[Herpetology • 2023] Anolis riparius & A. robinsoni • Two New Species of Semiaquatic Anolis (Squamata: Dactyloidae) from Costa Rica

Anolis robinsoni &  A. riparius 

Chaves, Ryan, Bolaños, Márquez, Köhler & Poe, 2023

 

DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5319.2.6

Abstract

We describe two new species of Draconura-clade semiaquatic anoles from the central Pacific versant of Costa Rica. The two new species are similar to Anolis aquaticus in external appearance and ecology but differ from this species in male dewlap coloration and scalation. Anolis robinsoni sp. nov. and A. riparius sp. nov. differ from each other mainly in male dewlap color. All three species are distinct according to diagnostic morphological traits and a phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA sequences (669 bases of COI gene). We discuss the distribution and ecology of Anolis aquaticus and the new species.

Keywords: Reptilia, anoles, taxonomy, phylogenetics

Gerardo Chaves, Mason J. Ryan, Federico Bolaños, Cruz Márquez, Gunther Köhler, Steven Poe. 2023. Two New Species of Semiaquatic Anolis (Squamata: Dactyloidae) from Costa Rica. Zootaxa. 5319(2); 249-262. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5319.2.6

sports.yahoo.com/tiny-creature-likes-snooze-waterfalls-202153041.html

[Herpetology • 2023] Anolis quimbaya & A. tequendama • Revealing Anole Diversity in the Highlands of the Northern Andes: New and Resurrected Species of the Anolis heterodermus Species Group

(A) Anolis quimbaya sp. nov., 

(B) A. richteri (Dunn, 1944) revalidated; 

(C) A. tequendama sp. nov.   

Moreno-Arias, Miguel A. Méndez-Galeano, Beltrán & Vargas-Ramírez, 2023

 DOI: 10.3897/vz.73.e94265

Abstract

The Anolis heterodermus group comprises eight big-headed and short-legged lizard species from the highlands of the northernmost South American Andes. Recent studies revealed unknown lineages within this group that had previously been categorized as a species complex. By widely sampling and applying an integrative taxonomic framework, we (1) assessed the species diversity of the group using a molecular dataset (two mitochondrial and one nuclear markers) along with an inclusive morphological study (scalation, scale configuration and ornamentation, morphometrics, and dewlap and body colour patterns); and (2) we inferred the evolutionary relationships within this species group. Our analyses confirmed the formerly reported differentiation between populations of those high-altitude lizards, and we identified several unknown evolutionary lineages. Our results provided evidence for the existence of nine distinct, independently evolving evolutionary lineages in the heterodermus group. As a result, we described two morphologically and genetically highly distinct lineages as species new to science (A. quimbaya sp. nov. and A. tequendama sp. nov.). We redescribed A. heterodermus and erected as a valid species Anolis richteri, a previously described synonym of A. heterodermus. A taxonomic key for the identification of species of the Phenacosaurus clade was presented. The identification of two additional poorly-known lineages suggested that the diversity of this group of lizards is still unknown; therefore, it is necessary to establish measurements for the group´s conservation, as well as to perform fieldwork and revision of herpetological collections to identify possible hidden diversity within the group.

Keywords: Anole species complex, high altitude lizards, integrative taxonomy, mtDNA, nDNA, morphology, South America

Dewlap and body of female (left) and male (right) of
Anolis heterodermus (A), A. inderenae (B), and A. vanzolinii (C). 

Anolis heterodermus Duméril, 1851 (redescription)

Anolis richteri (Dunn, 1944) revalidated

Dewlap and body of female (left) and male (right) of
Anolis quimbaya sp. nov. (A), A. richteri (B) and A. tequendama sp. nov. (C).

Anolis quimbaya sp. nov.

