Lizards

Lizards belong to the reptiles, the crawling animals. They have an elongated body that resembles a snake. However, they have four legs with which they can run fast. Their skin has scales. From time to time, they shed their skin, which they strip off. Underneath there is already a new layer of skin.

These animals are found in Europe, Africa and Asia. They especially like warm areas and like to lie on stones that are warmed by the sun. Like all reptiles, they otherwise cool down because they take on the temperature of their environment.

There are five species of them: the wall lizard, the sand lizard, the wood lizard and the Croatian mountain lizard. The green lizard is thicker than the others and shimmers in different colours. That is how it got its name.

In our countries, lizards are the most common lizards in nature. They are most likely to be endangered because humans take away their habitats: The dry stone walls in the vineyards, for example, used to be built without mortar. That gave a lot of habitat, especially for the wall lizard.

Lizards eat small invertebrates such as insects, spiders and earthworms. Some species, like the wall lizard, also eat their own conspecifics. Lizards themselves have to be wary of snakes and birds of prey. But if an enemy grabs the lizard by the tail, it can throw off the tail. A new stub grows back later.

Not all lizards reproduce the same way. Most lay three to twenty eggs at a time. Only the wall lizard can lay eggs up to three times a year. The common lizard, however, keeps its eggs in its belly until the young have hatched. Only then do they give birth.