THE ANIMAL FILES

Viviparous lizard

Zootoca vivipara

A live-bearing name still leaves room for egg-laying populations.

Many viviparous lizard populations give birth to live young, while others lay eggs. These ground-dwelling hunters eat small arthropods and bask to regulate the body temperature needed for movement and escape.[1]

Follow the evidence ↓
Viviparous lizard
Image: Jörg Hempel · Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 de
Reproduction
Live-bearing and egg-laying populations occur[1]
Temperature behaviour
Basking helps regulate body temperature[1]
Prey
Insects and other small arthropods[1]

One name, more than one reproductive pattern

Many populations retain embryos and give birth to live young, but egg-laying populations also occur.[1]

Basking is part of being active

The lizard uses ground-level habitats such as heathland, grassland and woodland, and warms itself by basking. Body temperature affects movement and other behaviour. The animal’s use of sunny places is therefore not separate from feeding or escape: temperature conditions influence how those tasks can be performed.[1]

A small hunter among vegetation

Food includes flies, spiders and other small invertebrates. Feeding and basking occur within the same daily energy balance, even though they look like different activities.[1]

A COMMON MIX-UP

Do all viviparous lizards give birth in exactly the same way?

No. Egg-laying and live-bearing populations both occur. Researchers continue investigating their reproductive differences and evolutionary history.[1]

TRY A LITTLE REASONING

Why would a sunny patch matter to a hunting lizard?

Reveal the explanation

Basking affects body temperature, which influences movement and other activity. A resting-looking animal may be using a thermal opportunity that supports later tasks, so stillness should not automatically be interpreted as wasted time.[1]

Sources & editorial notes

Adapted and translated from the cited Wikipedia revisions, with source-linked reasoning. Image credit and licence are listed separately above.

Adapted and translated from Wikipedia contributors; exact revisions are linked below. CC BY-SA 4.0

  1. Wikipedia contributors — Viviparous lizard (fixed revision; adapted and translated)
  2. NCBI Taxonomy — Zootoca vivipara (identity and classification)

Last fact check:

One discovery leads to another

Sand lizardA lizard’s daily route can run between sunlit and shaded patches.Lacerta agilis ↗Green iguanaLiving in trees does not rule out a swim.Iguana iguana ↗Gila monsterBeaded skin, a searching tongue and a fat-storing tail.Heloderma suspectum ↗