Life-history traits and extrinsic threats determine extinction risk in New Zealand lizards.

Highlights: [•] Understanding the factors that determine extinction risk is vital for effective conservation. [•] Relative to other vertebrate groups, extinction risk has rarely been examined in reptiles. [•] We conduct the most comprehensive study of extinction risk within a reptile group. [•] Body size, geographic range size and habitat specialization were the strongest predictors of extinction risk. [•] We place our results in context with studies on extinction risk in other vertebrate groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]