science

Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard

Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard rather than just read about it. In short: The Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard (Gallotia simonyi simonyi) is the extinct nominate subspecies of Simony's giant lizard (Gallotia simonyi). It was endemic to the small islet Roque Chico de Salmor (lit. "Salmor Small Rock") northwest of El Hierro, the westernmost of the Canary Islands.

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Reference excerpt

The Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard (Gallotia simonyi simonyi) is the extinct nominate subspecies of Simony's giant lizard (Gallotia simonyi). It was endemic to the small islet Roque Chico de Salmor (lit. "Salmor Small Rock") northwest of El Hierro, the westernmost of the Canary Islands.

Description Preserved male specimens measure between 223 and 236 mm long, excluding the tail, and females between 174 and 197 mm. Compared to the extant subspecies from the mainland (G. s. machadoi), the subspecies from Roque Chico de Salmor was larger and more robust, with the top of the head more triangular and less oval, more depressed head, and on average, more dorsal scales, fewer temporal scales, more femoral pores, and more scales on the sixth ring of the tail. Mitochondrial DNA studies suggest that the two subspecies separated recently, as a result of rising sea levels at the end of the Pleistocene.

Distribution and habitat Roque Chico de Salmor is a small islet situated 830 meters to the northwest of El Hierro and 340 meters from the larger Roque Grande de Salmor. Its extension is less than one hectare and is surrounded by tall cliffs. Vegetation is sparse but it is home to breeding colonies of seabirds. Plants present include Astydamia latifoliae, Mesembrianthemum, Chenopodium, Chenoloides tomentosa, Beta, Silene and Rubia fruticosa.

Discovery Despite being hunted by the Guanches, who also started clearing the island's forests and introduced exotic predators like dogs and possibly cats, giant lizards were still common in areas of El Hierro when Europeans arrived at the beginning of the 15th century. They severely declined with colonization, however, and by the 18th century were forgotten by the inhabitants of the island. In 1799, José de Viera y Clavijo wrote in his Diccionario de Historia Natural de las Islas Canarias that rumors existed of a small islet near El Hierro that was inhabited by lizards so large that they could bend iron bars with their tails; he presumed these animals to be caimans. Following the publication of Viera y Clavijo's book in 1866, Franz Steindachner of the Naturhistorisches Museum of Vienna requested his colleague Oskar Simony to investigate the matter during a scheduled trip to the Canary Islands. On 28 August 1889, Simony arrived in El Hierro and collected four lizards in Roque Chico de Salmor with the help of grocer Eloy Díaz Casañas. Steindachner used three of these lizards to describe a new species, Lacerta simonyi.

Extinction News of the discovery instantly caught the attention of naturalists, adventurers, and collectionists, who traveled to Roque Chico de Salmor to catch their own specimens. The most damaging was wildlife trader Thomas Castle (born Tomás Ximénez del Castillo in Puerto de la Cruz) who, after convincing Díaz Casañas to gift him the fourth lizard collected with Simony and selling it for a high price, returned to capture 21 lizards in 1896 and 27 more in 1908, selling them in London and Hamburg. This trade spurred Díaz Casañas, his son, nephew, and local fishermen to capture more lizards for sale or exhibition. In 1931, English teacher Hugh B. Scott and local journalist José Padrón Machín collected two lizards in Roque Chico de Salmor, but they were already so rare that they spent the first three days without seeing one. No more lizards were seen after this date, and a local legend arose that a British or German trader had captured twenty lizards and poisoned the rest to keep the exclusivity of their sale. Ten specimens are preserved in the Naturhistorisches Museum of Vienna, British Museum of Natural History, Santa Cruz de la Palma, and Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The species Gallotia simonyi, then considered a monotypic taxon, was believed extinct until the subspecies G. s. machadoi was discovered in the Crag of Tibataje in 1975. In 1999, 36 members of this subspecies were introduced successfully to Roque Chico de Salmor, exhibiting low mortality and signs of reproduction.

See also List of Macaronesian animals extinct in the Holocene

References

Further bibliography Blanco, Juan Carlos & González, José Luis (eds.) (1992): Libro rojo de los vertebrados de España. ICONA, Madrid. Böhme, W. & Bings, Werner (1975): Zur Frage des Überlebens von Lacerta s. simonyi Steindachner. Salamandra 11(1): 39–46. [Article in German] Diaz, Carlos Naeslund & Bischoff, Wolfgang (1994): Studien am Roque Chico de Salmor bei El Hierro (Kanaren): 1. Mögliche Ursachen für das Aussterben von Gallotia simonyi, 2. Die Artzugehörigkeit seiner Geckos (Tarentola). Salamandra 30(4): 246–253. [Article in German] HTML abstract European Environment Agency (2006): European Nature Information System (EUNIS): Species Factsheet: Gallotia simonyi simonyi. Downloaded on 24 Feb 2007. Maas, Peter H.J. (2006): The Extinction Website: Extinctions in Europe. Downloaded on 18 May 2006. Jose Antonio Mateo Miras, Valentin Pérez-Mellado, Iñigo Martínez-Solano (2009). "Gallotia simonyi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2009 e.T8881A12935900. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2009.RLTS.T8881A12935900.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) Database entry includes a range map and justification for why this species is critically endangered

External links lacerta.de: Gallotia simonyi machadoi image gallery Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. Contains several good photos of habitat on Roque Chico de Salmor. Retrieved 2007-FEB-25.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard

In research: Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics El Hierro, Extinct reptiles, Gallotia, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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Frequently asked questions

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