Species Use Database

Black and White Tegu Lizard
Salvator merianae

Used for Food and feed, Medicine and hygiene, Decorative and aesthetic and Monetary in Argentina

A. Species

Scientific name: Salvator merianae

Common name(s): Black and White Tegu Lizard

Global IUCN Red List Threat Status: Least Concern


B. Location of use

Geographic location(s):

  • Argentina

Country/Region:


C. Scale of assessment

Scale of assessment: National Level

Name/Details of location: Argentina


D. Timescale of use

Start Year: 2022

End Year: 2022


E. Information about the use

How is the wild species sourced?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat

Type of use: Extractive

Practice of use: Hunting and/or Trapping of live terrestrial and aerial animals

Lethal or non-lethal: Lethal and Non-Lethal

Does this use involve take/extraction of: The whole entire organism and Only parts or products of the organism

Purpose(s) of end use: Food and feed, Medicine and hygiene, Decorative and aesthetic and Monetary

Motivation of use: Basic subsistence, Income generation from trade (individual/household/community) and Largescale commercial exploitation for trade

Is this use legal or illegal?: Legal under national law


F. Information about the Users

Which stakeholder(s) does the record primarily focus on?: Local people


G. Information about the sustainability of use

Is there evidence that the use is having an impact on the target species?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an ecological perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable

Details of assessment carried out: CITES Livelihood Case Study findings

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: The CITES requirement for ongoing monitoring of harvested populations has facilitated the collection of robust longitudinal data and the necessary scientific evidence to demonstrate the sustainability of commercial harvest and trade

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an economic perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable

Details of assessment carried out: CITES Livelihood Case Study Findings

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: In Argentina, wages in rural areas are often less than US$ 5/day, unemployment is common, and many rural communities depend heavily on natural resources. The tegu harvest represents an accessible source of income for indigenous communities and the rural poor

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a social perspective been recorded?: not recorded

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: While the record

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a human health perspective been recorded?: not recorded

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an animal health/welfare perspective been recorded?: not recorded


Recommendations provided in the record to maintain or enhance the sustainability of the use of the target species

Making controlled trade legal as a deterrent for illegal trade Ensuring the trade is indeed controlled by having specific amounts to not surpass


Record source

Information about the record source: formal_data_stats

Date of publication/issue/production: 2022-01-01T00:00:00+0000

Source Reference(s):

2022
Patrick Aust, Daniel Natusch and Tomas Waller, Edited by Dilys Roe

Date of record entry: 2024-07-10