Alternative Name
Glass Lizard, European Giant Legless Lizard, European Glass Lizard
Scientific Name: Ophisaurus apodus
Basic Info
A very large lizard and the largest of the family Anguidae, the Giant Legless Lizard averages between two and three feet (.6 to .9 meters) in length and can reach as long as four feet. They usually weigh between 11 and 21 ounces, 300 to 600 grams. The Legless Lizard, as the name would suggest, does not have developed legs and to the naked eye resembles a snake. However, they do have free-floating hipbones and the nubs of underdeveloped leg bones. They also have movable eyelids, belly scales, and the ability to break off their tail - all characteristics snakes do not share. They have powerful jaws and teeth. Within the family Anguidae, there are animals that have fully developed limbs as well as those, like the Giant Legless Lizard, that do not.
Health
Breeding
Female Legless Lizards are sexually mature between two and three years of age. An unusual trait among this species is that half of the population are egg layers, and the other half bear live young. For egg layers during the breeding season, which begins in the late spring, females lay anywhere from six to ten soft shelled white eggs in a damp region. During the incubation period, females usually watch over the eggs. The incubation lasts about six weeks. Once the babies are born, the female leaves forcing the young to hunt on their own.
Habitat
Found in dry rocky areas
Behavior
The largest member of the family Anguidae, the Giant Legless Lizard is a unique and essential member of the animal kingdom. It is also known as the Glass Lizard, European Glass Lizard or European Legless Lizard. Giant Legless Lizards have several unique characteristics, which will be discussed.
The Giant Legless Lizard can most often be found in dry rocky areas. They especially enjoy making their homes on rocky hillsides, stone walls, or stone piles. The Giant Legless Lizard seems to be most active after it rains. They are diurnal reptiles, meaning they hunt during the day, though they are also active at others times of the day. They do all of their hunting on the ground. The Giant Legless Lizard enjoys a diet of small mammals, bird eggs, insects, and earthworms. One of the favorite foods of the Giant Legless Lizard is a hard-shelled snail, which their blunt, broad teeth and powerful jaws help them chew.Giant Legless Lizards are essential to the web that is the natural world because they eat pests, which are very destructive to crops. However, because of human predation and capture, the Giant Legless Lizard is considered fairly rare. Another common name for the Giant Legless Lizard is the "Glass Lizard". This name most likely stems from a legend that says that if the Giant Legless Lizard is shaken, it will break into thousands of pieces, like glass, hence the name. While this legend has no basis in fact, it is true that if alarmed, the lizard can shed its tail, which will then break into many pieces. This is primarily a defense mechanism: the pieces of tail continue wiggling and it is very difficult to tell what's lizard and what's tail. For this reason this species should not be handled regularly like some other captive reptiles. The Giant Legless Lizard, although it often reaches an early demise in the wild, can live up to 54 years in captivity.
Origin
Europe and Asia
History
The European Legless Lizard is found primarily in Eastern Europe, from the Balkans to Northeastern Italy, to Northeast Bulgaria. They can also be found in parts of central and southwest Asia and in the Caucasus mountain range. The Giant Legless Lizard can live as long as 54 years in captivity. However, their lifespan in the wild is much shorter as they are often mistaken for snakes and killed by humans for that reason, or removed from the wild to be kept as pets. People who live in the same regions as the Giant Legless Lizard realize that they play an important role in the economy, and will often protect them from harm. On the Crimean Peninsula, the Legless Lizard is considered a natural treasure. They serve an important role in the ecology, eating insects that often prey on crops. Unfortunately, less well-informed humans are quickly destroying the animal's natural habitat, which in turn destroys the animals themselves. Like other reptiles, the Giant Legless Lizard plays a variety of roles in human life, including keeping the populations of other animals from reaching pest proportions.
Common Foods
It has been reported that many wild caught individuals will only eat snails at first. In captivity they seem to do quite well on a diet of small mice, mealworms, and crickets.
