorial usages of ''nota bene'' and ''notate bene'' fi ...

'': A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

other than ''Podarcis''.