The Ibiza wall lizard (''Podarcis pityusensis'') is a species of

lizard Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...

in the family

Lacertidae The Lacertidae are the family of the wall lizards, true lizards, or sometimes simply lacertas, which are native to Afro-Eurasia. It is a diverse family with at about 360 species in 39 genera. They represent the dominant group of reptiles found ...

. It is most closely associated with the island of Eivissa, or Ibiza, in the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands are an archipelago in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago forms a Provinces of Spain, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain, ...

, but has become

naturalized Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-national of a country acquires the nationality of that country after birth. The definition of naturalization by the International Organization for Migration of the ...

in parts of

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. A

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

, ''P. pityusensis formenterae'', is limited in natural habitat to the islands of

Formentera Formentera (, ) is a Spanish island located in the Mediterranean Sea, which belongs to the Balearic Islands autonomous community (Spain) together with Mallorca, Menorca, and Ibiza. Formentera is the smallest and most southerly island of the ...

, Illa Conillera and Es Vedrà, south of Ibiza, but has been transported by humans to several other locations in the Mediterranean. The Formentean subspecies tends to be more brightly coloured than its Ibizan and mainland con-specifics. The natural

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

s of ''P. pityusensis'' are temperate

shrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally o ...

, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rocky areas, rocky shores,

arable land Arable land (from the , "able to be ploughed") is any land capable of being ploughed and used to grow crops.''Oxford English Dictionary'', "arable, ''adj''. and ''n.''" Oxford University Press (Oxford), 2013. Alternatively, for the purposes of a ...

, pastureland,

plantation Plantations are farms specializing in cash crops, usually mainly planting a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Plantations, centered on a plantation house, grow crops including cotton, cannabis, tob ...

s, rural gardens, and

urban area An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

Description

The Ibiza wall lizard grows to a maximum snout-to-vent length of but adults are usually a little smaller than this. The tail is about twice as long as the body. It is robust with a short-head and rounded body with relatively coarse, slightly keeled scales. The dorsal surface is usually green but can be grey or brownish. There is usually a well-defined pale dorso-lateral stripe and there may be a row of dark spots or a dark line running along the spine. The underside is white, cream, grey, orange or pink and the throat, and occasionally the belly, may be blotched with darker colour.

Distribution and habitat

The Ibiza wall lizard is native to the islands of Ibiza and Formentera in the

and the neighbouring rocky islets. It has been introduced to Muella de Palma (Mallorca), Barcelona where it once was assumed it died out but was 're-discovered' in 2007 (Bruekers, 2007) in the town of Aleria in southern Spain and the island of Gaztelugatxe in northern Spain. It is found at altitudes of up to above sea level. This lizard largely inhabits vegetated areas especially in those association with man. As well as gardens, pasture and arable land, it is found on rocks, especially near the coast. On some small islets, it may be very common and live almost exclusively on rock.

Biology

The Ibiza wall lizard feeds on small invertebrates including a high proportion of

ant Ants are Eusociality, eusocial insects of the Family (biology), family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the Taxonomy (biology), order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from Vespoidea, vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cre ...

s when they are available. It also eats vegetable matter, especially during the summer. Females generally produce a single clutch of one to four eggs. These hatch after a few weeks and the hatchlings are about long from snout to vent. They become sexually mature at the age of one and a half or two years.

Status

Although this lizard does not seem to be in overall decline and faces no significant threats, its total area of occurrence is less than so the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

lists it as being "

Near threatened A near-threatened species is a species which has been Conservation status, categorized as "Near Threatened" (NT) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as that may be vulnerable to Endangered species, endangerment in the ne ...

". More recently, the lizard is facing a threat from invasive snakes which originated from mainland Spain which came to Ibiza in imported olive trees.

Gallery

File:Ibiza Wall Lizard Podarcis pityusensis Nature reserve es Vedrà 19th May 2011.JPG File:Sargantana_camí_de_sa_pujada_3.jpg File:Sargantana_camí_de_sa_pujada_2.jpg File:Podarcys pityusensis kieto parao.JPG, The subspecies Formentera wall lizard (''P. pityusensis formenterae'') File:An Ibiza wall lizard (Podarcis pityusensis) scavenging on fish scraps leftover from another predator - journal.pone.0060797.g001-B.png, Scavenging on fish scraps

References

Bruekers, J. (2007) - Wiederentdeckung von Podarcis pityusensis pityusensis in Barcelona - Die Eidechse, Bonn, 18: 79-84

External links

''Cold-blooded Cannibals: Extreme Adaptations to Island Life''
is a short documentary on adaptations to island life in the Ibiza Wall Lizard. {{Taxonbar, from=Q578652 Podarcis Fauna of the Balearic Islands Animals of Ibiza Reptiles described in 1883 Taxa named by Eduardo Boscá Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Habitats Directive species