Liolaemus
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Liolaemus is a genus of iguanian lizards, containing many species, all of which are endemic to South America.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
DescriptionEdit
Members of the genus Liolaemus form a dominant part of the lizard fauna of the southern part of the continent of South America, and vary considerably in size (Template:Convert snout–vent length) and weight (Template:Convert).
Geographic rangeEdit
Liolaemus species are found in the Andes and adjacent lowlands, from Peru to Tierra del Fuego,<ref name="Schulte">Template:Cite journal</ref> at altitudes that can exceed Template:Convert.<ref name="Olave"/> The genus has been recorded at Template:Cvt above sea level on Chachani mountain, which is the highest recorded altitude for any reptile species.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Liolaemus magellanicus and Liolaemus sarmientoi are the world's southernmost reptiles, living as far south as Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego and the northern shores of the Strait of Magellan respectively.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=JaksicRChHN>Template:Cite journal</ref>
DietEdit
Most species of Liolaemus are omnivorous, but a few purely insectivorous and herbivorous species are known.
SpeciesEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} There are more than 225 described species in the genus Liolaemus, but the true number of species may be about double this number.<ref name="Olave">Template:Cite journal</ref> Liolaemus is by far the largest genus of the liolaemid lizards, which are traditionally treated as subfamily Liolaeminae within the Iguanidae but more recently were proposed for upranking to full family Liolaemidae. There are many examples of taxonomic splitting within this genus which is largely due to both phylogenetic pitfalls and an effort to obtain conservation statusTemplate:Check.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
PetsEdit
Some species of Liolaemus have been recently kept as pets, and as many of them originate from regions that experience cold conditions, they are named "snow swifts". More generally, the genus is known as "tree iguanas".
ReferencesEdit
Further readingEdit
- Boulenger GA (1885). Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume II. Iguanidæ ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 497 pp. + Plates I–XXIV. (Genus "Liolæmus", p. 138).
- Wiegmann AFA (1834). "Beiträge zur Zoologie, gesammelt auf einer Reise um die Erde. Siebente Abhandlung. Amphibien ". Nova Acta Physico-Medica, Academiae Caesare Leopoldino-Carolinae 17: 185–268 + Plates XIII–XXII. (Liolaemus, new genus, p. 227). (in German and Latin).