Tropidurus torquatus
| Tropidurus torquatus | |
|---|---|
| File:Tropidurus torquatus.jpg | |
| Scientific classification Edit this classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Iguania |
| Family: | Tropiduridae |
| Genus: | Tropidurus |
| Species: | T. torquatus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Tropidurus torquatus (Wied-Neuwied, 1820)
| |
| Synonyms[2][3] | |
| |
Tropidurus torquatus is a species of lizard in the family Tropiduridae, the Neotropical ground lizards. Its common name is Amazon lava lizard.[1] The species is endemic to South America. There are no subspecies.
Etymology
[edit | edit source]The specific name, torquatus, is Latin meaning "adorned with a neck chain or collar".
Geographic range
[edit | edit source]Native to South America, Tropidurus torquatus is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname.[1] It is one of the most widely distributed species of the genus Tropidurus.[4]
Description
[edit | edit source]Tropidurus torquatus is a medium-sized lizard with a relatively large head. Its scales are overlapping.[4] The reproductively mature female ranges from 7 to 10 cm (2.8 to 3.9 in) snout-to-vent length (SVL).[5] One sample of adult males had a mean SVL of 8.68 cm (3.42 in),[6] while another found a mean SVL of 11 to 12 cm (4.3 to 4.7 in).[7]
Habitat
[edit | edit source]Tropidurus torquatus lives mainly in open habitat types, especially restinga, part of the Atlantic Forest biome. It may occupy disturbed and degraded restinga. It is also known from the Abrolhos Archipelago, indicating that it can colonize offshore islands.[8] It lives in the Cerrado.[9] It may be found in residential areas,[4][7] where it is adept at climbing the walls of houses. It is mostly ground-dwelling, living in termite nests and on or under rocks and logs.[10] It is associated with many other animals, including giant ameiva, coati, brown capuchin, guira cuckoo, and false coral snake.[11]
Diet
[edit | edit source]The species Tropidurus torquatus is omnivorous, eating invertebrates and plant material.[1] It favors ants,[12] and it prefers the fruits and flowers of plants.[13] It commonly eats the fruits of Chomelia obtusa, Ficus luschnathiana (called higuerón), and smilaxes.[14] It especially favors the fruit of Erythroxylum ovalifolium (little coca) during the summer.[12]
Territoriality
[edit | edit source]The male of the species Tropidurus torquatus is territorial. The male performs signalling behaviors such as head-bobbing and tail-whipping and exhibits aggressive behaviors such as chasing and fighting with other males. Larger, faster males tend to dominate higher-quality territories, such as those with many hiding places and abundant sunlight. Females prefer higher-quality territories and accept the males guarding them; a male may have access to a harem of several females in a good habitat.[7]
Reproduction
[edit | edit source]The female Tropidurus torquatus may lay several eggs at a time, but a clutch of two is common, particularly in coastal areas.[15] Clutch sizes may be larger in other geographical ranges.[5]
Bipedalism
[edit | edit source]Another notable behavior of Tropidurus torquatus is occasional bipedal locomotion. It can run relatively quickly on its hind feet for a limited distance. It carries its body in an oblique position, lifting its hindlimbs high. It swings its forelimbs in phase with its hindlimbs, i.e., swinging its right forelimb as its right hindlimb comes up, and its left with its left.[6]
Biology
[edit | edit source]Other aspects of the biology of Tropidurus torquatus have been well-studied, from the production[9] and morphology[16] of its spermatozoa, to the histology of its liver,[17] kidneys,[18][19] and red blood cells.[20] An inventory of the parasites inside the bodies of a number of lizards found three nematode species, Physaloptera lutzi, Parapharyngodon bainae, and Oswaldofilaria chabaudi, as well as an unidentified tapeworm and an acanthocephalan.[21]
References
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- ^ Tropidurus torquatus at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 2 April 2017.
- ^ Boulenger (1885), p. 176.
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- ^ Ribeiro, L.B., et al. (2008). Thermoregulatory behavior of the saxicolous lizard, Tropidurus torquatus (Squamata, Tropiduridae), in a rocky outcrop in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Herpetological Conservation and Biology 3 (1): 63-70.
- ^ Wiederhecker, H.C., et al. (2003). The demography of the lizard Tropidurus torquatus (Squamata, Tropiduridae) in a highly seasonal Neotropical savanna. Phyllomedusa 2 (1): 9-19.
- ^ a b de Carvalho, A.L.G., et al. (2007). Feeding ecology of Tropidurus torquatus (Wied) (Squamata, Tropiduridae) in two areas with different degrees of conservation in Marambaia Island, Rio de Janeiro, Southeastern Brazil. Revista Brasileira de Zoologia 24 (1): 222-227.
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- ^ Teixeira, R.D., et al. (1999). Ultrastructural study of the spermatozoa of the Neotropical lizards, Tropidurus semitaeniatus and Tropidurus torquatus (Squamata, Tropiduridae). Tissue & Cell 31 (3): 308-317.
- ^ Firmiano, E.M.S., et al. (2011). Histological study of the liver of the lizard Tropidurus torquatus Wied 1820, (Squamata: Tropiduridae). J. Morphol. Sci. 28 (3): 165-170.
- ^ Soares, A.M.; Fava-de-Moraes, F. (1983). Histochemistry of the kidney of the tropical lizard Tropidurus torquatus. Gegenbaurs Morphol. Jahrb. 129 (3): 331-344.
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Further reading
[edit | edit source]- Boulenger, G.A. (1885). Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume II. Iguanidæ .... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 497 pp. + Plates I–XXIV. (Tropidurus torquatus, pp. 176–177).
- Wied-Neuwied, M. (1820). Reise nach Brasilien in den Jahren 1815 bis 1817 [Volume 1]. Frankfurt am Main: H.L. Bronner. xxxvi + 380 pp. + 5 unnumbered pp. + 25 plates, 2 maps. (Stellio torquatus, new species, pp. 106–107). (in German).
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