Food habits of the green lizard,Lacerta bilineata, in central Italy and a reliability test of faecal pellet analysis

Abstract

Food habits of the green lizard (Lacerta bilineata) were studied in some Mediterranean sites of the vicinities of Rome (Latium, central Italy), by means both of stomach dissection of individuals found already dead in the field and faeces analysis of living individuals. The taxonomic diet composition of the lizards was accurately described by both methods, thus demonstrating the reliability of faecal pellet analysis as an non-cruel method to study lizard diets. However, by using the faeces analysis technique, it is difficult to measure the exact food intake rate (items / unit of time) as well as the size distribution of prey ingested by lizards. There was a remarkable ontogenetic change in the taxonomic diet composition of green lizards: adults essentially consumed beetles and isopods, whereas juveniles fed mainly upon orthopterans, spiders, and Rhynchota. Cannibalism and predation upon small vertebrates (lizards) were very rare events. It is suggested that (i) age-related differences in microhabitat frequented could explain the dietary differences between young and adult lizards due to different availability of the various prey categories in the various microhabitats, and that (ii) adults and juveniles partition their habitats to reduce intraspecific interference competition.

Trophic ecology of two sympatric lizard species: the Algerian sand lizard and the wall lizard in Djurdjura, northern Algeria

“…Many lacertids prefer Coleoptera (Adamopoulou, Valakos, and Pafilis 1998;Amat et al 2008;Angelici, Luiselli, and Rugiero 1997;Carretero and Llorente 1993;Carretero et al 2006;Castilla, Bauwens, and Llorente 1991;Hódar, Campos, and Rosales 1996;Lo Cascio and Capula 2011;Maragou et al 1996;Perera et al 2006;Pollo and Perez-Mellado 1988;Rouag, Berrahma, and Luiselli 2006;Rouag et al 2007;Sagonas et al 2015;Tatin et al 2013;Thirion, Grillet, and Cheylan 2009;Vincente, Araujo, and Barbault 1995). This dominance is also seen in the species included in our study.…”

Occurrence and ecological aspects of the two-fingered skinkChalcides mauritanicusin the Chafarinas Islands in North Africa

“…This method is highly comparable to diet reconstruction based on gastric contents removed from dissected stomachs (e.g. Angelici et al 1997;Hawlena & Pérez-Mellado 2009;Pérez-Mellado et al 2011). Diet composition was described as prey abundance (i.e.…”

Reactions of green lizards (Lacerta viridis) to major repellent compounds secreted by Graphosoma lineatum (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae)

“…Moreover, it is known that the members of the family Lacertidae are natural predators of heteropteran species (Castilla et al, 1991;Díaz and Carrascal, 1993;Angelici et al, 1997). Especially younger green lizards are known to hunt Heteroptera (Angelici et al, 1997). Therefore, L. viridis was chosen as a model predator.…”