Diagnosis: Anolis quimbaya sp. nov. shares short limbs, a large, casqued head, a prehensile tail without caudal autotomy, and lamellar subdigital scales of all digits extending from the most proximal phalanges with the other species of the Phenacosaurus clade. Anolis quimbaya sp. nov. differs from A. proboscis, A. orcesi, A. euskalerriari and A. nicefori by the presence of granular scales surrounding dorsal heterogeneous flat scales. Anolis quimbaya sp. nov. further differs from A. heterodermus, A. richteri, A. tetarii, A. inderenae, and A. tequendama sp. nov. by an orange or green dewlap (A. vanzolinii orange only) from A. inderenae, A. heterodermus, A. richteri and A. tetarii by the presence of a discontinuous nuchal crest; from A. heterodermus and A. inderenae by the presence of a continuous row of enlarged sublabials that do not reach the mouth commissure; from A. heterodermus by a V-shaped crown. From A. vanzolinii by < 24 expanded lamellae under second and third phalange of fourth toe and < 35 lamella in total fourth toe, maximum snout-vent length 87 mm (110 mm), femoral length/snout-vent length ratio 0.17 (0.20), tail length/snout-vent ratio 1.19 (1.31), fourth toe length/snout-vent length ratio 0.13 (0.15) and sexual dimorphism in dewlap pattern.

Etymology: The specific epithet is used as a noun in apposition. The name refers to the extinct indigenous ethnic group called the Quimbaya who inhabited the central cordillera of Colombia, where the species is mainly distributed. “Los Quimbaya” in Spanish is also a noun to refer to the indigenous people belonging to the Kimbaya nation, to the people who previously spoke the Kimbaya dialect and the archaeological period when those people lived.

Common name: Quimbaya anole [English]. Anolis quimbaya [Spanish]

Anolis tequendama sp. nov.

Diagnosis: Anolis tequendama sp. nov. shares short limbs, a large casqued head, a prehensile tail without caudal autotomy, and lamellar subdigital scales of all digits extending from the most proximal phalanges with the other species of the Phenacosaurus clade. Anolis tequendama sp. nov. differs from A. proboscis, A. orcesi, A. euskalerriari and A. nicefori, by its strongly heterogeneous dorsal scalation. Anolis tequendama sp. nov. differs from A. nicefori by the presence of granular scales surrounding dorsal heterogeneous flat scales. A. tequendama sp. nov. differs from A. heterodermus, A. richteri, A. tetarii, A. inderenae, A. vanzolinii and A. quimbaya sp. nov. by a male dewlap colour uniformly brown or brown bluish. Anolis tequendama sp. nov. further differs from A. inderenae, A. heterodermus, A. richteri and A. tetarii by the presence of a discontinuous nuchal crest, from A. heterodermus and A. inderenae by the presence of a continuous row of enlarged sublabials that do not reach the mouth commissure; from A. heterodermus by a V-shaped crown; and from A. vanzolinii by < 24 expanded lamellae under second and third phalange of fourth toe and < 35 lamellae in total fourth toe.

Etymology: The specific epithet is used as a noun in apposition. The name refers to the Tequendama Falls, a popular waterfall near Bogotá that is part of the Bogotá River and has cosmological importance for the Muisca indigenous people; inhabitants of the Bogotá Plateau. In the Muisca language (called “Muysccubun”), Tequendama means “he who precipitates downward”, referring to the waterfall.

Common name: Tequendama anole [English]. Anolis tequendama [Spanish]

Conclusion: 

The utilisation of an integrative taxonomic framework allowed us to describe two species new to science: A. quimbaya sp. nov. and A. tequendama sp. nov., redescribe A. heterodermus and erect as a valid species A. richteri, a previous synonym of A. heterodermus. The identification of those lineages, including the two poorly-know lineages 1 and 2 suggests that the diversity of high-altitude lizards of the heterodermus group remains underestimated. The Middle Miocene to Pleistocene period of significant orogenic and climatic events in northern South America that have shaped the group´s evolutionary history may have produced higher diversity than previously existed and that we are now beginning to understand. Since this group of lizards inhabits the threatened Andean montane tropical region (Etter 1993) that is typically characterised by high human population densities and extreme transformation rates, the recognition of its diversity aimed at establishing protective measurements is an urgent priority (see Vargas Ramírez and Moreno-Arias 2014). Fieldwork and careful revision of herpetological collections aimed at increasing knowledge of Lineages 1 and 2, as well as identifying hidden diversity is also urgently needed.

