Lacertid

Lacertid
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Lacertid".

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Lacertidae

Podarcis hispanica

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Family:	Lacertidae

Genera

Many, see text.

Terminology and scalation of lacertids

Lacertidae is the family of the wall lizards, which are native to Europe, Africa and Asia, and (in Lacerta) they include some of the most common types seen in Europe.

1 Habitat
2 Size
3 Food
4 Reproduction
5 Classification

Habitat

All species are terrestrial. European and Mediterranean species live mainly in forest and scrub habitats. Eremias and Ophisops species replace these in the grassland and desert habitats of Asia. African species usually live in rocky, arid areas. Holaspis is one of the few arboreal lacertids, and its single species, Holaspis guentheri, is a glider (although apparently a poor one), using its broad tail and flattened body as an aerofoil (Zug et al. 2001).

Size

Small or medium-sized; usually less than 9 cm snout-vent length, but a few species exceed 15 cm SVL (Lacerta lepida).

Food

Primarily insectivorous. Meroles anchietae (formerly Aporosaura anchietae) is one of the few wall lizards that regularly eats seeds – an appropriate food for a lizard of the harsh Namib Desert.