 |
| Abronia cuetzpali Campbell, Solano-Zavaleta, Flores-Villela, Caviedes-Solis & Frost. 2016 DOI: 10.1670/14-162 |
Abstract
A newly discovered species of arboreal alligator lizard of the genus Abronia is described from the Sierra Madre del Sur of Oaxaca, Mexico. It appears to be most closely related to A. mixteca and A. oaxacae, but differs from these species (and others in the subgenus Abronia) in a number of features, including the combination of having two primary temporals contacting the postocular series, the anterior superciliary contacting the cantholoreal, six to eight nuchals in a transverse row across the nape, minimally seven to eight scales between large nuchals and ventral scales on neck, and 32–35 transverse rows of dorsal scales. This new species is the only species of Abronia known from the central and western portions of the Sierra de Miahuatlán in the southern part of the Sierra Madre del Sur, although A. oaxacae occurs to the east in this range. Many of the arboreal and secretive species of Abronia have avoided discovery until relatively recently, with about a third of known species described in the last 3 decades.
Abronia cuetzpali sp. nov.
Sierra de Miahuatlán Abronia — Dragoncito de Sierra de Miahuatlán
Etymology. — The specific name is a noun in apposition taken from the Nahuatl word for lizard, “cuetzpali,” although there are various alternative spellings.
Habitat and Distribution. — On the basis of the three known specimens of A. cuetzpali, its distribution extends in the Sierra Madre del Sur of Oaxaca from near Santa Catarina Juquila to San Miguel Suchixtepec, a distance of about 70 km. The known elevational distribution is from 1,711 to 2,150 m. Suitable elevations above 1,500 m and temperate forest are continuous between these localities. There is no reason to believe that A. cuetzpali does not range farther to the west and east, where suitable habitat also exists. The area inhabited by A. cuetzpali is covered by pine–oak forest (sensu Leopold, 1959) that may have a prominent hardwood component including oaks and a heavy broadleaf understory in some places (Fig. 7).
Jonathan A. Campbell, Israel Solano-Zavaleta, Oscar Flores-Villela, Itzue W. Caviedes-Solis and Darrel R. Frost. 2016. A New Species of Abronia (Squamata: Anguidae) from the Sierra Madre del Sur of Oaxaca, Mexico. Journal of Herpetology. 50(1): 149-156. DOI: 10.1670/14-162
Resumen
Se describe una nueva especie de lagartija lagarto arbórea del género Abronia de la Sierra Madre del Sur de Oaxaca, México. Parece estar más relacionada a A. mixteca y A. oaxacae, pero difiere de estas especies y de otras del subgénero Abronia en varios caracteres, incluyendo la combinación de tener dos temporales primarias contactando la serie postocular, la superciliar anterior en contacto con la cantoloreal, 6–8 nucales en hilera transversal sobre la nuca, un mínimo de 7–8 escamas entre las nucales grandes y las escamas ventrales del cuello, y 32–35 hileras transversales de escamas dorsales. Esta nueva especie es la única del género Abronia conocida de las porciones central y occidental de la Sierra de Miahuatlán en la región sur de la Sierra Madre del Sur, aunque A. oaxacae ocurre al oriente de esta serranía. Muchas de las especies de Abronia con hábitos secretos y arbóreos han evadido ser descubiertas hasta hace poco, aproximadamente una tercera parte de las especies han sido descritas en las últimas tres décadas.