| Agama bibronii | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Iguania |
| Family: | Agamidae |
| Genus: | Agama |
| Species: | A. bibronii |
| Binomial name | |
| Agama bibronii Duméril, 1851 | |
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| Synonyms [2] | |
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Agama bibronii, Bibron's agama or the North African rock agama, is a species of lizard belonging to the family Agamidae from north western Africa.
Agama bibronii is a medium-sized lizard, growing to up to 25–30 cm in total length, 15 cm of which is made up of the cylindrical tail. The dorsal scales are relatively large and each scale is the same size as all the others, it has some spikes on its neck and on the side of the head while the throat is wrinkled. The males are larger than the females. The dorsal surface is greyish green and is marked with brown spots while the head is blue with orange rims around the eyes. When breeding, the male's head and body turn coppery-orange while the rest of the body turning purplish-blue with paler rings on the tail. The females are mainly bluish grey with their backs coloured orangey-yellow and marked with red stripes. [3] The colour can also vary because of age or exposure to the sun. Juveniles have tubercles where the spikes will grow when they are adult . [4]
Agama bibronii is found in north western Africa with its distribution centred on Morocco but it extends south to Western Sahara and east into eastern Algeria [2] as far as east as Batna Province in northeastern Algeria. [5] It may also occur in the Zemmour Massif in northern Mauritania. [1]
Agama bibronii occurs in rocky areas, where it is diurnal, its main prey are arthropods but it will take small lizards as well as feeding on plant material. [1] In Morocco it is thought that these lizards eat flowers mainly for the moisture content. [4] It has also been recorded from Mediterranean type vegetation, steppe, and areas of suitable habitat at the margins of cultivated land. One-third to half of all females lay two clutches of eggs per year, the remainder lay one. Each clutch contains between six and 23 eggs, with a mean number of 14 eggs. The breeding season falls between late April and early September and the females begin to breed in their first year; 1–2-year-old females are the commonest age for breeding. [1] It is a good climber over trees and rocks and is tolerant of high temperatures and exposure to the sun, although in the hottest part of the day in midsummer they may retreat to shade. When they feel threatened they can rapidly flee to a hiding place between rocks or under a shrub. In habitats where there is abundant prey and plenty of shelter these lizards can occur at high densities. Its main predators are snakes and raptors and if it cannot flee to a shelter it will play dead. [4] The night is spent in a burrow excavated under a large stone, in a bank or an under embankment, the main burrow is less than one metre in length and may have several side galleries. When not foraging the males use a rock or a pile of rocks as a lookout to monitor their territory, each territory being 100 to 500 square meters in extent. [3]
When breeding if two males encounter one another they display by making themselves look as big as possible, swelling the throat and pushing the anterior portion of the body up with the front legs in an attempt to intimidate the other male. The other male either flees or begins a fight where the males circle each other and use their tails as weapons until one gives up and runs away. The male approaches a female in breeding condition with circular movements, then the female signals her readiness to mate by arching her back and raising her body and tail, the male then bites the nape of her neck and copulates with her. The eggs complete much of their development within the female and are laid into a moist substrate. Their does not appear to be nay parental care and the eggs hatch after 60 days. [4]
Agama bibronii was first formally described in 1851 by André Marie Constant Duméril but this name was thought to be preoccupied by the South African Trapelus (Psammorrhoa) bibronii which was described by Leopold Fitzinger in 1843. The species was frequently referred to by the synonym A. impalearis, however, a ruling of the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature in 1970 suppressed Fitzinger's name, so the correct name for this species is Agama bibronii. [6] [7] However, some authorities still use A. impalearis and treat A. bibronii as a synonym. [8]
The specific name honours the French herpetologist Gabriel Bibron who originally described the species but did not give it a specific name, Bibron's handwritten description was partly reproduced in the book written by Duméril and his son, Auguste Duméril in 1851, entitled Catalogue méthodique de la collection des reptiles du Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle de Paris, in which Duméril named the species. [9]
Genetic studies have confirmed the existence of two distinct clades of Agama bibronii, one on the north and west of the Atlas Mountains and the other to the south and east. There is some intergrade between the two forms but there are consistent morphological differences as well as clear differences in mitochondrial DNA which suggest that these forms may represent separate species. [4]
Agama bibronii is a wide-ranging species with no known threats. It is regularly found in the European pet trade but collection of specimens for this trade is not considered to be at any risk to the species. [1]
Agama is a genus of small-to-moderate-sized, long-tailed, insectivorous Old World lizards. The genus Agama includes at least 37 species in Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa, where most regions are home to at least one species. Eurasian agamids are largely assigned to genus Laudakia. The various species differ in size, ranging from about 12 to 30 centimetres in length, when fully grown.
