| Holotype: ZFMK 35034, Pajara, Fuerteventura, 23.05.1981, Coll. W. BISCHOFF, R. HUTIERER. |
Bischoff, W. (1985) - Vorläufige Beschreibung der Eidechse der Kanareninsel Fuerteventura als Gallotia atlantica mahoratae ssp.n. - Salamandra, Bonn, 21 (1): 46-54.   × The Lacertid lizard of Fuerteventura (Canary Islands) in described as Gallotia atlantica mahoratae ssp n. . Despite some minor differences this subspecies also icludes the lizards of the Jandia peninsula and those of the small island of Lobos. Gonzáles, P. & Pinto, F. & Nogales, M. & Jiménez-Asensio, J. & Hernández, M. & Cabrera, V.M. (1996) - Phylogenetic relationships of the Canary islands endemic lizard genus Gallotia (Sauria: Lacertidae), inferred from mitochondrial DNA sequences. - Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 6 (1): 63-71. × Phylogenetic relationships among species and subspecies of the Canary Island endemic lizard genus Gallotia are inferred base on nucleotide sequence of fragments of 12S ribosomal RNA and cytochrome b mitochondrial genes. The four morphologically established species have also been recognized at the molecular level. Relative affinities among species follow an eatsern-western geographic transect. The nearly extinct species Galloti simonyi from the most western island of El Hierro is closely related to the common western species Gallotia galloti. The nearest branch to this pair is Gallotia stehlini from the central island of Gran Canaria, and finally, Gallotia atlantica from the two eastern and geologically oldest islands appears as the most distantly related species of the group. At the statistical level, four subspecies can be recognized in G. galloti, but only two in G. atlantica. Bischoff, W. (1998) - Gallotia atlantica (Peters & Doria, 1882) - Atlantische Eidechse, Purpurarien-Eidechse. - In: Bischoff, W. (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Reptilien und Amphibien Europas. Die Reptilien der Kanarischen Inseln, der Selvagens-Inseln und des Madeira Archipels. Wiesbaden (Aula). 236-264.  Molina Borja, M. & Rodriguez-Dominguez, M.A. (2004) - Evolution of biometric and life history traits in lizards (Gallotia) from the Canary islands. - Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research, Berlin, 42 (1): 44-53. × The aim was to study as to how biometric and life-history traits of endemic lacertids in the Canary Islands (genus Gallotia) may have evolved, and possible factors affecting the diversification process of this taxon on successively appearing islands have been deduced. To that end, comparative analyses of sexual dimorphism and scaling of different body, head and life-history traits to body size in 10 species/subspecies of Gallotia have been carried out. Both Felsenstein`s independent contrasts and Huey and Bennett`s `minimum evolution` analyses show that male and female snout-vent length (SVL) changed proportionally (sexual size dimorphism not changing with body size) throughout the evolution of these lizards and all within-sex biometric traits have changed proportionally to SVL. Life-history traits (size at sexual maturity, clutch size, hatchling SVL and mass, and life span) are highly correlated with adult female body size, the first two being the only traits with a positive allometry to female SVL. These results, together with the finding that the slope of hatchling SVL to female SVL regression was lower than that of SVL at maturity to female SVL, indicates that larger females reach maturity at a larger size, have larger clutches and, at the same time, have relatively smaller hatchlings than smaller females. There was no significant correlation between any pair of life-history traits after statistically removing the effect of body size. As most traits changed proportionally to SVL, the major evolutionary change has been that of body size (a ca. threefold change between the largest and the smallest species), that is suggested to be the effect of variable ecological conditions faced by founder lizards in each island.
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