Lizard

Lizard Information (about Lizard): Lizards, including over 6,000 species, are a diverse community of squamate reptiles, extending throughout all continents except Antarctica, and indeed most chains of oceanic islands. The scientific name of the lizard is Lacertilia. As when the snakes and Amphisbaenia are removed, the group is paraphyletic. Several lizards may be more directly tied to each of these two excluded groups than that of other lizards. Lizards come in different sizes from chameleons and geckos several centimeters in length to something like a 3-meter long Komodo dragon.

About the Lizard

Lizards are a diverse community of squamate reptiles, which are found in all continents except Antarctica. The scientific name of the Lizard is Lacertilia. Lizards come in different shapes and sizes, from the chameleons and geckos which are several centimeters in length to the 3-meter long Komodo dragon.

Many Lizards are quadrupedal, and some are legless and have long, wasp bodies. Most Lizards can glide, like the forest-dwelling Draco lizards. 

Lizards are carnivorous and are the ‘sit-and-wait’ predators. 

Some Distinguishing Features

i) In several dry deserts, one such adaptation allows the Lizards to survive. The skin is hard and leathery and tends to shed as they grow. Lizards slough a few parts of their skin.

ii) The tongue is stretched towards the outside of the mouth and is always long. The tongue becomes forked and is mainly used for sensing the atmosphere in whiptails, beaded lizards, and monitor lizards.

Senses

Lizards use their senses of sight, touch, smell, and hearing. Take for example the Skinks which live largely covered by the loose soil and they depend on the scent and the touch, whereas the Geckos depend to a great extent on an acute vision for their ability to find and assess the distance to their prey before attacking . The Monitor Lizards have the Hearing, Acute vision, and olfactory senses. Lizards utilize their sense organs in different ways; the chameleons aim their eyes in various directions,offering light sources which are not overlapping, such as forwards and backward at once. Lizards do not have external ears and have a circular opening that can be seen in the tympanic membrane (eardrum).

Lizards, like many other vertebrates, allow utilization of their senses of sight, touch, smell, and hearing. For example, skinks that live largely covered by loose soil depend heavily on scent and touch, while geckos depend greatly on an acute vision for their ability to find and assess the distance to their prey before attacking. The balance of these differs with the habitat of different species.

Hearing, Acute vision, and olfactory senses are present in monitor lizards. Many lizards utilize their sense organs unusually: chameleons will aim their eyes in various directions, often offering light sources that are not overlapping, such as forwards and backward at once. Lizards do not have external ears and instead have a circular opening that could be seen in the tympanic membrane (eardrum).

Diet

Lizards are mostly predatory, and small, terrestrial invertebrates, especially insects, are the most common prey items. Many are the ‘sit-and-wait’ predators. Insects like beetles, grasshoppers, and winged termites, and also the spiders, are prey to chameleons. The chameleon sets its eyes on the target when the insect land and slowly moves towards it before projecting its long sticky tongue, which takes the attached prey with it when hauled out. Crickets, insects, termites, and moths feed on Geckos.

The majority of species of lizards are predatory, and small, terrestrial invertebrates, especially insects, are the most common prey items. Many species, while others may be more aggressive foragers, are sit-and-wait predators. Numerous insect species, such as beetles, grasshoppers, and winged termites as well as spiders, are prey to chameleons. To catch such prey, they rely on patience and ambush.

A person perches on a branch and remains completely still, with only his eyes moving. The chameleon sets its eyes on the target when the insect land and slowly moves towards it before projecting its long sticky tongue, which takes the attached prey with it when hauled out. Crickets, insects, termites, and moths feed on geckos.

Lizard Characteristics

The Lizards have four limbs; External ears; Movable eyelids; A short neck; and A long tail, that they can shed while escaping from predators.

Below mentioned are some of the lizard characteristics:-

1. Four limbs.

2. External ears.

3. Movable eyelids.

4. A short neck.

5. A long tail, which they can shed in order to escape from predators.

Lizard Lifespan

The lifespan of a Lizard depends on the species of Lizards. Geckos survive for about 10-15 years in a typical home, the Chameleons are known to survive for around 5-7 years, the Iguanas survive for about 20 years, and the Komodo Dragons, the biggest of the reptiles, live for an average of 40 years.

