Incognito in Ticino: a novel species of lizard among the Swiss herpetofauna

Abstract

National species lists, especially red lists, must account for the latest taxonomic updates in order to best protect newly discovered biodiversity. Here we demonstrate the cryptic presence of a new species for the Swiss herpetofauna: Carnie’s lizard Zootoca carniolica, an oviparous form of the viviparous common lizard Z. vivipara, which was recently elevated to species rank given their complete reproductive isolation. A few years ago, a range-wide phylogeographic study have genetically barcoded this subalpine species in Val Morrobia (Ticino), just a few hundred meters from the Italian border, but this finding has subsequently remained unnoticed. According to fine-scale distribution data, this population is presumably isolated, and the closest populations in Graubünden and northern Ticino all likely correspond to Z. vivipara. Since Val Morrobia is the only swiss record of Z. carniolica, the species rises as the most endangered reptile of the country. We confirmed the persistence of this population as of summer 2021 and call for immediate actions to document the geographic extent and life history of Z. carniolica in Switzerland, in order to implement conservation measures