The Blue Alien: First Recorded Predation on Zosterops simplex by the Introduced Calotes mystaceus in Hong Kong

Travaux du Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle “Grigore Antipa” 69(1): 99-103, doi: 10.3897/travaux.69.e192880

The Blue Alien: First Recorded Predation on Zosterops simplex by the Introduced Calotes mystaceus in Hong Kong

Ho Yuen Yeung^‡, Shirley Tsz Ching Wong^‡, Jian-Huan Yang^‡

‡ Kadoorie Conservation China, Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden, Hong Kong, China

Corresponding author: Jian-Huan Yang ( jhyang@kfbg.org )

Academic editor: Alexandru Iftime

This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Citation: Yeung HY, Wong STC, Yang J-H (2026) The Blue Alien: First Recorded Predation on Zosterops simplex by the Introduced Calotes mystaceus in Hong Kong. Travaux du Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle “Grigore Antipa” 69(1): 99-103. https://doi.org/10.3897/travaux.69.e192880

Abstract

This study documents the first recorded predation on Swinhoe’s White-eye (Zosterops simplex) by the Blue-crested lizard (Calotes mystaceus) in Hong Kong, where it is an introduced species. An adult female lizard was observed ingesting a nestling of Zosterops simplex in a peri-urban parkland. This observation indicates that this medium to large-sized Calotes species exhibits opportunistic feeding behaviour, suggesting a broader diet compared to the only native, smaller agamid congener, the Changeable lizard C. wangi. The potential negative impacts of this alien species on native biota are also discussed.

Keywords

diet, natural history, agamids, opportunistic predator, introduced species, trophic ecology