Boettger's Lizard
Small Tenerife Lizard ( Gallotia caesaris gomerae )
The Little Canaries Lizard ( Gallotia caesaris ) is an endemic to the western Canary Islands El Hierro and La Gomera lizard of the family Lacertidae. In Madeira, it was introduced by humans.
There are two subspecies:
- Gallotia caesaris caesaris ( Lehr, 1914) at El Hierro
- Gallotia caesaris gomerae ( Boettger & Müller, 1914) in La Gomera
Features
Small for the genus Canaries lizards style with head-body length up to 10 cm. The scales on the body top is very fine, above the belly center 10-12 large scales. The males have dyed a deep black head, the rest of the body is dark brown to black. Their flanks are without markings or loosely covered with tiny bluish or greenish spots. Females and juveniles have a brownish color with clearly marked bright line, starting at the snout, to pull over his eyes run over the back and flanks and continue down to the tail into it. Non - dominant males may be colored as females. Small Lizard Canaries have (unlike the Canaries Lizard Gallotia Gallotia ) is always a black throat.
Habitat
Both El Hierro and La Gomera are populated almost everywhere. The species lives on the uninhabited rock island Roque de Grande Salmor off the northwest coast of El Hierro.
On El Hierro all somehow suitable habitats between the surf area of the rocky coast and the highest points of the island are inhabited, so Little Canaries lizards, for example, in the canary typical stone walls, Opuntia thickets and sparsely vegetated lava in large numbers are observed. La Gomera is also inhabited almost everywhere, but the species is never as common as on the neighboring island, largely free lizards are the Laurel and Gagel tree - tree heath forests in the center of La Gomera.
Way of life
Gallotia caesaris feeds mainly on arthropods (eg insects, beetles, spiders, isopods ), but also takes plant food (eg fruits of blackberries or Optuntien, flower nectar ) on. The cultivated on both islands tomatoes, grapes and bananas are eaten, so the lizards are often considered pests. On fresh pile of garbage they use both the food residues as well as the attracted by these insects.
The Little Canaries lizard was a long time not considered own style, field observations of reproduction are not available ( as of 2000).