Smaug (lizard)

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Smaug
Cordylus giganteus.jpg
Giant girdled lizard ( Smaug giganteus )
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Cordylidae
Genus: Smaug
Stanley, Bauer, Jackman, Branch, & Mouton, 2011 [1]
Diversity
9 species (see text)

Smaug is a genus of lizards in the family Cordylidae. The genus Smaug is a group of species of spiny southern African lizards, separated from the genus Cordylus in 2011 on the basis of a comprehensive molecular phylogeny of the Cordylidae. The type species is the giant girdled lizard, S. giganteus (formerly Cordylus giganteus). [1]

Contents

Etymology

The genus Smaug was named for the character Smaug, in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit : [2]

Smaug is the name of the dragon encountered by Bilbo Baggins, the protagonist of J.R.R. Tolkien's book The Hobbit. According to Tolkien the name is derived from the Old German verb smeugen – to squeeze through a hole. Like the type species, Smaug lived underground and was heavily armored. Appropriately Tolkien was born in the Free State province, South Africa, the core area of distribution of the type species. The name is masculine. [1]

Zonurus, the former genus name, is from Greek zōnē 'girdle' + oura 'tail'. [3]

Description

Smaug are large lizards (extremely large among the Cordylidae), measuring up to 112–205 mm (4.4–8.1 in) in snout–vent length (SVL). The body is sub-cylindrical in cross-section and robust. Limbs are moderate in length and digits are unreduced. Dorsal and caudal scales are enlarged and spinose. Occipital spines are greatly enlarged. Nasal scales are not in contact with one another. The frontonasal scale is in broad contact with the rostral scale. The tongue is partly or fully pigmented. Osteoderms are distributed across the entire body. [1]

Reproduction

Smaug are viviparous and give birth to 1–6 young. [1]

Species

There are 9 species: [4] [5]

Nota bene : A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Smaug.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smaug</span> Wily dragon in J. R. R. Tolkiens The Hobbit

Smaug is a dragon and the main antagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's 1937 novel The Hobbit, his treasure and the mountain he lives in being the goal of the quest. Powerful and fearsome, he invaded the Dwarf kingdom of Erebor 171 years prior to the events described in the novel. A group of thirteen dwarves mounted a quest to take the kingdom back, aided by the wizard Gandalf and the hobbit Bilbo Baggins. In The Hobbit, Thorin describes Smaug as "a most specially greedy, strong and wicked worm".

<i>Cordylus</i> Genus of lizards

The genus Cordylus includes a wide variety of species of small to medium spiny lizards from Africa, collectively called girdle-tailed lizards or girdled lizards. All are diurnal and ovoviviparous. Most species are rupicolous (rock-dwelling), while a few species are arboreal or live in burrows. They defend themselves with osteoderms and by quickly retreating into rock crevices or burrows. Many species live in groups, and males defend territories.

<i>Pseudocordylus</i> Genus of lizards

Pseudocordylus is a genus of small to large girdled lizards from South Africa, commonly known as crag lizards. Six species of Pseudocordylus are known; they are distinguished from girdled lizards of the genus Cordylus by the presence of granular scales on the back instead of osteoderms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armadillo girdled lizard</span> Species of reptile in the family Cordylidae

The armadillo girdled lizard, also commonly known as the armadillo lizard, the armadillo spiny-tailed lizard, and the golden-armadillo lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is endemic to desert areas along the western coast of South Africa. In 2011, it was moved to its own genus based on molecular phylogeny, but formerly it was included in the genus Cordylus.

