Miyako grass lizard
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
The Miyako grass lizard has a tail longer than its head and body combined.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Miyako grass lizard
- Scientific name
- Takydromus toyamai
- Japanese name
- ミヤコカナヘビ
- Group
- Amphibians and reptiles
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Lacertidae
- Genus
- Takydromus
A lizard found nowhere but the Miyako Islands of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. It lives in thickets, grassy areas, and farm fields.
It looks very much like the aokanahebi, a lizard of Okinawa and the Amami Islands, and was once treated as the same species, but DNA studies showed it is a separate species.
How the Miyako grass lizard lives
It eats insects and spiders.
上野動物園Basic data
- Size
- Total length: 16–22 cmHead and body length: 4.5–6 cm
- Diet
- Insects and spiders
- Range
- Miyako, Irabu, and Shimoji Islands in Japan
- Conservation status in Japan
- Endangered (EN)Ministry of the Environment of Japan, 5th Red List (2026)
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 上野動物園 — ミヤコカナヘビChecked: 2026-11-03
- Ministry of the Environment of Japan, 5th Red List (2026)Checked: 2026-11-07
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
The conservation status in Japan is the category in the Red Lists of the Ministry of the Environment of Japan, which assess the risk of extinction for wild animals in Japan.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
Report a mistakeEXHIBIT INFORMATION
Places that keep or show the Miyako grass lizard
Zoos, aquariums and other places whose official websites say they keep or show this animal.
Displays can change with the animals’ health and the seasons. Check each facility’s official website before you go.
RELATIVES
Others in Lacertidae
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