| Laudakia stellio | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Dana Biosphere Reserve, Jordan | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Iguania |
| Family: | Agamidae |
| Genus: | Laudakia |
| Species: | L. stellio |
| Binomial name | |
| Laudakia stellio | |
| Synonyms [2] | |
Laudakia stellio is a species of agamid lizard. [3] [1] also known as the starred agama or the roughtail rock agama.
Common names for L. stellio include dikenli keler, hardim, hardun, kourkoutas (Cypriot Greek), kourkoutavlos, painted dragon, roughtail rock agama, short-toed rock agama, sling-tailed agama, star lizard, starred agama, and stellion.[ citation needed ]
Laudakia stellio can be found in Turkey, Greece, Israel, Palestinian Authority, Cyprus, Lebanon, western Asia and northern Egypt; it has also been introduced to Malta. [1]
Laudakia stellio may attain a total length (including tail) of 35 cm (14 in) or slightly longer. [4]
Like many agamids, L. stellio can change its color to express its mood. It basks on stone walls, rocks, and trees. It is usually found in rocky habitats, and is quite shy, being very ready to dive into cracks to hide from potential predators.[ citation needed ]
The common name "stellion" comes from Latin stellio, stēlio (stelliōn-, stēliōn-), from stella, star. [5] It may have referred to any spotted lizard.[ citation needed ]
Stellio is mentioned in Ovids Metamorphoses Book 5 line 461. A naughty boy mocks the goddess Ceres for drinking a drink containing honey and barley with too much greed, as she is quite thirsty. Angrily the goddess throws the drink in the face of the boy, and there by changes him into a Stellio or a starred agama. It is an Etiological myth explaining why the starred agama got its spotted skin.
For the indigenous people of Europe, and perhaps the Middle East, traditionally the excrement of the stellio was a popular medicine for the eyes, also used as a cosmetic, known as cordylea, crocodilea or stercus lacerti (i.e. 'lizard shit'), the faeces being imported to European pharmacies from the Levant – a rarer and more potent form was acquired from monitor lizards in olden days (stercus magni lacerti). The dung was used to improve one's eyesight, as well as take away any itches and cure cataracts (webbe). [5] [6]
The following 2 subspecies, including the nominotypical subspecies, are recognized as being valid. [2]
Nota bene : A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Laudakia.
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.
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.
Ceratophora is a genus of agamid lizards found in Sri Lanka. The male has a horn on its snout.
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.
Laudakia agrorensis, the Agror agama, is a species of agamid lizard. It is found in eastern Afghanistan, northwestern India, and northern Pakistan. It is associated with rocky outcrops in low mountain areas, 700–1,300 m (2,300–4,300 ft) above sea level.
The Caucasian agama is a species of agamid lizard found in the Caucasus, E/S Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Dagestan (Russia), E Turkey, Iraq, N Iran, Afghanistan, NW Pakistan, and parts of Kashmir.
Laudakia dayana, commonly known as the Haridwar agama, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is native to extreme northern India.
Laudakia melanura, also known as the black agama or black rock agama, is a species of agamid lizard. It is found in Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern India.
Laudakia pakistanica, the Pakistani agama, a species of agamid lizard found in northern Pakistan and northern India, in the disputed territory claimed by both states.
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.
In the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, Carl Linnaeus described the Amphibia as:
Animals that are distinguished by a body cold and generally naked; stern and expressive countenance; harsh voice; mostly lurid color; filthy odor; a few are furnished with a horrid poison; all have cartilaginous bones, slow circulation, exquisite sight and hearing, large pulmonary vessels, lobate liver, oblong thick stomach, and cystic, hepatic, and pancreatic ducts: they are deficient in diaphragm, do not transpire (sweat), can live a long time without food, are tenatious of life, and have the power of reproducing parts which have been destroyed or lost; some undergo a metamorphosis; some cast (shed) their skin; some appear to live promiscuously on land or in the water, and some are torpid during the winter.
Paralaudakia stoliczkana is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is native to Xinjiang and Gansu provinces in China, the western parts of Mongolia, and to Kyrgyzstan. There are two recognized subspecies.
Laudakia nupta is a species of lizard from Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. It was described in 1843. There are two subspecies, Laudakia nupta nupta and Laudakia nupta fusca.
Agama hispida, also known commonly as the common spiny agama, the southern spiny agama, and the spiny ground agama, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is native to southern Africa. There are two recognized subspecies.
Laudakia sacra, also known commonly as Anan's rock agama, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is endemic to Tibet.
Laudakia cypriaca, also known as Cyprus rock agama, is a species of agamid lizard. It is endemic to Cyprus. It was originally described as a subspecies of Agama stellio. However, a 2022 revision of Laudakia stellio raised the former Laudakia stellio cypriaca to the full species rank, along with Laudakia vulgaris.
Laudakia vulgaris, also known as Egyptian rock agama, is a species of agamid lizard. It is found in Egypt, Jordan, Israel, Syria, southern Lebanon, and northern Saudi Arabia.
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