📸 PhotoPhoto: SSR2000 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons Source
Formosa Grass Lizard
Takydromus formosanus (Formosa Grass Lizard · Formosa Grass Lizard)
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 A snout-vent length of 5.3 cm is almost the same as the short side of a credit card (about 5.4 cm), and including the tail it reaches about 18.6 cm, slightly shorter than the short side of an A4 sheet of paper (21 cm) (Comparison).
- 💡 It is an endemic species living only in Taiwan and can be seen in low-elevation areas near the western plains (Taiwan Encyclopedia of Life, TaiEOL).
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The Formosa Grass Lizard is a small lizard endemic to Taiwan, seen in western plains and low-elevation areas.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
It has a slender, small body with rough scales and a regular dark brown stripe along each side. Its belly scales are keeled, and when intact, the tail is about 2.5 times the torso length.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
It is oviparous, laying eggs. Males can reach maturity at a small size of under 4 cm, and females are usually larger.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
No direct record connecting this species to Korea has been found.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List LC (2019) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/102342190/102342192
- • IUCN Red List category LC — latest assessment at iucnredlist.org
- • catalogueoflife.org — 7BHFY
- • iucnredlist.org — 102342192
- • wikidata.org — Q5076181
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Specimens of Takydromus formosanus in National Museum o
- • taieol.tw — t0046739
- • reptile-database.reptarium.cz — species
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Gustav Mützel · Public Domain Mark 1.0 (Related taxon silhouette — Lacerta agilis)
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.