THE NATIONAL RED LIST OF NORTH MACEDONIA

Slow Worm

Anguis fragilis

Macedonian

Слепче

Albanian

Kakzogza

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Taxonomy
Assessment info
Population
Habitat and Ecology
Threats
Use and Trade
Conservation Actions
Bibliography

Taxonomy

Scientific name

Anguis fragilis

Authority

Linnaeus, 1758

Synonyms

/

Assessment info

IUCN Red List Category and Criteria

LC – Least Concern

Date assessed

November 2019

Assessors

Sterijovski, B.

Arsovski, D.

Reviewers

Ajtic, R.

Contributors

/

Facilitators

Hofman, M.P.G.

Justification

It is a very widely distributed species, nationally, and threats seem to have a very limited effect on its populations.

Population

Current population trend

Stable

Description

Several preliminary monitoring studies conducted during the past four years nationally suggest that this species’ population trends across North Macedonia are stable (unpublished data).

Habitat and Ecology

System

/

Habitat and Ecology

Slow Worms are semifossorial or burrowing lizards as they spend much of their time hiding underneath objects (Brown & Roberts 2008). The skin of slowworms is smooth with scales that do not overlap one another. Like many other lizards, they autotomize, meaning that they have the ability to shed their tails to escape predators. Diurnal, but secretive, they are carnivorous and, because they feed on slugs and worms, they can often be found in long grass and other damp environments. Occur in a wide range of habitats, but prefer well vegetated and relatively moist places such as meadows, open woods, scrub-land, heath-land and can also approach human habitation in parks and gardens. Mating occurs between March and July and the females give birth (ovoviviparous) to 3-26 juveniles in late summer (Speybroeck et al. 2016).

Use and trade

Use and trade

There is no known use of or trade in this species.

Threats

Threats

There is no specific threat to this species in North Macedonia. Nevertheless, it is still likely threatened by habitat loss due to the intensification of agricultural practices and infrastructure development for tourism and urbanization. Due to the lack of limbs it is sometimes confused for a snake and persecuted by humans.

Conservation actions

Conservation actions

It is listed on Annex III of the Bern Convention. Nationally, it is not on the list of protected wild species. Some researchers refer to Macedonian populations of the Slow Worm as Anguis graeca due to recent phylogeographic studies (e.g. Gvoždik et al. 2010). Nevertheless, samples from this research come from neighboring populations in Albania, Montenegro, Serbia and Greece, thus referring to Macedonian populations as this species implies unsafe extrapolation. Taxonomic studies on national populations are thus needed, since A. graeca exhibits a much more limited distribution range, globally, which would have conservation repercussions. 

Bibliography

Bibliography

Sillero, N., Campos, J., Bonardi, A., Corti, C., Creemers, R., Crochet, P.-A., Crnobrnja-Isailović, J., Denoël, M., Ficetola, G.F., Gonçalves, J., Kuzmin, S., Lymberakis, P., de Pous, P., Rodríguez, A., Sindaco, R., Speybroeck, J., Toxopeus, B., Vieites, D.R., Vences, M. 2014. Updated distribution and biogeography of amphibians and reptiles of Europe. .p 1-31.

Brown, R. P., Roberts, N. 2008. Feeding state and selected body temperatures in the slowworm. .p 59–62.

MoEPP. -2014. Fifth National report to the Convention of Biological Diversity of the Repulic of Macedonia. Skopje. .p/.

Micevski, B. 2015. Report of Biodiversity conditions of amphibians and reptiles of Ograzden Mt. 2014-2015 . Skopje. .p/.

Uzunova, D., Kitanova, D., Spirovska, M., Hristovski, S. 2015. Integral Report for the Project implementation. Final report of the project “Ecological data gap analysis and ecological sensitivity map development for the Bregalnica river watershed”. Skopje. .p/.

Стеријовски, Б. 2017. Извештај за оценка на биодиверзитетски и пределски карактеристики – водоземци и влекачи. Скопје 16. .p/.

Стеријовски, Б. 2019. Извештај за оценка на биодиверзитетски карактеристики на истражување “Плавица”. Водоземци и влекачи. Скопје 17. .p/.

Sterijovski, B. 2018. Final report for monitoring. Maneko. Skopje . .p/.

Pharmachem. 2018. The Study on Biological Diversity in the Area of Sasa Mine – Makedonska Kamenica. Pharmachem Skopje. Skopje
Sterijovski, B., Tomović, L., Ajtić, R 2014. Contribution to the knowledge of the Reptile fauna and diversity in FYR of Macedonia. .p 83–92.

Uhrin et al. 2016 Distribution updates to amphibian and reptile fauna for the Republic of Macedonia. .p 201-220.

Speybroeck, J. Beuckema, W., Bok, B., Voort, J.V.D. 2016. Field Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles. Bloomsbury Publishing Plc London. .p/.

Gvoždík, V., Jandzik, D., Lymberakis, P., Jablonski, D., & Moravec, J. 2010 Slow worm, Anguis fragilis (Reptilia: Anguidae) as a species complex: Genetic structure reveals deep divergences. .p 460-472.

Gasc, J-P., Cabela, A., Crnobrnja-Isailović, J., Dolmen, D., Grossenbacher, K., Haffner, P., Lescure, J., Martens, H., Martinez-Rica, J.P., Maurin, H., Oliveira, M.L., Sofianidou, T.S., Veith, M., Zuiderwijk, A. 1997. Atlas of Amphibians and Reptiles in Europe. Societas Europaea Herpetologica & Museum Nationall d’ Histoire Naturelle (IEGB/SPN). Paris. .p 496.