Takydromus formosanus
Taiwan was once known as Formosa, for which the Formosan grass lizard was named. It is endemic to Taiwan and distributed in low-elevation areas in the western part of the island. This species was published by British zoologist George Boulenger in 1894. It is a brown grass lizard. Along the sides are two white lines with slightly dark brown patch in between. This grass lizard possesses three pairs of chin shields and two pairs of femoral pores. It was originally thought to have a broad distribution in low-elevation areas throughout Taiwan. In 2008, professors Lue Kuang-Yang and Lin Si-Min separated the northern Taiwan population into the independent Takydromus viridipunctatus and the eastern Taiwan population into the independent Takydromus luyeanus.
Reptile research fact: Professor Lu Kuang-Yang is one of the scholars who laid the foundation for herpetological research in Taiwan. Among the more than 20 new species discovered in Taiwan since the end of World War II, eight were published by Lu. Taiwan’s endemic lizard species Diploderma luei was named by Japanese herpetologist Professor Hidetoshi Ota in honor of Lu’s contribution to herpetological research.