 

 Rafael A. Moreno-Arias, Miguel A. Méndez-Galeano, Iván Beltrán and Mario Vargas-Ramírez. 2023. Revealing Anole Diversity in the Highlands of the Northern Andes: New and Resurrected Species of the Anolis heterodermus Species Group. Vertebrate Zoology. 73: 161-188.  DOI: 10.3897/vz.73.e94265

[Herpetology • 2021] Anolis nemonteae • A New Giant Anole (Iguanidae: Dactyloinae) from southwestern Ecuador

Anolis nemonteae 

 Ayala-Varela, Valverde, Poe, Narváez, Yánez-Muñoz & Torres-Carvajal, 2021

 DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4991.2.4 

Researchgate.net/publication/352713661

  

Abstract

We describe a new species of Anolis lizard from the Pacific slopes of the Andes of southwestern Ecuador at elevations between 372–1,000 m. The new species belongs to the Dactyloa clade and may be distinguished from other Anolis by size, external anatomy, mitochondrial DNA divergence, and dewlap color. Based on phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequence data, we found that the new species is sister to A. fraseri in a clade composed primarily of large Dactyloid species. The new species is known from a protected area in southern Ecuador, Buenaventura Reserve, which suggests that at least some its populations are well protected.

Keywords: Reptilia, Andes, Anolis, phylogeny, South America, systematics, taxonomy

 Preserved holotype of Anolis nemonteae sp. nov. (QCAZ 14595)
in dorsal (A), lateral (B), and ventral (C) views,
with close-ups of dewlap (D), pelvic region (E), and right foot (F).

Scale bars = 10 mm (A, B, C) and 5 mm (D, E, F).

Photographs by M. Masache. 

 Variation of color in life of Anolis nemonteae sp. nov.
Adult female QCAZ 14595 (holotype, A, B, C);
adult female JMG 0485 (D); juvenile female QCAZ 14431 (E); hatchling female QCAZ 14660 (F);
 adult male QCAZ 14596 (G, H, I); a
dult male JMG 0484 (J, K).

Photographs by A. E. Narváez (A, B, C, G, H, I), F. Ayala-Varela (E), P. Pintanel (F) and P. Romero (D, J, K).

Anolis nemonteae sp. nov.

Proposed standard English name: Star anoles

Proposed standard Spanish name: Anolis de las estrellas

Fernando Ayala-Varela, Sebastián Valverde, Steven Poe, Andrea E. Narváez, Mario H. Yánez-Muñoz and Omar Torres-Carvajal. 2021. A New Giant Anole (Squamata: Iguanidae: Dactyloinae) from southwestern Ecuador. Zootaxa. 4991(2); 295-317. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4991.2.4 

Researchgate.net/publication/352713661_A_new_giant_anole_from_southwestern_Ecuador

 reptilesofecuador.com/anolis_nemonteae.html

[Herpetology • 2019] Norops brianjuliani • A New Species of Anole (Dactyloidae: Norops) from the Sierra Madre del Sur in Guerrero, Mexico

Norops brianjuliani  

Köhler, Petersen & Méndez de la Cruz, 2019

 DOI: 10.26049/VZ69-2-2019-02

  We describe the new species Norops brianjuliani sp. nov. from the Pacific versant of southern Mexico. Norops brianjuliani differs from all congeners by having a combination of (1) smooth ventral scales; (2) usually a patch of three greatly enlarged supraocular scales; (3) moderately long hind legs, longest toe of adpressed hind leg reaching to a point between posterior and anterior levels of eye, ratio shank length/snout–vent length 0.24–0.26; (4) a pair of greatly enlarged postcloacal scales in males; (5) 10 to 12 rows of greatly enlarged, keeled middorsal scales; and (6) a very large pink dewlap in males. In external morphology, N. brianjuliani is most similar to N. liogaster from which it differs by having larger middorsal scales (more than three times the size of granular flank scales in N. brianjuliani vs. less than three times in N. liogaster). Also, in a preliminary molecular genetic analysis, N. brianjuliani has a genetic distance of 8.7% (16S) and 15.3% (COI), respectively, from N. liogaster. 

