Sobre la presencia de <i>Taeniophallus brevirostris</i> (Serpentes: colubridae) en Venezuela

Alemán (1953) señala por primera vez la presencia de Taeniophallus (=Rhadinae) brevirostris para la región baja del Río Negro, Sierra de Perijá, Estado Zulia, Venezuela. A partir de este registro diversos autores han citado la presencia de esta especie en el país, por lo que el nombre de Taeniophallus brevirostris sigue apareciendo en los listados de la herpetofauna de Venezuela. (Párrafo extraído del texto a modo de resumen)Asociación Herpetológica Argentina (AHA

Sobre la presencia de <i>Taeniophallus brevirostris</i> (Serpentes: colubridae) en Venezuela

Alemán (1953) señala por primera vez la presencia de Taeniophallus (=Rhadinae) brevirostris para la región baja del Río Negro, Sierra de Perijá, Estado Zulia, Venezuela. A partir de este registro diversos autores han citado la presencia de esta especie en el país, por lo que el nombre de Taeniophallus brevirostris sigue apareciendo en los listados de la herpetofauna de Venezuela. (Párrafo extraído del texto a modo de resumen)Asociación Herpetológica Argentina (AHA

DISTRIBUCIÓN GEOGRÁFICA DE Dactyloa squamulata (PETERS, 1863) (REPTILIA: SAURIA: POLYCHROTIDAE) EN VENEZUELA GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF Dactyloa squamulata (PETERS, 1863) (REPTILIA: SAURIA: POLYCHROTIDAE) IN VENEZUELA

Palabras clave: Reptiles. Polychrotidae. Anolis. Dactyloa squamulata. Distribución. Venezuela. RESUMEN En este trabajo documentamos una ampliación de la distribución de Dactyloa squamulata. Esta especie de lagartija, previamente conocida sólo del Parque Nacional Henri Pittier, Estado Aragua, queda así señalada para los estados Carabobo, Cojedes y Vargas. Los registros disponibles indican que la especie tiene un hábitat restringido a los bosques nublados del tramo central de la Cordillera de la Costa de Venezuela, por encima de los 900 m s.n.m. Discutimos sobre la localidad tipo de D. squamulata y argumentamos sobre su ausencia en Panamá. GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF ABSTRACT In this paper we document an extension of the known distribution range of Dactyloa squamulata. This lizard species, previously known only from the Henri Pittier National Park, Aragua state, is therefore recorded for the states of Carabobo, Cojedes and Vargas. The available records indicate that the species possess a habitat restricted to clouds forests in the central portion of the Venezuelan Coasta

UNA NUEVA ESPECIE DE Anadia (REPTILIA: SAURIA: GYMNOPHTHALMIDAE) DEL NORESTE DE VENEZUELA

Se describe una nueva especie de lagartija del g&eacute;nero Anadia proveniente de la Pen&iacute;nsula de Paria, en el Nordeste de Venezuela. El nuevo tax&oacute;n se diferencia f&aacute;cilmente de otras especies del g&eacute;nero por la presencia de tres escamas prefrontales (dos en las dem&aacute;s especies), por poseer 70 escamas dorsales y un tama&ntilde;o total de 155 mm; siendo esos los valores m&aacute;ximos dentro del g&eacute;nero. Se realiza una comparaci&oacute;n con otras siete especies del g&eacute;nero que est&aacute;n presentes en Venezuela

New snake from Venezuela

22 p. : ill. (some col.), map ; 26 cm.Includes bibliographical references (p. 21-22).The snake Taeniophallus nebularis, new species, is known from a single specimen collected in montane cloud forest, 800 m above sea level, Península de Paria, northeastern Venezuela. It is a small "xenodontine" colubrid (adult male, 492 mm total length); dorsal scales in 19-19-17 rows, smooth, with paired apical pits anteriorly; brown dorsally and grayish laterally, with ill-defined pattern; white postocular stripe; and bright yellow midventrally between serrated black edges. The species is easily diagnosed, although assignment to Taeniophallus is problematic. However, a few suggestive characters are shared with T. brevirostris and T. nicagus. These species, presumably the closest geographic relatives of T. nebularis, occur in the Amazon basin and the Guianas, indicative of a biogeographic parallel with certain plants. Taeniophallus occipitalis, with extreme scale-row reduction and a distinctive color pattern possibly derived from a brevirostris-like precursor, is widely distributed south of the Amazon. Four additional species of Taeniophallus s.l. comprise the monophyletic affinis species group centered in southeastern Brazil. The genus Echinanthera (also centered in southeastern Brazil) is sometimes expanded to include all of Taeniophallus. Echinanthera s.s. is viewed as a demonstrably monophyletic group of six named species, whereas relationships of the subgroups of Taeniophallus s.l. among themselves and to Echinanthera remain uncertain. Evolutionary divergence in copulatory organs of the otherwise similar Taeniophallus nicagus and T. brevirostris is extraordinary, suggesting that uncritical weight cannot safely be assigned to hemipenial characters of presumptive relatives. The hemipenis of Taeniophallus nebularis differs from those of other taxa discussed in being conspicuously bilobed for nearly a third of its length. However, some degree of bilobation is symplesiomorphic for these snakes, as evidenced by presence or absence of weak bilobation in a few species and divided insertions of retractor muscles in all. The penial asulcate interspinal gap in T. nebularis also might be symplesiomorphic for Taeniophallus s.l. and Echinanthera s.s., but homologies and level of generality for this character are not yet clear

Lizards from the Venezuelan Guayana.

31 p. : ill. (some col.) ; 26 cm. "August 28, 2009." Abstract also in Spanish. Includes bibliographical references (p. 29-31).Names are provided for two montane gymnophthalmid lizards that have been long known from the Venezuelan Guayana, but that were not described by other workers because specimens had been lost. Euspondylus auyanensis, new species ‪(‬= Anadia sp. auctorum‪)‬, is known only from the summit of Auyantepui, where it was originally discovered by S. Gorzula in 1984; a later specimen, the holotype, was collected by Renaud Boistel in 1998. The monophyly of Euspondylus has not been established and the generic assignment is tentative. Anadia escalerae, new species, is based on a specimen obtained by John Cadle in 1980, in the region of La Escalera, to the east of Auyantepui. It agrees with Anadia sensu stricto in being a slender attenuate lizard, but is unusual in having weakly keeled ‪(‬vs. smooth‪)‬ dorsal scales and in having the prefrontals separated by an azygous scale. The last condition also occurs in the holotype of A. pariaensis from the Península de Paria, about 500 km NNW of La Escalera; although differing in several characters, they may be sister species. A new specimen of the rare Anadia blakei ‪(‬from Cerro Humo, Península de Paria‪)‬, is described and illustrated. It is a robust lizard, markedly different in habitus from Anadia sensu stricto. Commentary is provided on the usefulness of hemipenial data in gymnophthalmid systematics. The hemipenes of Euspondylus auyanensis, Anadia blakei, and A. ocellata are described and illustrated. The Guayana endemic genus Adercosaurus is provisionally assigned to the subfamily Alopoglossinae based on hemipenial and other resemblances to Ptychoglossus