Kingdom Animalia Suborder Sauria Subfamily Gallotiinae Genus Gallotia Order Scaled reptiles | Class Reptilia Family Lacertidae Phylum Chordata Rank Subspecies | |
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Similar Gallotia, Gallotia simonyi machadoi, El Hierro giant lizard, Gallotia goliath, La Gomera giant lizard | ||
The Roque Chico de Salmor giant lizard (Gallotia simonyi simonyi) was the nominate subspecies of the lacertid (wall lizard) Gallotia simonyi. It was once present on a small islet near El Hierro in the Canary Islands.
Gallotia simonyi simonyi was only known from Roque Chico de Salmor off northwestern Valverde municipality, El Hierro. It disappeared around the 1930s through unsustainable collecting of animals for scientific institutions and commercial interests, as well as predation by feral cats and possibly herring gulls (Diaz & Bischoff 1994, Miras & Pérez-Mellado 2005). Following this population's disappearance, the species was believed to be entirely extinct until Gallotia simonyi machadoi was discovered on El Hierro itself in 1974 (Böhme & Bings 1975).
The newly discovered population is also most rare and might go extinct due to stochastic events. Presently however it seems to hold its own - not the least due to reintroduction to Roque Chico de Salmor which is now a protected area (Miras & Pérez-Mellado 2005).