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A white-headed dwarf gecko with tail lost due to autotomy. Autotomy (from the Greek auto-, "self-" and tome, "severing", αὐτοτομία) or 'self-amputation', is the behaviour whereby an animal sheds or discards an appendage, [1] usually as a self-defense mechanism to elude a predator's grasp or to distract the predator and thereby allow escape.
In lizards and rhynchocephalians, fracture planes are present within the vertebrae of the tail that allow for its removal. Some lizards have multiple fracture planes, while others just have a single fracture plane. The regrowth of the tail is not always complete and is made of a solid rod of cartilage rather than individual vertebrae. [16]
Tiliqua rugosa, most commonly known as the shingleback skink, stumptail skink or bobtail lizard, is a short-tailed, slow-moving species of blue-tongued skink (genus Tiliqua) endemic to Australia. It is commonly known as the shingleback or sleepy lizard .
For the side-blotched lizard, limbs serve as an anti-predatory defense – their ability to survive without a tail allows them to escape predation after being caught. While this defense mechanism can be advantageous, the loss of a tail can also negatively impacts a lizard’s survival and reproduction.
A pair of Mexican beaded lizards at the Buffalo Zoo: The specimen on the right is in the process of shedding. The beaded lizard is a specialized vertebrate nest predator, feeding primarily on bird and reptile eggs. A semiarboreal species, it is found climbing deciduous trees in search of prey when encountered above ground. [14]
Phoenicolacerta troodica, commonly known as the Troodos wall lizard, Troodos rock lizard, Troodos lizard, or Cyprus lizard, [1] [2] [3] is a species of lizard in the family Lacertidae. It is endemic to Cyprus , [ 1 ] [ 2 ] where it is common and widespread.
The average total length (including tail) of a sexually mature adult of the species is 18 to 20 cm (7.1 to 7.9 in). [3] During May through June, the lizards engage in copulation. If the female lizard is larger, she might breed again in July. The lizards have 1 to 8 eggs and they hatch during July and August.
[4] [5] Adult male Amboina sail-finned lizards have outer edges of the eyes that are medium-dark clear blue and no nose crest, which are some of the features that separate them from the Sulawesi species. [4] Sailfin lizards are semiaquatic and able to run short distances across water using both their feet and tail for support, similar to the ...