Koelliker's glass lizard | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Family: | Anguidae |
Genus: |
Hyalosaurus Günther, 1873 |
Species: | H. koellikeri
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Binomial name | |
Hyalosaurus koellikeri
Günther, 1873
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Synonyms [2] | |
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Koelliker's glass lizard (Hyalosaurus koellikeri), also called commonly the Moroccan glass lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Anguidae. [1] The species is native to western North Africa.
The specific name, koellikeri, is in honor of Swiss histologist Albert von Kölliker. [3]
H. koellikeri is found in Algeria and Morocco. [1]
The natural habitats of Koelliker's glass lizard are temperate forests, shrubland, temperate grassland, and pastureland, at altitudes up to 2,000 m (6,600 ft). [1]
H. koellikeri has no fore limbs, but does have rudimentary hind limbs. Dorsally, it is brownish, with a darker lateral band. Ventrally, it is yellowish. [4]
Hyalosaurus koellikeri has often been historically included within the genus Ophisaurus, but genetic evidence has shown Hyalosaurus koellikeri to be more closely related to Anguis and Pseudopus than to Ophisaurus. [5]
H. koellikeri is oviparous. [2]
H. koellikeri is threatened by habitat loss. [1]