# Salamanquesa (*Tarentola mauritanica*) Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/salamanquesa Data as of: 2026-11-14 The salamanquesa (Tarentola mauritanica) is a species in the family Phyllodactylidae, order Squamata. Recorded adults weigh 5.78 g to 6.54 g, reach 7 cm in length and live up to 10.5 years. ## Quick facts | Fact | Value | |---|---| | Weight | 5.78 g – 6.54 g | | Length | 5.28 cm – 7 cm | | Lifespan | 10.5 years | | Diet | Carnivore | | Longest recorded lifespan | 14 years | | Main food | Not recorded | | Habitat | shrubland, woodland | | Egg incubation | 70 days | | Young per litter or clutch | 1 – 3 | | Age at maturity | 12 months – 5 years | | Litters or clutches a year | 2 – 15 | | Reproduction | Eggs | | Active | Day and night (cathemeral) | | Brain mass | 70 mg | | Conservation status | Not recorded | | Countries on record | Not recorded | ## Recorded prey and predators Recorded predators: Southern smooth snake (*Coronella girondica*), Horseshoe snake (*Hemorrhois hippocrepis*), Lizard snake (*Malpolon monspessulanus*), Golden jackal (*Canis aureus*), Common raven (*Corvus corax*), Carrion crow (*Corvus corone*), European wildcat (*Felis silvestris*), Blue rock thrush (*Monticola solitarius*), Eurasian magpie (*Pica pica*), Red fox (*Vulpes vulpes*), Lesser kestrel (*Falco naumanni*), Tawny owl (*Strix aluco*). Each pair is recorded by at least two datasets compiled by Global Biotic Interactions (https://www.globalbioticinteractions.org/, CC0 1.0). ## Introduced range The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists it as introduced in 5 countries, and flagged as invasive in 1 of them. Introduced: Argentina, Belgium, Mexico, Portugal, United States. Invasive: Mexico. Source: https://griis.org/ (CC BY 4.0). ## Classification - kingdom: Animalia - phylum: Chordata - class: Reptilia - order: Squamata - family: Phyllodactylidae - genus: Tarentola - species: *Tarentola mauritanica* (Linnaeus, 1758) Synonyms: *Ascalabotes mauritanicus*, *Ascalobotes mauritanicus*, *Gecko fascicularis*, *Gecko muricatus*, *Gecko stellio*, *Gekko mauritanicus*, *Gekko muricatus*, *Lacerta mauritanica*, *Platydactylus facetanus*, *Platydactylus muralis*, *Tarentola mauretanica*, *Tarentola mauritanica subvar. atlantica*, *Tarentola mauritanica subvar. gracilis*, *Tarentola mauritanica subvar. lissoide*, *Tarentola tuberculata* ## Common questions ### How big is the salamanquesa? An adult salamanquesa weighs 5.78 g – 6.54 g and measures 5.28 cm – 7 cm long, according to values recorded on Wikidata. ### How long does the salamanquesa live? The salamanquesa has a recorded lifespan of 10.5 years. ### Is the salamanquesa an invasive species? In some places. The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species flags the salamanquesa as invasive in 1 country: Mexico. It lists it as introduced in 5 in all. ### What kind of animal is the salamanquesa? The salamanquesa (Tarentola mauritanica) belongs to the family Phyllodactylidae in the order Squamata. ### What eats the salamanquesa? Animals recorded preying on the salamanquesa include southern smooth snake, horseshoe snake, lizard snake and golden jackal. The records are compiled by Global Biotic Interactions from published studies; each pair is reported by at least two datasets. ## Sources - [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - [AnimalTraits: a curated animal trait database for body mass, metabolic rate and brain size](https://animaltraits.org/), CC0 1.0, 1.0.7. Herberstein, M.E., McLean, D.J., Lowe, E. et al. (2022) AnimalTraits: a curated animal trait database for body mass, metabolic rate and brain size. Scientific Data 9: 265. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01364-9. Data: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6468938 - [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - [Global Biotic Interactions (GloBI): interpreted data products](https://www.globalbioticinteractions.org/), CC0 1.0, 0.11. Poelen, J.H., Simons, J.D. & Mungall, C.J. (2014) Global Biotic Interactions: an open infrastructure to share and analyze species-interaction datasets. Ecological Informatics 24: 148–159. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2014.08.005. Data: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22691479, with each record's original reference. - [Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS)](https://griis.org/), CC BY 4.0, 2026-11-13. Pagad, S., Genovesi, P., Carnevali, L., Schigel, D. & McGeoch, M.A. (2018) Introducing the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species. Scientific Data 5: 170202. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.202. Country checklists published through GBIF by the IUCN SSC Invasive Species Specialist Group. - [ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24572683.v4), CC BY 4.0, v1-2. Oskyrko, O., Mi, C., Meiri, S. et al. (2024) ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles. Scientific Data 11: 243. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-03079-5. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24572683.v4 - [SquamBase 1.0 - a dataset of squamate species traits](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.76hdr7t3b), CC0 1.0, 1.0-dryad-v5. Meiri, S. (2024) SquamBase - a database of squamate (Reptilia: Squamata) traits. Global Ecology and Biogeography 33(4): e13812. https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.13812. Data: https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.76hdr7t3b Cite as: Salamanquesa (Tarentola mauritanica). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/salamanquesa