Protecting Wild Cat Habitat

The Bromeliad Arboreal Alligator Lizard

(Abronia taeniata)

Endemic to the Sierra Madre Oriental mountain range in Mexico, this little known species of arboreal lizard has short legs, a prehensile tail (a tail that has adapted to be able to hold or grasp objects), white and black scales, and can reach up to 14 cm in length. Locally, it is known as the “Dragoncito de la Sierra Madre” or “Little Dragon of the Sierra Madre.” Without a doubt, the name fits!

Unfortunately, it has lost much of its population due to deforestation and logging.

Protection Status:

The Bromeliad Arboreal Alligator Lizard is classified as “Vulnerable” in the IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species and has special protection status according to Mexico’s Secretariat of the Environment and Natural Resources.

Brutal deforestation of temperate and cloud forests to create corn fields and paddocks from Tamaulipas to Hidalgo has destroyed large parts of the lizard’s habitat and much of its population.

As its habitat continues to be destroyed, the future of this species is worrisome. It is time to act now in order to prevent the extinction of the Bromeliad Arboreal Alligator Lizard. The protection of its habitat in situ is the most effective measure to protect what remains of its population.

Habitats and Habits:

The Dragoncito de la Sierra Madre is an arboreal species, meaning that they spend most of their lives in the forest tree canopy of temperate and cloud forests. They are inconspicuous and very little is known about them.

This lizard is viviparous, meaning that it develops the embryo of its young inside its body. It does not lay eggs but rather, gives live birth.

Status in the Sierra Gorda:

The bromeliad arboreal alligator lizard has been registered in temperate and cloud forests in eastern parts of the Sierra Gorda where they occasionally descend from the forest canopy to the ground. We have registered the Dragoncito both within our private nature reserves as well as in sites where clandestine logging is taking place or sites that have been recently cleared. Because their habitats are being actively destroyed, they are at great risk of extinction.

Most of our records of the Lizard come from a cloud forest that has an abundance of bromeliads (Tillandsia imperialis), another threatened species. In this way, the conservation of one threatened species benefits the conservation of another.

Conservation actions in the Sierra Gorda:

By managing parts of the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve as sites for strict conservation, Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda ensures safe feeding and nesting sites for the Bromeliad Arboreal Alligator Tree Lizard in several of the private nature reserves. We continually educate local communities about the importance of conservation, work to prevent forest fires, and implement payments for ecosystem services to ensure a biological corridor between private reserves.

The global population of the Dragoncito de la Madre Oriental is at risk. This species is a unique natural heritage of Mexico. Please support us financially and help us to conserve its habitat

Citation:

 Canseco-Márquez, L. & Mendoza-Quijano, F. 2007. Abronia taeniata. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2007. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/63691/12698332

Links:

• An article about Dragons by our partners at WLT

Magnolia rzedowskiana, Magnolia pedrazae

The Magnolia rzedowskiana and Magnolia pedrazae are micro-endemic to the Sierra Gorda Mountain Range and critically endangered. 90% of their global population can be found in our private nature reserves.

These two specieswere discovered thanks to the photography of Roberto Pedraza Ruiz, Head of the Lands for Conservation Program. If not for our network of private nature reserves and your donations, the Magnolia rzedowskiana and Magnolia pedrazae would have disappeared before we had even realized that they exist.

Discovery of the Magnolia rzedowskiana and the Magnolia pedrazae:

For Roberto Pedraza Ruiz, photography has been an essential tool for documenting the biological wealth of the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve and communicating the imperative to protect it. Occasionally, it has also served to identify new species.

In 2013, Roberto uploaded photographs of a local species of magnolias to the ARKive project, an online “Ark” that contains images of endangered species. Dr. José Antonio Vázquez, a botanist from the Universidad de Guadalajara, found these images and, because something about the magnolias seemed strange to him, requested more photographs. Roberto made several trips to photograph the magnolias’ flowers and fruits, and after a long process, it was determined that the magnolias were, in fact, two new species!

In 2015, Dr. Vázquez named one of the two new species Magnolia rzedowskiana in honor of Dr. Jerzy Rzedowski, Mexico’s preeminent botanist, and the second Magnolia pedrazae, in honor of Roberto Pedraza Ruiz.

About Magnolias:

Magnolias are extremely special trees. They are an ancient genus, living fossils, and the first flowering plants on Earth. Because they appeared before bees did, their flowers are theorized to have evolved to encourage pollination by beetles.  They have survived many geological events, including ice ages, mountain formation, and continental drift, all of which have determined their distribution on the planet.

Thank you for helping us protect these unique magnolia species. We are all extremely grateful for your continued support.

• Article describing Magnolia rzedowskiana (PDF)