Key words: Norops brianjuliani sp. nov.; Dactyloidae; Guerrero; Mexico; new species; Reptilia; Squamata.

 

Norops brianjuliani sp. nov.

Gunther Köhler, Claus Bo P. Petersen and Fausto R. Méndez de la Cruz. 2019. A New Species of Anole from the Sierra Madre del Sur in Guerrero, Mexico (Reptilia, Squamata, Dactyloidae: Norops).  VERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY. 69(2); 145-160.  DOI: 10.26049/VZ69-2-2019-02

biopat.de/artenkatalog-arten/305-norops-brianjuliani.html

[Herpetology • 2018] Anolis dracula • A New Cryptic Species of Anolis Lizard (Iguanidae, Dactyloinae) from northwestern South America

Anolis dracula  

Yánez-Muñoz, Reyes-Puig, Reyes-Puig, Velasco, Ayala-Varela & Torres-Carvajal, 2018

DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.794.26936 

Abstract

A new species of Anolis lizard from the Andean slopes of southwestern Colombia and northwestern Ecuador, from between 1187 and 2353 m in elevation, is described. The new species can be distinguished from other Anolis in squamation, cranial osteology, hemipenial morphology, and nuclear and mitochondrial DNA. The new species is sister to Anolis aequatorialis, and it is suggested that previous records of A. aequatorialis in Colombia correspond to the new species described herein.

Keywords: Anolis dracula sp. n., diversity, morphology, phylogeny, Squamata, taxonomy

Figure 2. Comparison of Anolis dracula sp. n. with similar species.
From top to bottom: male of A. dracula, Holotype DHMECN 12579, 91 mm SVL; male of A. aequatorialis, not collected; male of A. fitchi DHMECN 11628, 74 mm SVL, male of A. podocarpus QCAZ 10126, 87 mm SVL.

Photographs, from top to bottom, by Mario Yánez-Muñoz, Carolina Reyes-Puig, Mario Yánez-Muñoz, and Fernando Ayala Varela. 

Figure 3. Head and throat region of Anolis aequatorialis (top, individual not collected) and Anolis dracula sp. n. (bottom left, DHMECN 12579, holotype, bottom right QCAZ 4365).

Photographs by Mario Yánez Muñoz, Carolina Reyes-Puig, and Santiago Ron.

Figure 4. Dewlap of Anolis dracula sp. n. and three similar species.
A male of A. dracula, paratype DHMECN 12579, 90.9 mm SVL B female of A. dracula, paratype DHMECN12587, 80.2 mm SVL C subadult female of A. dracula, DHMECN 12584, 53.4 mm SVL
D male of A. aequatorialis, QCAZ11605, E male of A. fitchi, QCAZ8770, 90.5 mm SVL F male of A. podocarpus, QCAZ10126, 87.0 mm SVL

Photographs by Mario Yánez-Muñoz (A, B, C), Omar Torres-Carvajal (D), Luis Coloma (E), and Santiago Ron (F). 

Figure 5. Color variation in Anolis dracula sp. n. From top to bottom: Holotype, male DHMECN 12579; male paratype DHMECN 12580; female paratype DHMECN 12760, 72.3 mm SVL; subadult male DHMECN 12578, 70.4 mm SVL.

Photographs by Mario Yánez-Muñoz.

Anolis dracula sp. n.

 Proposed standard English name: Dracula Anole 

Proposed standard Spanish name: Anolis dracula

Diagnosis: We assign Anolis dracula to the Dactyloa clade within Anolis (Poe 2004, Poe et al. 2017) based on the following combination of characters: sexual size dimorphism; large body with high numbers of lamellae; more than 20 scales across the snout; Alpha type caudal vertebrae; prefrontal bone separated from nasal; lengthened dentary and loss of angular.

