The common Puerto Rican ameiva, Puerto Rican ground lizard, or siguana común (''Pholidoscelis exsul'') is a

species 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. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of lizard in the

whiptail Whiptail can refer to: * Fish: ** A common name for Blue grenadier, a species of fish in the genus ''Macruronus'' ** Whiptail catfish, a common name for the genus of fish ''Rineloricaria'' * A wide variety of long-tailed, New World lizard species f ...

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

."''Ameiva exsul'' "
The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org. Ameiva exsul on leaf litter

Geographic range

''Ameiva exsul'' is found in coastal habitats of

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, the

United States Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands, officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and a territory of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located ...

, and the

British Virgin Islands The British Virgin Islands (BVI), officially the Virgin Islands, are a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean, to the east of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands, US Virgin Islands and north-west ...

. In Puerto Rico, the species is also found on the island of

Isla Culebra Isla Culebra (, ''Snake Island'') is an island, town and municipality of Puerto Rico, and together with Vieques, it is geographically part of the Spanish Virgin Islands. It is located approximately east of the Puerto Rican mainland, west of ...

, as well as in the

Toro Negro State Forest Toro Negro State Forest (Spanish: ''Bosque Estatal de Toro Negro'') is one of the 21 forests that make up the public forests system in Puerto Rico. It is also Puerto Rico's highest cloud forest. It is in the Cordillera Central, Puerto Rico, Cord ...

.''Bosques de Puerto Rico: Bosque Estatal de Toro Negro.''
Hojas de Nuestro Ambiente. July 2008. ublication/Issue: P-030Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. Retrieved 10 September 2013.

Description

''Pholidoscelis exsul'' is a relatively large lizard; males can grow up to . The maximum recorded male snout-to-vent length (SVL) is , and the maximum recorded female SVL is . Color patterns vary widely among individuals, populations, and islands. Animals are predominantly colored gray, black, or brown, with large or small white dots along their backs. Dorsolateral stripes vary in number, length, and color. All individuals have a white or blue-white mottled stomach. The chin shield and throat patch are often light pink. Juveniles generally have a bright blue tail and more dots than stripes.

Biology

Puerto Rican ground lizards occur in habitat with open canopy structure and loose sandy soil in elevations between sea-level and where the temperature is above 24 °C (75 °F) year-round. Henderson RW, Powell R (2009). ''Natural History of West Indian Reptiles and Amphibians''. Gainesville: University Press of Florida. 520 pp. . Ground lizards forage for insects and small fruits and scavenge for dead animals or trash scraps in urban areas.

Reproduction

Sexually mature females of ''P. exsul'' bury 2–7 pink eggs approximately below ground in loose soil in June–August. Juveniles may have a bright blue tail, like the closely related '' Pholidoscelis wetmorei'' (blue-tailed ground lizard), but they will lose the bright blue color in their tail with age. Individuals can live more than six years.

Threats

The main threat to ''P. exsul'' individuals is from other animals which eat ground lizards. Mammalian predators, all

invasive species An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...

, include

feral cats A feral cat or a stray cat is an unowned domestic cat (''Felis catus'') that lives outdoors and avoids human contact; it does not allow itself to be handled or touched, and usually remains hidden from humans. Feral cats may breed over dozens ...

dogs The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers ...

, and

small Indian mongoose The small Indian mongoose (''Urva auropunctata'') is a mongoose species native to Iraq and northern India; it has also been introduced to several Caribbean and Pacific islands. Taxonomy ''Mangusta auropunctata'' was the scientific name proposed ...

s. Avian predators include

American kestrel The American kestrel (''Falco sparverius'') is the smallest and most common falcon in North America. Though it has been called the American sparrowhawk, this common name is a misnomer; the American kestrel is a true falcon, while neither th ...

Greater Antillean grackle The Greater Antillean grackle (''Quiscalus niger'') is a grackle found throughout the Greater Antilles, as well as smaller nearby islands. Like all ''Quiscalus'' grackles, it is a rather large, gregarious bird. It lives largely in heavily settl ...

s, and pearly-eyed thrashers.

References

* Boulenger GA (1896). "''Ueber einige Reptilien von der Insel Mona (Westindien)'' ". ''Jahresbericht und Abhandlungen des Naturwissenschaftlichen Vereins in Magdeburg'' 1894-1896: 112–114. (''Ameiva alboguttata'', new species, pp. 112–113). (in German). * Cope ED (1862). "Synopsis of the Species of ''Holcosus'' and ''Ameiva'', with Diagnoses of new West Indian and South American Colubridæ". ''Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia'' 14: 60–82. (''Ameiva plei'' Var. ''exsul'', new variation, p. 66). * Heatwole H, Torres F (1967). "Distribution and Geographic Variation of the Ameivas of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands". ''Studies on the Fauna of Curaçao and other Caribbean Islands'' 24 (92): 63–111. (''Ameiva desechensis'', new species, pp. 95–96). * Schwartz A,

Thomas R Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas t ...

(1975). ''A Check-list of West Indian Amphibians and Reptiles''.

Carnegie Museum of Natural History The Carnegie Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as CMNH) is a natural history museum in the Oakland (Pittsburgh), Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was founded by List of people from the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, Pit ...