Hardwicke's bloodsucker

Hardwicke's bloodsucker
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Iguania
Family: Agamidae
Genus: Calotes
Species:
C. minor
Binomial name
Calotes minor
(Hardwicke & Gray, 1827)
Synonyms
  • Agama minor
    Hardwicke & Gray, 1827
  • Brachysaura minor
    (Hardwicke & Gray, 1827)
  • Laudakia minor
    (Hardwicke & Gray, 1827)
  • Brachysaura ornata
    Blyth, 1856
  • Charasia ornata
    (Blyth, 1856)

Hardwicke's bloodsucker (Calotes minor), also known commonly as the dwarf rock agama and the lesser agama, is a species of lizard in the subfamily Draconinae of the family Agamidae. The species is native to South Asia.

Morphology

Physical structure: Calotes minor is a small stocky and pot-belly lizard with a short tail. Its head is large and elongated, flat above, and sloping towards the snout.[citation needed] The dorsal scales are large, strongly imbricate, and keeled, pointing backward and upward. The ventral scales are smaller than the dorsal scales. The upper head scales are large, unequal, and strongly keeled or tubercular. Females are larger than males.

Color pattern: The dorsal color is olive brown with three rows of dark brown, light-edged spots on the body and the base of the tail. The spots of the middle row are most prominent and rhomboidal. On each side of the neck there is a white streak which is bifurcated posteriorly. Also, there is an oblique white streak from the eye to the corner of mouth. The limbs have dark brown crossbars. The throat is profusely spotted with dark brown and orange. The belly is yellowish white, with numerous orange dots. The olor inside the mouth is ink blue.[citation needed] Females are more brilliantly colored during the breeding season.

Length: The maximum recorded total length (tail included) is 18 cm (7.1 in),[citation needed] but most specimens have a total length of about 10 cm (3.9 in) and a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of about 6 cm (2.4 in).[citation needed]

Geographic distribution

Calotes minor is found in Bangladesh (southeast part of the country), India (Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Odissa) and Pakistan (Sindh).

Habitat

The preferred natural habitat of Calotes minor is fragmented dry forest, arid environments, barren desert, and desolate areas, at elevations of 50–500 m (160–1,640 ft), across the Indo-Gangetic Plain.

Behavior

Calotes minor is terrestrial, diurnal, and crepuscular. It shelters in burrows close to the roots of thorny bushes. Generally it is found sitting on stones, but it can climb up shrubby vegetation. It is sluggish in movements, often not attempting to escape when approached. It is a docile species.

Diet

Calotes minor is mainly insectivorous, preying on grasshoppers and their nymphs, earwigs, beetles, bugs, arthropods, and spiders. Sometimes it also eats flowers.

Reproduction

Calotes minor is oviparous. The breeding season extends from April to June. The female lays four to six hard shelled white eggs in burrows under the roots of vegetation.

Importance

Calotes minor plays a role in the eco-system by eating various types of insects and otherwise.

Threat to humans

Calotes minor is non-venomous and completely harmless to humans.

Etymology

The specific name, minor, is a Latin word, meaning "less" or "smaller", referring to the smaller size of this agamid.[citation needed]

Conservation threat

Calotes minor has a reputation for being venomous, which is totally baseless and has contributed much to its depletion by humans. It is threatened by habitat loss by conversion of land to agriculture. A slow-moving lizard, it is vulnerable to predation by cats and dogs in addition to natural predators.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Mohapatra, P.; Srinivasulu, C.; Thakur, S.; Vyas, R. (2021). "Calotes minor ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021 e.T170377A127896966. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T170377A127896966.en.
  2. 1 2 Species Calotes minor at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Madhya Pradesh State Biodiversity Board". 24 October 2017. Archived from the original on 24 October 2017. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  4. ↑ Tikader, B.K.; Sharma, R.C. (1992). "Handbook Indian Lizards" (PDF). Faunaofindia.nic.in. Retrieved 24 January 2022. Kolkata: Zoological Survey of India. xv + 250 pp.
  5. ↑ "Fauna of West Bengal" (PDF). Faunaofindia.nic.in. 1992. Retrieved 24 January 2022.

Further reading

  • Blyth, E. (1856). "Curator's Report for the August Meeting, 1856". Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 25: 439–449.
  • Boulenger, G.A. (1885). Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume I. Geckonidæ, Eublepharidæ, Uroplatidæ, Pygopodidæ, Agamidæ. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 436 pp. + Plates I–XXXII. (Charisia ornata, p. 334).
  • Boulenger, G.A. (1890). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia. London: Secretary of State for India in Council. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xviii + 541 pp. (Charisia ornata, p. 145).
  • Das, I. (2002). A Photographic Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of India. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. ISBN 0-88359-056-5. 144 pp. (Brachysaura minor, p. 69).
  • Günther, A. (1864). The Reptiles of British India. London: The Ray Society. (Taylor & Francis, printers). xxvii + 452 pp. + Plates I–XXVI.
  • Hardwicke, [T.]; Gray, J.E. (1827). "A Synopsis of the Species of Saurian Reptiles, collected in India by Major-General Hardwicke". Zoological Journal 3: 213–229. (Agama minor, new species, p. 218).
  • Manthey, U.; Schuster, N. (1999). Agamen, Zweite Ausgabe [= Agamas, Second Edition]. Münster: Natur und Tier Verlag. 120 pp. (Brachysaura minor, p. 26). (in German).
  • Smith, M.A. (1935). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Amphibia. Vol. II.—Sauria. London: Secretay of State for India in Council. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 440 pp. + Plate I + 2 maps. (Agama minor, p. 225).