Anolis is
the largest genus of lizards with more than 416 described species. Eight new species
were described by Kohler and Hedges (2016)
|
Anolis chlorodius, Hispaniola |
revising the green
anoles of Hispaniola. Using morphological and molecular genetic data the authors
recognize 16 species of green anoles on the island, eight of which they describe
as new species (A. apletolepis, A. chlorodius, A. divius, A. eladioi, A.
gonavensis, A. leucodera, A. prasinorius, and A. viridius). Three other species
were raised from subspecific to species level (A. cyanostictus, A. demissus and
A. pecuarius) and one was resurrected from synonymy with A. chlorocyanus (A.
peynadoi).
Another new anole from Hispaniola, Anolis landestoyi, was described by Mahler
et al. (2016). The new species, named Anolis landestoyi, was found in the Dominican
|
Anolis landestoyi, Hispaniola |
Republic but bears a
strong resemblance to Cuba’s Chamaeleolis anoles. Chamaeleolis anoles look less like typical anoles
and more like chameleons: large, cryptic, slow-moving, and prone to clinging to
lichen-covered branches high in forest canopies. Anolis landestoyi is restricted to a unique habitat
only found in a small area in the western Dominican Republic that is rapidly
disappearing due to illegal deforestation.
Two new
anoles from Mexico were described by Köhler et al. (2016). Anolis
(Norops) mccraniei occurs at elevations of 200–1,740 m throughout much
of Honduras (except for the Atlantic slopes of the Cordillera Nombre de Dios
in
northern Honduras), as well as in extreme
|
Anolis purpuronectes, Oaxaca, Mexico |
northwestern El Salvador, northern
Nicaragua, and eastern Guatemala. Anolis (Norops) wilsoni is restricted to
the Atlantic slopes of the Cordillera Nombre de Dios in the departments of
Atlántida and Colón in northern Honduras, at elevations from near sea level to
980 m.
The
semi-aquatic Anolis purpuronectes was
described by Gray, et al. 2016 from the western portion of the Chimalapas
region in extreme northeastern Oaxaca and adjacent southeastern Veracruz,
Mexico. They found this lizard sleeping on low vegetation within one metre of a stream, on boulders or logs in or along streams; on
boulders, logs, or wet leaf litter; or within boulder crevices near small
waterfalls. The type locality is a corridor of closed-canopy forest surrounded
by highly disturbed areas.
Citations
Gray L, Meza-Lázaro R,
Poe S, de Oca AN. A new species of semiaquatic Anolis (Squamata: Dactyloidae) from Oaxaca and Veracruz, Mexico. 2016.
The Herpetological Journal. 26(4):253-62.
Köhler G, Hedges SB. 2016. A revision of
the green anoles of Hispaniola with description of eight new species (Reptilia,
Squamata, Dactyloidae). Novitates
Caribaea 9: 1-135. E-print
Köhler G, Townsend JH,
Petersen CB. 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.
Mahler DL, Lambert SM,
Geneva AJ, Ng J, Hedges SB, Losos JB, Glor RE. 2016. Discovery of a Giant Chameleon-Like Lizard (Anolis) on Hispaniola and Its
Significance to Understanding Replicated Adaptive Radiations. The American
Naturalist. 188(3):357-64.