| Agama picticauda | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Iguania |
| Family: | Agamidae |
| Genus: | Agama |
| Species: | A. picticauda |
| Binomial name | |
| Agama picticauda W. Peters, 1877 | |
Agama picticauda, also known commonly as Peter's rock agama [1] [2] [3] and the African redhead agama, [3] is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is native to West Africa. [3] [4]
A. picticauda occurs in West Africa, from Mauritania in the west to Nigeria in the east. [4]
A. picticauda was first introduced to Florida in 1976 through the pet trade. [5] First colonizing Homestead and other areas in Miami-Dade County. [5] Since then it has spread elsewhere in South Florida including the Keys. [5] Introduced populations also exist in La Réunion and the Comoros, with single specimen(s) reported from Cap Verde, Madeira, and Madagascar. [4]
Sightings in South Florida rapidly increased at the end of 2020, indicating that the population has recently also increased rapidly. [5] Further sightings in 2024, as suggested by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission that the population has expanded northward into Central Florida as far north as Volusia County. [6]
An awareness letter, drafted by numerous Caribbean-based biologists and conservationists highlights the threat to reptiles across the Caribbean Lesser Antilles if A. picticauda becomes established there. In 2022 and 2023, several individual specimens have been sighted on the British Virgin Islands as well as The Bahamas. [7]
A new study in 2024 from the University of Florida suggests that the invasive lizard found in over 20 counties may indirectly increase the risk of mosquito-borne diseases like West Nile virus. As Agama picticauda predicates on the also invasive brown anole, it reduces the number of anoles the mosquitoes feed on. This could lead to more mosquitoes seeking humans and birds as blood meals, potentially increasing the spread of diseases. [8]
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.
Dactyloidae are a family of lizards commonly known as anoles and native to warmer parts of the Americas, ranging from southeastern United States to Paraguay. Instead of treating it as a family, some authorities prefer to treat it as a subfamily, Dactyloinae, of the family Iguanidae. In the past they were included in the family Polychrotidae together with Polychrus, but the latter genus is not closely related to the true anoles.
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.
Laudakia is a genus of lizards, commonly known as Asian rock agamas, in the family Agamidae. The genus is found mostly in Asia, with some species in Southern Europe.
Pseudocalotes is a genus of lizards in the family Agamidae. The genus is endemic to Southeast Asia.
Leiocephalidae, also known as the curlytail lizards or curly-tailed lizards, is a family of iguanian lizards restricted to the West Indies. One of the defining features of these lizards is that their tail often curls over. They were previously regarded as members of the subfamily Leiocephalinae within the family Tropiduridae. There are presently 30 known species, all in the genus Leiocephalus.
The brown anole, also known commonly as the Cuban brown anole, or De la Sagra's anole, is a species of lizard in the family Dactyloidae. The species is native to Cuba and the Bahamas. It has been widely introduced elsewhere, via the importation and exportation of plants where the anole would lay eggs in the soil of the pots, and is now found in Florida and other regions of the United States including southern Georgia, Texas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Hawaii, North Carolina, and Southern California. It has also been introduced to other Caribbean islands, Mexico, and Taiwan.
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.
Iguana is a genus of herbivorous lizards that are native to tropical areas of Mexico, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. The genus was first described in 1768 by Austrian naturalist Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti in his book Specimen Medicum, Exhibens Synopsin Reptilium Emendatam cum Experimentis circa Venena. Two species are placed in the genus: the green iguana, which is widespread throughout its range and a popular pet and the Lesser Antillean iguana, which is native to the Lesser Antilles. Genetic analysis indicates that the green iguana may comprise a complex of multiple species, some of which have been recently described, but the Reptile Database considers all of these as subspecies of the green iguana.
The common butterfly lizard, also called the butterfly agama or butterfly lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is native to Asia.
Anolis gingivinus, also known as the Anguilla Bank tree anole, Anguilla bank anole, and Anguilla anole, is a species of anole lizard that is endemic to the Caribbean Lesser Antilles islands of Anguilla and its satellites, such as Saint Martin, and Saint Barthélemy.
Anolis ferreus, the Morne Constant anole, also known as the Marie-Gallant anole, is a species of anole lizard that is endemic to the island of Marie-Galante, which is part of Guadeloupe in the Caribbean Lesser Antilles. It has been recorded as an escapee in Fort Myers, Florida, but does not appear to have become established.
Anolis luciae, also known commonly as the St. Lucia anole or Saint Lucian anole, is a species of anole lizard in the family Dactyloidae. The species is endemic to Saint Lucia, an island-nation in the Caribbean Lesser Antilles.
The green iguana, also known as the American iguana or the common green iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area; it is native from southern Brazil and Paraguay as far north as Mexico.
Anolis stratulus is a moderately-sized species of anole found in Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands. It is a gray-colored lizard spotted with brown markings. It is arboreal, usually found positioned on tree bark on branches in the canopies of forest trees, where in some areas of Puerto Rico it can be incredibly abundant, with tens of thousands of the lizards being present per hectare.
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