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Japalura polygonata polygonata

Basic information
Scientific name Japalura polygonata polygonata

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オキナワキノボリトカゲ
Common names Okinawa tree lizard
Higher taxon Agamidae, Sauria (Lacertilia), Squamata, Reptilia
Natural range Central Ryukyus (Amami and Okinawa Island Group), southern Japan.
Habitat Arboreal. Montane as well as urban area.
Invasion information
Range in Japan Shizuoka pref, Nichinan City, Miyazaki Pref., Ibusuki City and Yakushima Is., Kagoshima Pref. Range in Japan
Origin Unknown.
Date Establish in Miyazaki Pref. was early 1990s or earlier. That in Kagoshima Pref. was in 2003 or earlier.
Route Possibly accidental introduction by hitchhiking on ornamental plants.
Impact Potentially: Predation and competition with native species.
Native organism(s) affected: Insects (predation) and insect predators (arboreal lizards)
Regulation in Japan No action for prevention, mitigation, control, or eradication.
Introduced range in other countries None.
Reference Notes
  • Nagasaka (ed) (1996) Picture Book of Reptiles & Amphibians. Pisces, Yokohama (in Jpn)
  • Nakama (2008) The distribution of Japalura polygonata in Ibusuki city, Kagoshima Prefecture. Bulletin of the Kagoshima Prefectural Museum. 27, 65-66 (in Jpn)
  • Ota et al. (2006) Colonization by the subtropical lizard, Japalura polygonata polygonata (Squamata: Agamidae), in southeastern Kyushu, Japan. Current Herpetology. 25(1):29-34.
  • Ota et al. (2012) Current status of an exotic population of the agamid lizard Japalura polygonata polygonata (Hallowell, 1861) in Kagoshima Prefecture of southern Kyushu, Japan. Nature of Kagoshima. 38, 1-8 (in Jpn)
  • Sengoku et al. (eds) (1996) The Encyclopedia of Animals in Japan 5 Amphibians, Reptiles, Chondrichthyes. Heibonsha, Tokyo (in Jpn)
  • Sueyoshi et al. (2007) Discovery of an established feral population of the okinawa tree lizard, Japalura polygonata polygonata (Squamata: Agamidae) in Nichinan City, Miyazaki Prefecture. Bulletin of the Miyazaki Prefectural Museum of Nature and History. 28, 1-5 (in Jpn with English abst)
  • Jono et al. (2013) Invasion of Yakushima Island, Japan, by the Subtropical Lizard Japalura polygonata polygonata (Squamata: Agamidae). Current Herpetology . 32(2), 142-149