Latest news about Giant Legless Lizard
Life In Cold Blood 5 Part Series - Attenborough
Source: DVD, PAL, 25 fps. Runtime per episode: ~ 1 hour. Format: XviD. Video bitrate: ~ 1440 kbps. Audio: AC3 at 192 kbps, 2 channels, 48KHz. Aspect ratio: ~1.78 (656 x 368). Audio Language: English. Subtitles Included: English for the hearing impaired. Life in Cold Blood. Sir David Attenborough brings viewers the final chapter of his epic overview of life on Earth, as he transforms perceptions of cold-blooded animals in this landmark series. “Reptiles and amphibians are sometimes tho Continue reading
Wohoo
Yeaaaah, got internet back at last. The Antenna for our area was having some major issues, so yesterday we went up to the Catholic church (where the antenna'a fixed) to see if we could figure out the problemo. So it has this rickety old ladder (made from scraps of wood) to get up on the roof (at least 3 stories high) and then you have to climb up the roof that is covered in slimy moss to get to the steeple (at least another story high). It wasn't too bad going up but coming back down was tough, Continue reading
Tokyo’s Beloved Ling Ling Dies
Tokyo’s Beloved Ling Ling Dies Posted by: Loren Coleman on April 30th, 2008 Giant pandas are one of the foremost and classic “Animals of Discovery” in cryptozoology. The Ueno Zoo’s favorite has passed away. Images. Investigate Further: Tokyo’s Beloved Ling Ling Dies » Categorized as: CryptoZoo News, Breaking News, Cryptotourism, Cryptozoologists, Cryptozoology, Pop Culture, Obituaries, Classic Animals of Discovery | 1 Comment » Bigfoot Motel Shaken Posted by: Loren Coleman on April Continue reading
New Species Discovered in Brazil
New Species Discovered in Brazil Above: Photo by Miguel Trefaut Rodrigues/USP Universidade de Sao Paulo. This species of lizard of the genus Bachia is one of the new species discovered during the expedition. Although there are other species of the genus in the Cerrado (almost all discovered and described only recently), this new species has only been recorded in the Ecological Station. The absence of legs and the sharply pointed snout help in locomotion over the surface layer of sandy soil, Continue reading
Feist, Death Cab, Foals, Shins, Knut Update
FEIST sits for an interview on The Colbert Report, then plays "I Feel It All," which is introduced in the spangly "1 2 3 4 " top he got from Ms. F. And Kevin Drew will be in for a shock some evening.DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE did six free songs for Daytrotter, some of which are to appear on the forthcoming Narrow Stairs LP.JIMI HENDRIX may have a sex tape, but the identity of the man in the film is fiercely disputed by experts and former associates.THE FOALS stopped by The Current for a chat and mini- Continue reading
Legless Lizard And Tiny Woodpecker Among New Species Discovered In Brazil
Researchers discovered a legless lizard and a tiny woodpecker along with 12 other suspected new species in Brazil’s Cerrado, one of the world’s 34 biodiversity conservation hotspots. The Cerrado’s wooded grassland once covered an area half the size of Europe, but is now being converted to cropland and ranchland at twice the rate of the neighboring Amazon rainforest, resulting in the loss of native vegetation and unique species. An expedition comprising scientists from Conservation Internation Continue reading
Researchers Discover a Legless Lizard in Brazil
Arlington, VA - Researchers discovered a legless lizard and a tiny woodpecker along with 12 other suspected new species in Brazil's Cerrado, one of the world's 34 biodiversity conservation hotspots. The Cerrado's wooded grassland once covered an area half the size of Europe, but is now being converted to cropland and ranchland at twice the rate of the neighboring Amazon rainforest, resulting in the loss of native vegetation and unique species. An expedition comprising scientists from Conservatio Continue reading
Iflove Information Technology Express: A Drunk Head with An Invisible Hand
Iflove Information Technology Express: Here we’ve compiled some amazing news and reviews in science and technology. Information technology is always soaring first, here you’ll see: Microsoft Messenger 7 brings Bonjour support, corporate AV features by Dan Moren, Macworld Microsoft’s Mac Business Unit (BU) has announced the release of Messenger for Mac 7, its instant messaging client. Mac Messenger still trying to find its voice CNET News Mac BU releases Messenger for Mac 7 ZDNet Windows XP Continue reading
NEW SPECIES: Legless lizard found in Brazil may be new species
IMAGE of the legless lizard from the genus Bachia by Conservation International/Cristiano Nogueira/Handout/Reuters Several new species have been recorded "in and around the Serra Geral do Tocantins Ecological Station" of Brazil. Equally important are observations of several endangered species such as the Brazilian Merganser (Mergus octosetaceus) a sawbill duck that prefers riverine habitat. The duck has a very small and fragmented population. It is considered critically endangered by BirdLife I Continue reading
Brazil: Dwarf Woodpecker, Legless Lizard, and 12 Other New Species Found
Brazil: Dwarf Woodpecker, Legless Lizard, and 12 Other New Species Found Posted by: Loren Coleman on April 29th, 2008 Brazilian scientists have found 14 species believed new to science – eight fish, three reptiles, one amphibian, one mammal, and one bird. Images. Investigate Further: Brazil: Dwarf Woodpecker, Legless Lizard, and 12 Other New Species Found » Categorized as: CryptoZoo News, Breaking News, Cryptotourism, Cryptozoologists, Cryptozoology, New Species | No Comments » Gilr Continue reading
Stolen Hobo Name List Emerges
These names are filed in our official government Database. Please verify your existence within these names. Thankyou, J Edgar Hoover [see 700 names stapled below this sheet] #1: Stewbuilder Dennis #2: Cholly the Yegg #3: Holden the Expert Dreamtwister #4: The Rza #5: Jack Skunk #6: Jack Skunk Fils #7: Lord Dan X. Still-Standing #8: Marlon Fitz-fancy #9: Bazino Bazino, The Kid Whose Hair Is On Fire (8 illustrations) #10: Whispering-Lies McGruder #11: Nit Louse #12: Dan’l Dinsmore Continue reading
Ten Things You Should Know About Pet Lizards
Ten Things You Should Know About Pet Lizards Posted on March 31, 2008 by HART (1-800-HART) • There are 3 comments! Continue reading
Mongolian Death Worm
The Mongolian Death Worm, known to Mongolia’s nomadic tribesmen as the allghoi khorkhoi (sometimes given as allerghoi horhai or olgoj chorchoj) or ‘intestine worm’ for its resemblance to a sort of living cow’s intestine. It is said to be red in colour, and is sometimes described as having darker spots or blotches, and sometimes said to bear spiked projections at both ends. They are said to be thick bodied and between 2 and 5 feet long. It is described as a fat, bright red worm, 2 to 5 feet long Continue reading