Anolis dracula is most similar in morphology and coloration to A. aequatorialis (character states in parentheses), but differs from it in the following characters: large and robust hemipenes, 14 mm (4.7 mm; W = 0; p = 0.004), with a well-developed spermatic sulcus (hemipenis small; Figure 8); well-developed parietal crests, bowed outwards and projected laterally (relatively straight parietal crests, without laterally extending edges) (Figure 9); pineal foramen large, oval (rounded and small), and contacting fronto-parietal fissure (pineal foramen not contacting fronto-parietal fissure; Figure 9); rugose (smooth) basioccipital and sphenoccipital tubercles; jugal and squamosal in contact (separated by postorbital; Figure 10); posterior edge of dentary extending over more than a quarter of supra-angular (1/8 the size of supra-angular; Figure 10); dewlap scales cream (green or yellowish green) and in seven (10) rows in males, yellow or turquoise (green or yellowish green) and in five (six) rows in females (Figure 4); edge of dewlap cream (green or yellowish green); dewlap background brown or reddish brown (yellowish green to black), with orange (yellowish green, turquoise or yellowish orange) spots in males; dewlap background reddish brown to black (dark brown to black) in females; throat and chin cream splashed with dark brown (yellowish green); some males exhibit a lateral dark brown ocellus on neck, similar in size to eye (green, turquoise or brown, larger than eye); some females bear a dorsal, longitudinal brown stripe (absent; Figure 3); dark transverse bands on limbs of females weakly defined or absent (limb bands well defined in females, Figs 5, 6); smaller body size, 76.2 ± 8.5 mm SVL, (82.9 ± 9.2 mm; t = 2.96; p = 0.00431); shorter head, 20.6 ± 2.2 mm head length (21.5 ± 1.9; t = 2.18; p = 0.03328); narrower head, 11.1 ± 1.2 mm head width (12.0 ± 1.2 mm; t = 2.99; p = 0.004); shorter forelimbs, 41.4±4.3 mm (45.6 ± 5.4 mm; t = 3.44; p = 0.001); shorter hind limbs, 73.0 ± 7.7 mm (79.1 ± 8.3 mm; t = 2.999; p = 0.004); larger interparietal scale, 1.48 ± 0.25 mm in length (1.22 ± 0.2 mm; t = -4.439; p = -3.85 e-05); narrower tympanum, 2.6 ± 0.3 mm in length (2.8 ± 0.4 mm; t = 2.29; p = 0.027) (Figure 11; Tables 3–4).

Figure 13. Distribution of Anolis dracula sp. n. and A. aequatorialis.
White star represents the type locality of A. dracula and the black star the type locality of A. aequatorialis. The blue line corresponds to the Mira River Basin. The black triangles indicate samples used in the phylogeny for each species. The source of the raster layer for the map is from naturalearthdata.com.

Figure 12. Phylogeny of Dactyloa including Anolis dracula sp. n., 50% majority-rule consensus tree obtained from a Bayesian analysis of 117 specimens, two mitochondrial genes (COI, ND2) and one nuclear gene (RAG1). Numbers above branches correspond to Bayesian posterior probability (PP) values; asterisks represent PP ≥ 0.95; scale bar corresponds to the mean number of nucleotide substitutions per site.
Photographs from top to bottom: Anolis podocarpus (Santiago R. Ron-BIOWEB), A. fitchi (Juan C. Sánchez-BIOWEB), A. aequatorialis (Diego Quirola-BIOWEB), A. dracula (Mario Yánez-Muñoz). 

Etymology: The specific epithet dracula it is a noun in apposition that refers to the Dracula Reserve, located within the distribution of the new species and near its type locality. The Dracula Reserve is an initiative of the EcoMinga Foundation, sponsored by the Orchid Conservation Alliance, Rainforest Trust, University of Basel Botanical Garden, and their individual donors. The Reserve protects an area with a high diversity of orchids of the genus Dracula.

