Lucertola campestre Podarcis sicula

Master of self-amputation

It is one of the most familiar animals and perhaps for this reason few people observe it closely. You can find it almost everywhere, as long as there is shelter: on stone walls, in sunny courtyards, along paths. Very fast and always alert, the common lizard is ready to dart away at the slightest noise. It spends hours sunbathing because, like all reptiles, it needs to warm up to be active. Once it has recharged its batteries, it hunts insects, spiders and other small invertebrates. If disturbed, it flees, but if caught, it has a very special defence strategy: autotomy of the tail! When the tail detaches, it distracts the predator by moving independently for a few minutes, giving the lizard time to escape!
This process is very energy-intensive for the animal because the tail is an important fat reservoir and its regeneration takes up to two months. In short, the common lizard is an extremely adaptable animal: recent studies have verified its ability to change its diet from insectivorous to herbivorous and, with this, also some anatomical and even behavioural and social elements...
Now you understand why it is so common to encounter one!

---

Listen to audio file: