Tail coloration

Podarcis hispanicus tails are autotomizable. The tail can be removed without much harm towards the lizard and can be sacrificed as a last resort escape mechanism. Podarcis hispanicus may have blue or green tail coloration contrasting their darker grey or brown skin complex. Tail coloration serve to indicate subordination to other dominant conspecifics, or to seem unpalatable for other predators.^[5] These vibrant tails may also serve as decoys to divert predator’s attacks from vital areas that would experience greater bodily harm. In these scenarios, the lizard will wag their tail to attract the attention of the predator. If an Iberian Wall Lizard were to be attacked, attacks on the tail would increase its escape probability because the tail can fall off. This is a commonly observed escape behavior in the species.

Varying coloration

Podarcis hispanicus with brown, yellow skin coloration

During reproductive season, the lowland Podarcis hispanicus ventral coloration changes to a lighter shade. This color variation is a part of an important social communication. It is thought that the lizards resort to a lighter coloration to maximize visibility for potential mates. In non-reproductive season, the coloration trends reverse. The lowland lizards will change to a darker shade and the highland lizards will change to a brighter coloration.^[8] Similarly, during reproductive seasons, the lowland Podarcis hispanicus dorsal coloration brightens. This helps with their thermoregulation, Podarcis hispanicus in high altitudes will often revert to a darker coloration to prevent them against UV-radiation. They also change their coloration to adapt to the environment or background matching. This prevents them from being easily detectable by predators. The thermoregulation mechanisms of these lizards help them to maintain ideal body temperature, allowing for better mobility.^[8]

Intrasexual aggression

Male Podarcis hispanicus employ strategies during conflict to minimize the risk of injury and avoid excess energy expenditure. These strategies allow them to increase their chance of survival. Podarcis hispaniscus are rarely involved in aggression towards their opposite sex counter parts. The male aggressive response is often intra-sexual and motivated by resources and potential mates. Female presence increases the chance of a male resident lizard’s success in a given fight.^[10] However, if the resident male already has a female mate, another female’s presence does not affect the outcome of this aggression. The female presence increases the value of the territory for the resident male, whereas it does not change the value of winning the territory for the intruder male lizard. Resident males seek submissive behavior to avoid unnecessary aggression. Foot shaking and tail twitches are some behaviors that indicates submission, which the resident male will notice and not respond aggressively.^[10]

Podarcis hispanicus are able to recognize past competitors through their memory of the competitors’ physical features or chemosensory cues. Their competitor recognition agonistic behavior allows the Pordacis hispaniscus to determine the outcome of their conflict more quickly and often leads to shorter aggression time on the second encounter.^[4] This agonistic behavior is advantageous for male adult Podarcis hispanicus to disengage in a conflict when they become aware of a losing outcome, or to assert dominance without expending excess energy. The reduction in aggressiveness is not exclusive to Podarcis hispanicus as they are also observed in other species like lobsters.^[11]  Podarcis hispanicus can also use their sense to recognize non threatening neighbors to them.^[10]

True individual recognition

Podarcis hispanicus sociability is greatly dependent on their conspecific recognition of sex, reproducibility, social ranking and group membership. True individual recognition allows lizards to establish long-term partners and determine mating possibilities. The Podarcis hispanicus’ awareness of these reproductive mechanisms allow for their special population to reach stability. Podarcis hispanicus uses scent marks even in the visual absence of the signaler to assess their contestant and determine the resident’s territorial behavior. This allows for early assessment of their situation even when the other lizard is not seen, the Podarcis hispanicus can choose to ignore or engage in attack. The Podarcis hispanicus recognizes a scent mark through chemosensory. Chemosensory allows the lizard to identify intra-specific chemical cues like pheromone components which indicates a lizards sex and identity.^[4][12]

The scent mark allows the lizard to recognize the location of neighbors. Scent marks are useful in allowing the communication information in absence of the signaler. Lizards will still use this location information along with the frequency and location of the scent mark to evaluate the threat. A frequent scent mark of an intruder at the core of a resident’s territory is perceived as a much greater threat than an infrequent scent mark, or a frequent scent mark at the borders of its territory. Depending on how great the perceived threat is, the resident lizard may choose to either not respond, approach, chase, display dominance, lunge, bite or bite and grip to incur injury.^[12] This scent mark also allow for sex discrimination during the reproductive seasons, males and females can initiate contact based on the information from their scent marks.^[4][13]

Exploratory behavior and chemosensory

Podarcis hispanicus are territorial species and readily explore new environments. Upon arrival to a new environment, the lizard will display tongue flicks that decline over time as it becomes habituated to the new environment. Tongue flicking is a behavior that allows the lizard to collect substrate chemicals from its surroundings and recognize scent marks. This exploratory behavior is also evident when the lizard detects other neighbors or intruders in its territory. Tongue flicking is both an exploratory and anti-predatory behavior as lizards can detect the chemical stimuli of its predators like snakes. The lizard can detect snakes because snakes will also have scent secretion that the lizard can detect through tongue flicking.^[14]

Podarcis hispanicus secretes chemicals that allow for intra-specific communication. These chemicals indicate the individual’s sex and other genetic information. The chemical secretion also varies in different climate conditions. In more humid environments, Podarcis hispanicus chemical secretions are generally more volatile and have higher chemical stability. In courtship, chemosensory allows for male lizards to identify females during breeding season and identify the female’s special identity. Compatibility in special identity is integral for successful copulation. Chemosensory recognition is more sensitive among males as they are greatly utilized in intra-sexual aggression. This also allows for males to recognize its known neighbors and will not engage in anti predatory behaviors.^[14] In males lizards, the chemical stimuli is released from the femoral glands. Femoral glands are generally larger and more active in males.

Sensory cues can be used for neighbor habituation. Consecutive sensory habituation allows for lizards to distinguish between a familiar neighbor and potential predators or intruders.^[4] While Podarcis hispanicus males are often territorial, if their territory has high frequency of predators they are more likely to co-habituate with other males, as long as there is enough resources available.

“Dear enemy” strategy

Territorial Podarcis hispanicus are observed to be less aggressive towards neighbors than intruders. This “dear enemy” behavior is advantageous in that it minimizes the costs of exertion for anti-predatory behaviors, and eliminates unnecessary conflicts. For Podarcis hispanicus, intra-sexual aggression is frequent during breeding seasons. Therefore, it is advantageous for males to avoid conflict whenever necessary.^[12]