Many lizards, moving with a powerful edge motion, are quadrupedal. Some are legless and also have wasp bodies that are long. Most are capable of gliding, like the forest-dwelling Draco lizards. The males battle off other males and signal, sometimes with bright colors, to attract females and threaten rivals. These often become territorial.

As already mentioned in about lizards Lacertilia is the scientific name of lizard. Lizards are primarily carnivorous, mostly sit-and-wait predators; insects are eaten by several smaller animals, while mammals as large as water buffalo are eaten by the Komodo.

A number of anti-predator strategies are used by lizards, involving reflex bleeding, camouflage, venom, and the willingness to sacrifice and regenerate their tails.

Lizard is a rather crude and indefinite term. Under the Reptilia class, lizard species are a superfamily that has 4000 species under its description. The lizard lifespan depends on the species of lizards you're talking about; Gecko lasts about 10-15 years in a typical home, Chameleons live 5-7 years, Iguanas live about 20 years of age and Komodo Dragons live for an average of 40 years in the biggest of the reptiles.

Anatomy

Distinguishing Features: 

• Usually, lizards have rounded torsos, raised short-necked heads, long tails, and four limbs, even though few are legless. A retractable quadrate bone is shared by snakes and lizards, separating themselves from Rhynchocephalia, which carries more solid diapsid skulls. 

• A few lizards, like chameleons, possess prehensile tails that help them climb through the vegetation.

• The skin of lizards is coated in overlapping scales that are formed of keratin, like in other reptiles. It offers shelter from the external environment and decreases water loss by evaporation. 

• In several of the driest deserts on earth, one such adaptation allows lizards to survive. The skin is hard and leathery and, as the animal grows it tends to shed (sloughed).

• With the exception of snakes that released a single piece of skin, lizards slough a few parts of their skin. For show or defense, the scales may have been transformed into spines, as well as some species containing bone osteoderms beneath the scales.

• The dentitions of lizards, especially insectivorous, carnivorous, nectivorous, omnivorous, and molluscivora, represent their broad range of diets. Usually, species possess consistent teeth that are suitable for their diet, but many species show variable teeth, including such as cutting teeth toward the front of the jaws whereas crushing teeth in the back. Many organisms are pleurodont, while acrodont is agamids and chameleons.

• The tongue may be stretched towards the outside of the mouth and is always long. The tongue becomes forked and had used mostly or specifically for sensing the atmosphere in whiptails, beaded lizards, and monitor lizards, repeatedly swiping over to examine the environment, and then to pass molecules to the vomeronasal organ accountable for chemosensation, similar to but distinct from taste or smell.

Locomotion

Aside from legless lizards, most lizards are quadrupedal and move with considerable body bending using gaits with the alternating movement of the right and left limbs. 

In a process called In the 13th century, as reported by Vincent of Beauvais in his Mirror of Nature, lizards were recognized in Europe as part of a wide category of reptiles consisting of a variety of egg-laying creatures, including "snakes, various fantastic monsters, assorted amphibians, and worms" In this lax definition, the seventeenth century saw changes. 

James Macartney invented the name Sauria. Carrier's restriction, this body-bending prevents significant respiration during movement, restricting their endurance. Several species can run bipedally, and a few can rely on their hindlimbs and tail to support themselves.

Venom

The Gila monster and the Mexican beaded lizard have been considered the only venomous lizards since 2006. In their oral glands, furthermore, many species of monitor lizards, such as the Komodo dragon, contain potent venom.

For example, by its pharmacological effects, Lace monitor venom induces rapid loss of consciousness and severe bleeding, both reducing blood pressure and eliminating blood clotting. Lizards are formed by nine groups of toxins obtained from snakes. The scope of actions suggests the possibility for the latest medicinal drugs depending on lizard venom proteins.

Respiration

Latest studies of the savannah monitor's lung anatomy and green iguana have shown that they have a unidirectional airflow mechanism that includes air flowing through the lungs in a circle while breathing. This was previously known to occur only in archosaurs. This could be proof that unidirectional airflow in diapsids is an ancestral trait.

Behaviour

1. Diurnality and Thermoregulation

Most species of lizards are active in the daytime, although some are active at night, especially geckos. Lizards have a restricted capacity to monitor their body temperature as ectotherms, and must search out and bask in sunlight to obtain adequate heat to become fully active.