 Mario H. Yánez-Muñoz, Carolina Reyes-Puig, Juan Pablo Reyes-Puig, Julián A. Velasco, Fernando Ayala-Varela and Omar Torres-Carvajal. 2018. A New Cryptic Species of Anolis Lizard from northwestern South America (Iguanidae, Dactyloinae). ZooKeys. 794: 135-163. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.794.26936

  

Resumen: Describimos una nueva especie de Anolis de las estribaciones de los Andes del suroccidente de Colombia y noroccidente de Ecuador, entre los 1187 y 2353 metros de elevación. La nueva especie puede ser distinguida de otros Anolis por caracteres de escamación, osteología craneal, morfología hemipenial, y ADN nuclear y mitocondrial. La nueva especie es hermana de A. aequatorialis, por lo que sugerimos que los registros previos de A. aequatorialis en Colombia corresponden a la nueva especie descrita en este artículo.

Palabras clave: Anolis dracula sp. n., diversidad, filogenia, morfología, Squamata, taxonomía

[Herpetology • 2016] Anolis purpuronectes • A New Species of Semiaquatic Anolis (Squamata: Dactyloidae) from Oaxaca and Veracruz, Mexico

Anolis purpuronectes 

Gray, Meza-Lázaro, Poe & Nieto-Montes de Oca, 2016  

Abstract  

We describe a new species of semiaquatic Anolis (Anolis purpuronectes) from the Chimalapas region of eastern Oaxaca and adjacent Veracruz, Mexico, and investigate its phylogenetic relationships with the closely related species A. barkeri to which the populations under investigation have previously been assigned to. Anolis barkeri and the new species appear to be allopatric, and differ primarily in male dewlap colour (red and orange in A. barkeri, pale purple in A. purpuronectes). A partitioned Bayesian analysis of the mitochondrial genes encoding ND1 (part), ND2, and the intervening tRNAs revealed that A. barkeri and A. purpuronectes are genetically distinct (uncorrected genetic distance between them=11.5%), nested within the A. schiedii group as sister species, and most closely related to a clade composed of A. cymbops, A. milleri, and A. parvicirculatus.

Key words: Anole, Anolis barkeri, Anolis schiedii group, Chimalapas, Mexico, new species, semiaquatic lizard 

 

Etymology.— The specific epithet purpuronectes, a noun in apposition, is a combination of the Latin adjective purpureus (purple) and the Greek noun nektes (a swimmer).

Anolis purpuronectes Gray, Meza-Lázaro, Poe & Nieto-Montes de Oca, 2016  

Levi Gray, Rubi Meza-Lázaro, Steven Poe and Adrián Nieto-Montes de Oca. 2016. 

Anolis purpuronectes - A New Species of Semiaquatic Anolis (Squamata: Dactyloidae) from Oaxaca and Veracruz, Mexico. Herpetological Journal. 26; 253–262. 

http://herp.mx/pubs/2016-Gray-et-al-A-new-species-of-semiaquatic-Anolis-from-Oaxaca-and-Veracruz-Mexico.pdf 

    

[Herpetology • 2016] Anolis landestoyi • Discovery of a Giant Chameleon-Like Lizard (Anolis) on Hispaniola and Its Significance to Understanding Replicated Adaptive Radiations

Anolis landestoyi  

Mahler, Lambert, Geneva, Ng, Hedges, Losos & Glor, 2016
  DOI:  10.1086/687566 

Abstract

We report a new chameleon-like Anolis species from Hispaniola that is ecomorphologically similar to congeners found only on Cuba. Lizards from both clades possess short limbs and a short tail and utilize relatively narrow perches, leading us to recognize a novel example of ecomorphological matching among islands in the well-known Greater Antillean anole radiation. This discovery supports the hypothesis that the assembly of island faunas can be substantially deterministic and highlights the continued potential for basic discovery to reveal new insights in well-studied groups. Restricted to a threatened band of mid-elevation transitional forest near the border of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, this new species appears to be highly endangered.

