A common llizard basking in the summer sun on Skomer Island
Skomer (Welsh: Ynys Sgomer) is an island off the coast of Pembrokeshire in southwestern Wales. It is well known for its wildlife: around half the world's population of Manx shearwaters nest on the island, the Atlantic puffin colony is the largest in southern Britain, and the Skomer vole (a subspecies of the bank vole) is unique to the island. It is also known for its archeological interest: stone circles, standing stone and remains of prehistoric houses. Skomer is a national nature reserve, a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Special Protection Area. Much of the island has also been designated an ancient monument. It is surrounded by a marine nature reserve and is managed by the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales. There is now a hostel on the island so visitors can remain on Skomer after day trippers have taken the boat home. The viviparous lizard or common lizard, Zootoca vivipara (formerly Lacerta vivipara), is a Eurasian lizard. It lives farther north than any other species of non-avian reptile, and most populations are viviparous (giving birth to live young), rather than laying eggs as most other lizards do. It is the only species in the monotypic genus Zootoca.[3] Zootoca vivipara can be seen in a variety of different colors. Female Zootoca vivipara undergo color polymorphism (biology) more commonly than males. A female lizard's display differs in ventral coloration, ranging from pale yellow to bright orange and a mixed coloration. There have been many hypothesis for the genetic cause of this polymorphic coloration. These hypothesis test for coloration due to thermoregulation, predator avoidance, and social cues, specifically sexual reproduction. Through an experiment conducted by Vercken et al., color polymorphism in viviparous lizard is caused by social cues, rather than the other hypotheses. More specifically, the ventral coloration that is seen in female lizards is associated with patterns of sexual reproduction and sex allocation,
Size: 4014px × 2676px
Location: Skomer Island Pembrokeshire Wales UK Europe
Photo credit: © Philip Jones / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: basking, common, europe, horizontal, island, lacerta, land, lizard, natural, nature, pembrokeshire, reptiles, skomer, summer, uk, vivipara, wales, west, world, zootoca
