A common lizard (Zootoca vivipara) – Ireland’s only native lizard.
Until last week, I think I’d probably only seen a common lizard a few times in Ireland, though I usually keep a lookout for them. Then, on a gloriously sunny Good Friday last, when it was 20 degrees Celcius at Maam Cross and 15 degrees on the summit of Corcóg mountain, I came across three specimens in the space of 90 minutes. I don’t have a picture of the first one. As I was about to take a picture, the battery on my camera failed, and by the time I got my backup camera, it had escaped.
The second lizard (above) was difficult to spot (the video below has footage of both the 2nd and 3rd lizards), and it was probably keeping a low profile for a reason. It was missing part of its tail, mostly likely as a result of an encounter with a predator. Lizards can shed their tail to escape, and it will grow back.
The third lizard was easier to see – it was sunning itself on a rock near the road.
This is the breeding season. Lizards give birth to live young and the little’uns have to look after themselves from birth.