Dwarves in a Big World: Two New Species of Tropiocolotes (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from the Sahara Desert, with the First Detailed Skull Description of the Genus

IF 0.8 4区生物学 Q3 ZOOLOGY

Journal of Herpetology Pub Date : 2022-11-30 DOI:10.1670/20-103

M. Ribeiro‐Júnior, C. Koch, Morris Flecks, M. Calvo, Shai Meiri

引用次数: 1

Abstract

Abstract. The Sahara Desert is the largest ecoregion in Africa, but its biodiversity in general, and reptile biodiversity in particular, are only superficially known and probably grossly underestimated. The dwarf-lizard genus Tropiocolotes is widely distributed in the region. The genus' taxonomy is plagued by serious nomenclatural problems that have led to a series of misidentifications of specimens in collections and in the literature. Analyzing variation in meristic and osteological characters of the Saharan species of Tropiocolotes, we found individuals from Algeria with unique external and internal morphological characters that distinguish them from all other species in the genus. We present a detailed account of these characters and describe two new species of Tropiocolotes from Algeria. Additionally, we provide the first detailed description of skulls of the genus, and designate a neotype to T. steudneri.

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大世界中的侏儒：撒哈拉沙漠热带蟾蜍科的两个新种（角鲨目：壁虎科），首次详细描述了该属的头骨

摘要撒哈拉沙漠是非洲最大的生态区，但其生物多样性，尤其是爬行动物的生物多样性只是表面上的已知，可能被严重低估了。热带蜥蜴属分布广泛。该属的分类学受到严重的命名问题的困扰，这些问题导致了收藏和文献中对标本的一系列误认。通过分析热带莲属撒哈拉物种分生组织和骨学特征的变化，我们发现来自阿尔及利亚的个体具有独特的外部和内部形态特征，将其与该属所有其他物种区分开来。我们对这些特征进行了详细的描述，并描述了阿尔及利亚热带莲科的两个新种。此外，我们提供了该属头骨的第一个详细描述，并指定了一个新的模式。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Journal of Herpetology 生物-动物学

CiteScore

1.60

自引率

0.00%

发文量

审稿时长

6 months

期刊介绍： The Journal of Herpetology accepts manuscripts on all aspects on the biology of amphibians and reptiles including their behavior, conservation, ecology, morphology, physiology, and systematics, as well as herpetological education. We encourage authors to submit manuscripts that are data-driven and rigorous tests of hypotheses, or provide thorough descriptions of novel taxa (living or fossil). Topics may address theoretical issues in a thoughtful, quantitative way. Reviews and policy papers that provide new insight on the herpetological sciences are also welcome, but they must be more than simple literature reviews. These papers must have a central focus that propose a new argument for understanding a concept or a new approach for answering a question or solving a problem. Focus sections that combine papers on related topics are normally determined by the Editors. Publication in the Long-Term Perspectives section is by invitation only. Papers on captive breeding, new techniques or sampling methods, anecdotal or isolated natural history observations, geographic range extensions, and essays should be submitted to our sister journal, Herpetological Review.