Origin, colonization, adaptive radiation, intrainsular evolution snd species substitution processes in the fossil and living lizards of the Canary Islands

[EN] The Canary lsland lizards constitute a monophyletic group which separated from the rest of the family shortly after the first islands of the archipelago emerged. Five living and at least one recently extinct species belong to the genus Gallotia. In addition, two of the living species, Gallotia simonyi and Gallotia stehlini have become extinct on Gomera and Tenerife, respectively. Juveniles of all species present tricuspid teeth. This character is preserved in the adults with changes to one degree or another in G. galloti, G. caesaris, G. simonyi and G. goliath. In G. atlantica there are only two cuspids and G. stehlini has 4 or more.

Status of the extinct giant lacertid lizard Gallotia simonyi simonyi (Reptilia: Lacertidae) assessed using mtDNA sequences from museum specimens

[EN] Gallotia simonyi (Steindachner, 1889) is a member of an endemic Canary Island genus and is among the largest of the approximately 250 recent species of lacertid lizards. Although Steindachner gave the locality of the types as the Roques de Salmor, off El Hierro island, previous workers (Urusaustegui, 1983; Manrique & Saavedra, 1873; Viera & Clavijo, 1983) and subsequent ones (Machado, 1985) regard the more western of the two rocks in the group, the Roque Chico de Salmor, as the actual source of material. The Roque Chico is 37 m high with a surface area of less than 10,000 m2 and lies 830 m from the northern coast of El Hierro (Machado, 1985).