Skyros wall lizard
The Skyros wall lizard (Podarcis gaigeae) is a species of lizard in the family Lacertidae. The species is endemic to the islands of Skyros and Piperi, Greece. Subspecies Two subspecies were formerly recognized. The nominotypical subspecies, Podarcis gaigeae gaigeae, is found on Skyros and associated islets, and the other subspecies, Podarcis gaigeae weigandi, is found on the island of Piperi. Gigantism and polymorphy The Skyros wall lizard exhibits island gigantism on small islets surrounding Skyros. The Skyros wall lizard also exhibits a throat color polymorphy with six different throat color morphs that are expressed in both females and males. Etymology The specific name, gaigeae, is in honor of American herpetologist Helen Beulah Thompson Gaige. Description The Skyros wall lizard reaches a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of about . It has a deep head and a tail approximately twice SVL. The colouring is rather variable, usually being green, olive-green, or brownish, with a dark vertebral band and dorso-lateral stripes. The mottled flanks often have a single blue spot above the shoulder. The underparts are white, often with dark spots on the throat, the lizards on each island having characteristic markings. Distribution The Skyros wall lizard occurs only on Skyros and on Piperi Island in the Sporades archipelago in the northern Aegean Sea. It is the only small lizard occurring on these islands. Habitat The natural habitats of Podarcis gaigeae are Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rocky areas, and rocky shores. Reproduction P. gaigeae is oviparous. Conservation status The Skyros wall lizard has a total area of occupancy of less than but is common within that range. Although the population trend is unknown, no specific threats are apparent apart from the risks posed by wildfire. However the introduction onto its island home of some predatory species could threaten its survival so the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being "vulnerable". References Further reading Cattaneo, Augusto (1998). "Gli Anfibi e i Rettili delle isole greche di Skyros, Skopelos e Alonissos (Sporadi settentrionali) ". Atti della Società Italiana di Scienze Naturali e del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano 139 (2): 127-149. ("Podarcis gaigeae gaigeae ", new combination, p. 131). (in Italian). Psonis, Nikolaos; Antoniou, Aglaia; Karameta, Emmanouela; Darriba, Diego; Stamatakis, Alexandros; Lymberakis, Petros; Poulakakis, Nikos (2021). "The wall lizards of the Balkan peninsula: Tackling questions at the interface of phylogenomics and population genomics". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 159: 107121. Sindaco R, Jeremčenko VK (2008). The Reptiles of the Western Palearctic. 1. Annotated Checklist and Distributional Atlas of the Turtles, Crocodiles, Amphisbaenians and Lizards of Europe, North Africa, Middle East and Central Asia. (Monographs of the Societas Herpetologica Italica). Latina, Italy: Edizioni Belvedere. 580 pp. . Werner F (1930). "Contribution to the Knowledge of the Reptiles and Amphibians of Greece, Especially the Aegean Islands". Occasional Papers of the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology (211): 1-46, including Plates I-VI. (Lacerta taurica gaigeae, new subspecies, pp. 9–10 + Plate I, figures 4-6; Plate II, figures 7-11). Podarcis Reptiles described in 1930