Mesalina olivieri
| Mesalina olivieri | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Family: | Lacertidae |
| Genus: | Mesalina |
| Species: | M. olivieri |
| Binomial name | |
| Mesalina olivieri (Audouin, 1829) | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
Mesalina olivieri, also known commonly as Olivier's sand lizard, is a species of sand-dwelling lizard in the family Lacertidae. The species is native to North Africa and the Middle East.
Etymology
The specific name, olivieri, is in honor of French entomologist Guillaume-Antoine Olivier.[3]
Geographic distribution
Mesalina olivieri occurs in Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and Western Sahara.[2]
Habitat
The preferred natural habitats of Mesalina olivieri are desert, grassland, and shrubland at altitudes of 0–1,000 m (0–3,281 ft).[1]
Behavior
Mesalina olivieri is terrestrial and diurnal.[1]
Diet
Mesalina olivieri preys predominately upon ants, but also other small arthropods.[1]
Reproduction
Mesalina olivieri is oviparous.[2] Clutch size is two to four eggs, and each sexually mature female lays at least two clutches per year.[1]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 Wilms T, Wagner P, Niagate B, Al Johany AMH, Amr ZSS, Baha El Din S, Disi AM, Böhme W (2018). "Mesalina olivieri ". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T164667A1065571. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T164667A1065571.en. Downloaded on 13 May 2019.
- 1 2 3 Mesalina olivieri at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 12 May 2019.
- ↑ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Mesalina olivieri, p. 194).
Further reading
- Audouin, "Victor [sic]" (1829). "Explication sommaire des Planches de Reptiles (supplément), Publiées par Jules-César Savigny, Membre de l'Institut; offrant un exposé des caractères naturels des genres avec la distinction des espèces ". pp. 97–140. In: [Commission des sciences et arts de l'Égypte ] (1829). Description de l'Égypte, ou Recueil des observations et des recherches qui ont été faites en Égypt pendant l'expédition de l'armée française. Second édition dédiée au Roi. Tome vingt-quatrieme [Volume 24] Histoire naturelle, Zoologie. Paris: C.L.F. Panckoucke. 579 pp. (Lacerta olivieri, new species, pp. 122–125). (in French).
- Schleich, H.H.; Kästle, W.; Kabisch, K. (1996). Amphibians and Reptiles of North Africa. Königstein, Germany: Koeltz Scientific books. ISBN 978-3874293778. 435 pp. (Mesalina olivieri, p. 420).
- Sindaco, Roberto; Jeremčenko, Valery K. (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. ISBN 978-88-89504-14-7.
- Trape, Jean-François; Trape, Sébastien; Chirio, Laurent (2012). Lézards, crocodiles et tortues d'Afrique occidentale et du Sahara. Paris: IRD Orstom. 503 pp. ISBN 978-2709917261. (in French).