Keywords: community assembly, determinism, conservation, island biogeography, Dominican Republic.

D. Luke Mahler, Shea M. Lambert, Anthony J. Geneva, Julienne Ng, S. Blair Hedges, Jonathan B. Losos and Richard E. Glor. 2016. Discovery of a Giant Chameleon-Like Lizard (Anolis) on Hispaniola and Its Significance to Understanding Replicated Adaptive Radiations.  American Naturalist. DOI:  10.1086/687566

ResearchGate.net/publication/304068630_Discovery_of_a_Giant_Chameleon-Like_Lizard_Anolis_on_Hispaniola_and_Its_Significance_to_Understanding_Replicated_Adaptive_Radiations

https://www.utoronto.ca/news/new-lizard-found-dominican-republic-u-t-researchers-say

A surprising new anole http://bit.ly/1YsfprL via @HarvardResearch @EurekAlertAAAS

New lizard found in Dominican Republic http://bit.ly/1rtqTOb via @UofTNews 

https://mahlerlab.com/2016/06/17/new-amnat-paper-out-today/

[Herpetology • 2016] A Taxonomic Revision of the Norops tropidonotus complex (Squamata, Dactyloidae), with the Resurrection of N. spilorhipis (Álvarez del Toro and Smith, 1956) and the Description of Two New Species; Norops wilsoni & N. mccraniei

Norops wilsoni & N. mccraniei 

Köhler, Townsend & Petersen, 2016mesoamericanherpetology.com

Abstract 

We describe two new species of anoles from Honduras, which previously have been referred to as Norops tropidonotus by different authors: Norops mccraniei sp. nov. from the Chortís Highlands of Honduras, El Salvador, northern Nicaragua, and eastern Guatemala; and Norops wilsoni sp. nov. from the Atlantic slopes of the Cordillera Nombre de Dios (departments of Atlántida and Colón). Furthermore, we resurrect Anolis tropidonotus spilorhipis Álvarez del Toro and Smith, 1956 from synonymy with Norops tropidonotus. These four species are similar in external morphology, but differ by molecular distances, phylogenetic relationships, and in hemipenial morphology, as well as in subtle differences in several scalation and morphometric characters. Each of the six species in the N. tropidonotus complex exhibits a parapatric to allopatric distribution pattern.

Key Words: Cryptic species, DNA barcoding, hemipenial morphology, Nuclear Central America, 16S

Gunther Köhler, Josiah H. Townsend and Claus Bo P. Petersen. 2016. A Taxonomic Revision of the Norops tropidonotus complex (Squamata, Dactyloidae), with the Resurrection of N. spilorhipis (Álvarez del Toro and Smith, 1956) and the Description of Two New Species. Mesoamerican Herpetology 3: 8–41.

http://www.mesoamericanherpetology.com/uploads/3/4/7/9/34798824/kohler_et_al_mar_2016.pdf

facebook.com/JosiahTownsend

Resumen: Se describen dos especies nuevas de anolis de Honduras, que anteriormente se han referido como Norops tropidonotus por diferentes autores: Norops mccraniei sp. nov. de las Chortís Highlands de Honduras, El Salvador, el norte de Nicaragua y el este de Guatemala; y Norops wilsoni sp. nov. de la vertiente Atlantica de la Cordillera Nombre de Dios (departamentos de Atlantida y Colón). Ademas, revalidamos Anolis tropidonotus spilorhipis Álvarez del Toro y Smith, 1956 de la sinonimía con Norops tropidonotus. Estas cuatro especies son similares en su morfología externa, pero difieren entre si por distancias moleculares, relaciones filogenéticas, en la morfología de los hemipenes, y además en diferencias sutiles en varios caracteres de escamación y morfometría. Cada una de las seis especies en el complejo de N. tropidonotus exhibe un patrón parapátrico a alopátrico de distribución.

Palabras Claves: ADN, códigos de barras, especies crípticas, morfología del hemipene, Centroamérica Norte, 16S