Agamidae is a family of over 550 species of iguanian lizards indigenous to Africa, Asia, Australia, and a few in Southern Europe. Many species are commonly called dragons or dragon lizards.
Calotes is a genus of lizards in the draconine clade of the family Agamidae. The genus contains 29 species. Some species are known as forest lizards, others as "bloodsuckers" due to their red heads, and yet others as garden lizards. The genus name Calotes has been derived from the Greek word Καλότης (Kalótës), meaning ‘beauty’, referring to the beautiful pattern of this genus.
Draco is a genus of agamid lizards that are also known as flying lizards, flying dragons or gliding lizards. These lizards are capable of gliding flight via membranes that may be extended to create wings (patagia), formed by an enlarged set of ribs. They are arboreal insectivores.
Hypsilurus is a genus of arboreal lizards in the family Agamidae. The genus is endemic to Melanesia.
Chalcides is a genus of skinks.
Gabriel Bibron was a French zoologist and herpetologist. He was born in Paris. The son of an employee of the Museum national d'histoire naturelle, he had a good foundation in natural history and was hired to collect vertebrates in Italy and Sicily. Under the direction of Jean Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent (1778–1846), he took part in the Morea expedition to Peloponnese.
Monilesaurus rouxii, commonly known as Roux's forest lizard, Roux's forest calotes, or the forest blood sucker, is a species of arboreal, diurnal, agamid lizard, which is endemic to hills of peninsular India. In July 2018, it was proposed that the species should be transferred to the new genus Monilesaurus.
Draco dussumieri, also known commonly as the Indian flying lizard, the southern flying lizard, and the Western Ghats flying lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is capable of gliding from tree to tree. It is found principally in the Western Ghats and some other hill forests of Southern India. It is almost completely arboreal, found on trees in forests and adjoining palm plantations where it climbs trees to forage for insects and glides to adjoining trees by expanding the patagium, loose skin on the sides of the body which is supported by elongated ribs to act as wings. The skin on the sides of the neck is also extended to the sides using the hyoid bones of the tongue as support. During the breeding season males maintain small territories which they defend from other males while courting females. The male has a more colourful patagium than the female, and it prominently extends its yellow dewlap forward in display. Although living almost its entire life in trees, the female descends to the ground to lay eggs in soil. This is the species with the westernmost distribution within the genus Draco, the majority of species occurring in Southeast Asia.
Eutropis bibronii, also known commonly as Bibron's mabuya, Bibron's skink, and the seashore skink, is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is native to India and Sri Lanka.
Chondrodactylus bibronii, commonly known as Bibron's thick-toed gecko, Bibron's sand gecko, or simply Bibron's gecko, is a species of lizard in the family Gekkonidae. The species is native to southern Africa. C. bibronii has been used as an animal model in bioastronautic research examining the effects of spaceflight on the morphology and physiology of vertebrates.
The common agama, red-headed rock agama or rainbow agama is a species of lizard from the family Agamidae found in most of sub-Saharan Africa. To clear up centuries of historical confusion based on Linnaeus and other authors, Wagner et al. designated a neotype for the species, using a previously described specimen from Cameroon in the collection of the Zoologisches Forschungsmuseum Alexander Koenig in Bonn. The species name was formerly applied to a paraphyletic collection of taxa ; subsequent mitochondrial DNA analysis of various populations indicates they represent separate species. Consequently, three former subspecies A. a. africana, A. a. boensis, and A. a. mucosoensis are now considered separate species, and A. a. savattieri is considered synonymous with A. africana.
Scincinae is a subfamily of lizards. The subfamily contains 33 genera, and the genera contain a combined total of 284 species, commonly called skinks. The systematics is at times controversial. The group is probably paraphyletic. It is one of three subfamilies of the family Scincidae, the other two being Acontinae and Lygosominae.
Lycophidion is a genus of nonvenomous lamprophiid snakes commonly referred to as the wolf snakes.
Homopus areolatus, commonly known as the common padloper or parrot-beaked tortoise, is a tiny species of tortoise of the genus Homopus, indigenous to the southern part of South Africa.
Lophosaurus is a genus of arboreal agamid lizards from Australia and Melanesia.
Agama anchietae, also known commonly as Anchieta's agama and the western rock agama, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is native to southern Africa.
Agama gracilimembris or the Benin agama is a species of lizard native to Africa. It is found in the Afrotropical realm in the savanna as well as forests.
