Congolacerta asukului | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Family: | Lacertidae |
Genus: | Congolacerta |
Species: | C. asukului |
Binomial name | |
Congolacerta asukului Greenbaum, Villanueva, Kusamba, Aristote & Branch, 2011 | |
Congolacerta asukului also known as Asukulu's grass lizard, is a species of lizard endemic to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [1]
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 sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. Other ways of defining species include their karyotype, DNA sequence, morphology, behaviour or ecological niche. In addition, paleontologists use the concept of the chronospecies since fossil reproduction cannot be examined. While these definitions may seem adequate, when looked at more closely they represent problematic species concepts. For example, the boundaries between closely related species become unclear with hybridisation, in a species complex of hundreds of similar microspecies, and in a ring species. Also, among organisms that reproduce only asexually, the concept of a reproductive species breaks down, and each clone is potentially a microspecies.
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 6,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic as it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia; some lizards are more closely related to these two excluded groups than they are to other lizards. Lizards range in size from chameleons and geckos a few centimeters long to the 3 meter long Komodo dragon.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo, also known as DR Congo, the DRC, DROC, Congo-Kinshasa, East Congo, or simply the Congo, is a country located in Central Africa. It is sometimes anachronistically referred to by its former name of Zaire, which was its official name between 1971 and 1997. It is, by area, the largest country in Sub-Saharan Africa, the second-largest in all of Africa, and the 11th-largest in the world. With a population of over 78 million, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the most populous officially Francophone country, the fourth-most-populous country in Africa, and the 16th-most-populous country in the world. Currently, eastern DR Congo is the scene of ongoing military conflict in Kivu, since 2015.
Congolacerta asukului is named in honour of Itombwe zoologist Asukulu M’Mema. [2]
Reptiles are tetrapod animals in the class Reptilia, comprising today's turtles, crocodilians, snakes, amphisbaenians, lizards, tuatara, and their extinct relatives. The study of these traditional reptile orders, historically combined with that of modern amphibians, is called herpetology.
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Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae and the infraorder Scincomorpha. With more than 1,500 described species, the Scincidae are one of the most diverse families of lizards. Common skinks include many different kinds such as the slender skink, snake-eyed skink and the skinks of Plestiodon are among the common skinks.
The Lizard is a fictional character, a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is usually depicted as an enemy of Spider-Man. In 2009, The Lizard was ranked IGN's 62nd Greatest Comic Villain of All Time. In the stories, Dr. Connors was a genetic biologist who researched the ability of certain reptiles to regrow missing limbs, partially to find a way to regenerate his right arm. After a test on himself, he transforms into a violent lizard monster. Though able to revert to his human form, he suffers occasional fits of his alter ego breaking free.
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The Gila monster is a species of venomous lizard native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexican state of Sonora. A heavy, typically slow-moving lizard, up to 60 cm (2.0 ft) long, the Gila monster is the only venomous lizard native to the United States and one of only two known species of venomous lizards in North America, the other being its close relative, the Mexican beaded lizard. Although the Gila monster is venomous, its sluggish nature means it represents little threat to humans. However, it has acquired a fearsome reputation, and is sometimes killed despite being protected by state law in Arizona. In 2019, the state of Utah made the Gila monster its official state reptile.
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Congolacerta vauereselli also known as the sparse-scaled forest lizard, is a species of lizard found in Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.