Photo credit: Jaime A. de Urioste
The La Gomera Giant Lizard, Gallotia bravoana, is listed as ‘CRITICALLY ENDANGERED’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™. It is native to La Gomera Island (of the Canary Islands) and can grow up to 1.2 metres in length.
The species was once widespread, living in a variety of places on La Gomera, but populations have declined through overgrazing, hunting, and predation by feral cats and rats. It was thought to be extinct, but in 1999 a small population was discovered to be living on a western part of the island. Although populations have been increasing since 2001 due to conservation efforts, they are severely fragmented in their distribution and only 90 individuals now remain in the wild.
There is now international legislation protecting La Gomera Giant Lizards, and a captive breeding programme has been established on the island. There is also a need to control cat populations in La Gomera and to implement education programmes for local people.
Geographic Range of La Gomera Giant Lizard
To learn more about Bush Warriors’ “Species of the Day” feature, please click here and read up on our educational initiative to raise awareness about the loss of earth’s biodiversity.
To learn more about La Gomera Giant Lizards, click here. Or visit the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species by clicking their logo below.
To learn more about Bush Warriors’ “Species of the Day” feature, please click here and read up on our educational initiative to raise awareness about the loss of earth’s biodiversity.
