Tail autotomy acts as anti-predatory mechanism in a great diversity of lizard species. Research links tail loss with various aspects of lizard life history. However, parasitic aspects are not taken into consideration, despite being a variable that greatly influences reptile ecology. For the first time, it is proposed that the existence of a relationship between the caudal autotomy of a lizard species is related to its parasitic condition. We studied 30 adult specimens of Liolaemus darwinii Bell, 1843 in the desert of Monte, San Juan province, Argentina. Autotomy was used as a direct measure of predator-prey interaction. A series of variables were analyzed that could be related to tail autotomy. The following variables were studied using generalized linear models: sex, environments (disturbed vs. conserved), condition (parasitized vs. not parasitized), parasitic intensity, weights (g) and...