2. Territoriality

Among lizard information, most social interactions are between breeding individuals. Territoriality is widespread and is associated with species that use techniques for sit-and-wait hunting. Males build and preserve regions that contain resources that attract women and that they protect from other males. Basking, feeding, and nesting areas, as well as refugees from predators, are valuable resources.

The habitat of a species influences the layout of territories, such as the territory of rock lizards atop rocky outcrops. In groups, some species can aggregate, raising vigilance and reducing the risk of predation for individuals, particularly for juveniles. Agonistic behavior usually occurs over territories or mates between sexually mature males and can include displays, posturing, chasing, grappling & biting.

Evolution

• The earliest known fossil remains of a lizard belong to the Tikiguania estesi iguanian species, found in India's Tiki Formation, dating to the Triassic period's Carnian stage, around 220 million years ago. 

• However, over the age of Tikiguania, concern has been raised because it is almost indistinguishable from modern agamid lizards. Instead, the remnants of Tikiguania may be late Tertiary or Quaternary in age, washed into much older Triassic sediments. 

• The Rhynchocephalia that emerged in the Late Triassic is most closely related to lizards,  so the earliest lizards actually appeared at that time. Mitochondrial phylogenetics indicates that in the late Permian, the first lizards emerged. 

• On the basis of morphological data, it was believed that iguanid lizards diverged from other squamates quite early on, but this is refuted by molecular evidence. In the Early Cretaceous, mosasaurs originally originated from an extinct group of marine lizards known as megalosaurus. Dolichosauridae is a family of aquatic varanoid late cretaceous lizards which are closely related to mosasaurs.

Lizard Habitat

Lizard habitat, besides the extreme north and Antarctica, and certain islands, are present worldwide. They can be found at altitudes from sea level to 5,000 m (16,000 ft). They prefer warmer, tropical conditions, but they can survive in any but the harshest conditions and are adaptable. A variety of habitats are also exploited by lizards; most of them live on the ground, but some may live in rocks, bushes, tunnels, and underground.

Different Types of Lizards

The below-mentioned list shows the different types of lizards:-

1. Geckos

2. Iguanas

3. Chameleons

4. Agamids

5. Basilisks

6. Skinks

7. Tegus and Greaved Lizards

8. Monitor Lizards

9. Earless Monitor

10. Typical Lizards

11. Girdled Lizards

12. Plated Lizards

13. Alligator Lizards

14. Night Lizards

15. Crocodile Lizards

16. Venomous Lizards

17. Burrowing Lizards

18. Burrowing Slow Worms

Lizards Reproduction and Lifecycle

• As in all amniotes, lizards rely on internal fertilization, and the male injecting one of his hemipenes into the cloaca of the female is involved in copulation. 

• The bulk of the oviparous animals are (egg-laying). In a defensive structure like a nest or crevice or merely on the earth, the female deposits the eggs. Depending on the species, clutch size can vary from 4–5 percent of the female's body weight to 40–50 percent, and clutches range from one or a few large eggs to hundreds of small ones.

• In most lizards, the eggs have leathery shells to allow for the exchange of water, while more arid-living species have calcified shells to retain water. Within the eggs, the embryos use nutrients from the yolk.

• Parental treatment is rare and the female typically abandons the eggs after laying them. Brooding and preservation of eggs do occur in some animals. 

• The female prairie skink uses respiratory water loss to preserve the humidity of the eggs which facilitates embryonic development. In place controls, the young hatch up to 300 days, and the female returns to help them avoid the termite mound where the eggs were laid.

• About 20 percent of lizard species reproduce through viviparity (live birth) (live birth). This is especially popular in Anguimorphs. Viviparous species give birth to relatively formed young who look like miniature adults. 

• Embryos are nourished by a placenta-like arrangement. A subset of lizards has parthenogenesis (reproduction from unfertilized eggs) (reproduction from unfertilized eggs).

Lizard Facts

Below mentioned are some of the lizard facts:

• Up to 60% of their body fat can be retained in their tail by certain lizard species. In comparison to most lizards, as snakes do, alligator lizards lose their skin in one piece. 

• The secret of the sticky toes of the gecko encourages new forms of adhesives, including a biodegradable one for medical use.

• The sand lizard "dances" by raising its legs up rapidly, one at a time, or by resting its belly on the sand and lifting all four legs at once, to shield its feet from the hot sand.

• There is a sticky-tipped tongue on the Madagascan chameleon that can reach out longer than the length of its body.