J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium features dragons based on those of European legend, but going beyond them in having personalities of their own, such as the wily Smaug, who has features of both Fafnir and the Beowulf dragon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giant girdled lizard</span> Species of lizard

The sungazer, also known as the giant girdled lizard, giant dragon lizard, ouvolk, or giant zonure, is the largest species of the Cordylidae, a family of lizards from sub-Saharan Africa. This threatened species is endemic to Highveld grasslands in the interior of South Africa. In 2011, it was assigned to the new genus Smaug, along with seven other species previously belonging to the genus Cordylus, based on a comprehensive molecular phylogeny of the Cordylidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sekukhune flat lizard</span> Species of lizard

The Sekukhune flat lizard is a species of lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is endemic to South Africa. It has two subspecies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Limpopo girdled lizard</span> Species of lizard

The Limpopo girdled lizard, also known commonly as Jones's armadillo lizard and Jones's girdled lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is endemic to Southern Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mozambique girdled lizard</span> Species of lizard

The Mozambique girdled lizard or flame-bellied armadillo lizard is a large, flattened, girdled lizard found on Mount Gorongosa in Mozambique and low elevations in the Chimanimani Mountains at the border of Zimbabwe and Mozambique. It lives in rock outcrops in grasslands and dry, wooded mountain slopes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warren's girdled lizard</span> Species of lizard

Warren's girdled lizard is a species of relatively large, flattened lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is native to Southern Africa.

<i>Ninurta coeruleopunctatus</i> Species of lizard from South Africa

Ninurta coeruleopunctatus, the blue-spotted girdled lizard or simply blue-spotted lizard, is a monotypic genus that is endemic to southern, coastal South Africa. The Ninurtacoeruleopunctatus, as a member of the Cordylinae subfamily, demonstrates significant variability in body armor. This variation is a cause of the diverse evolutionary pressures within the subfamily. The environments aridity is the significant cause for this body armour's evolution.

<i>Hemicordylus</i> Genus of lizards

Hemicordylus, the false girdled lizards, is a genus comprising two lizard species endemic to the Cape Fold Belt of southern South Africa.

Namazonurus campbelli, commonly known as Campbell's girdled lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Cordylidae. A small girdled lizard, N. campbelli is endemic to Namibia. It is often mistaken for the more common Herero girdled lizard, N. pustulatus, as they both are similar in size and have flattened bodies. N. campbelli lives in rock crevices and cracks on dry mountain slopes

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Van Dam's girdled lizard</span> Species of lizard

Van Dam's girdled lizard is a species of lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is endemic to South Africa.

<i>Karusasaurus</i> Genus of lizards

Karusasaurus, commonly known as Karusa lizards, is a genus of lizards in the family Cordylidae.

<i>Namazonurus</i> Genus of lizards

Namazonurus, is a genus of lizards, commonly known as Namaqua girdled lizards, in the family Cordylidae. The genus contains five species, which are endemic to southern Africa, and feed on insects and small vertebrates.

<i>Smaug breyeri</i> Species of lizard

Smaug breyeri, also known commonly as the Waterberg dragon lizard or the Waterberg girdled lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is endemic to South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rooiberg girdled lizard</span> Species of lizard

The Rooiberg girdled lizard is a species of small, spiny lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is endemic to South Africa.

<i>Namazonurus peersi</i> Species of lizard

Namazonurus peersi is a species of small, spiny lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is endemic to South Africa.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Stanley, Edward L.; Bauer, Aaron M. [in French]; Jackman, Todd R.; Branch, William R.; Mouton, P. Le Fras N. (2011). "Between a rock and a hard polytomy: Rapid radiation in the rupicolous girdled lizards (Squamata: Cordylidae)" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 58 (1): 53–70. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2010.08.024. PMID   20816817. (Smaug, new genus, p. 64).
  2. "Protect and Prosper". American Museum of Natural History . Retrieved August 30, 2015.
  3. "zonure - Definition of zonure in English by Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford Dictionaries - English. Archived from the original on December 4, 2013.
  4. Smaug at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database . Accessed 3 March 2015.
  5. Stanley, E.L.; Bates, M.F. (2014). "Here be dragons: A phylogenetic and biogeographical study of the Smaug warreni species complex (Squamata: Cordylidae) in southern Africa". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 172 (4): 892–909. doi: 10.1111/zoj.12187 .