The aim of this contribution is to present the first record of T. suquiensis for a pampean agricultural-ecosystem placed in southern Santa Fe province, Argentina.Asociación Herpetológica Argentin

Grierson, María Cecilia

Rimoldi, Pablo Guillermo

Cuadernos de Herpetología

English

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Novedad zoogeográfica
127
Author for correspondence: mcgrierson@gmail.com
Teius suquiensis: expansion of its geographical distribution 
and first record for the pampean eco-region (southern Santa 
Fe province, Argentina)
María Cecilia Grierson1, Pablo Guillermo Rimoldi2,3
1 Cátedra de Biogeografía. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Argentina.
2 Cátedra de Zoología General. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Argentina.
3 Cátedra de Biología y Ecología. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Argentina
Cuad. herpetol. 34 (1): 127-129 (2020)
Locality- Argentina, Santa Fe, Departamento de Ro-
sario, Comuna de Zavalla (33°02’13’’S; 60° 53’03’’W, 
WGS84, 41 m s.n.m.). Fecha de colecta: 11 de Marzo 
de 2018. Collected by Cecilia Grierson and Pablo 
Rimoldi. We found this specimen of Teius suquiensis 
in the Experimental Field Station which belongs to 
the Agricultural Science College of the National 
University of Rosario (UNR), (Fig. 1).
The collected specimen, a juvenile one, is kept 
in the Zoological Collection of the Facultad of Cien-
cias Agrarias (FCA-ZV-R: 012, Fig.2).
Figure 1. Habitat at the new record locality of Teius suquiensis in Zavalla, southern Santa Fe province, Argentina.
128
M. C. Grierson and P. G. Rimoldi - Teius suquiensis first record for the Pampean eco-region
Comments- The genus Teius Merrem, 1820 at 
present includes three species: Teius teyou (Daudin, 
1802); T. oculatus (D’Orbigny & Bibron, 1837), and 
T. suquiensis Avila & Martori, 1991. The latter is 
the only species in the genus that is known to have 
parthenogenetic reproduction in Argentina (Avila 
et al., 1992). Some recent studies on its distribution 
(Cacciali et al., 2016) limit its presence to two dis-
junct areas: one in the north-west corner of Santa 
Fe province and the other in the center, north and 
west of Córdoba province, extending into the north-
eastern San Luis province. From the biogeographic 
point of view, the species occurs on the southern 
border of the Wet Chaco, being more abundant in the 
Dry Chaco and less frequently in the Espinal. New 
records introduced by Céspedez et al. (2017) men-
tion T. suquiensis in Santiago del Estero province, 100 
km to the north of the northern most locality with 
known records in the Córdoba province (Cabrera 
and Monguillot, 2007), which could be a sign of a 
possible expansion in its distribution area. 
The aim of this contribution is to present the 
first record of T. suquiensis for a Pampean agricultu-
ral-ecosystem placed in southern Santa Fe province. 
The capture of this specimen took place when a sur-
vey study of local herpetofauna was being carried on. 
The study area is a three-hectare permanent enclosu-
re, which has been closed to major herbivorous since 
Figure 2. The collected specimen of Teius suquiensis from Zavalla (FCA-ZV-R: 012).
129
Cuad. herpetol. 34 (1): 127-129 (2020)
Recibida: 1 7  D i c i e m b r e  2 0 1 9
Revisada: 0 8  E n e r o  2 0 2 0
Aceptada: 1 3  E n e r o  2 0 2 0
E d itor  As o c i a d o :  M .  C abre r a
doi: 10.31017/CdH.2020.(2019-059)
© 2020 por los autores, licencia otorgada a la Asociación Herpetológica Argentina. 
Este artículo es de acceso abierto y distribuido bajo los términos y condiciones de 
una licencia Atribución-No Comercial 2.5 Argentina de Creative Commons. Para ver 
una copia de esta licencia, visite http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ar/
1983, covered at present by a continuous tall grass 
layer with a dominance of Johnson grass (Sorghum 
halepense) together with common thistle (Carduus 
acanthoides) (Fig. 1). There are also two smaller 
areas within the enclosure, one covered with chilca 
(Baccharis punctulata) bushes and the other with 
ferns (Adiantopsis chlorophylla) (Boccanelli, 2011). 
It is important to highlight that the nearest 
locality to the new record of T. suquiensis is Villa 
Maria, in Córdoba province (Cacciali et al., 2016). 
With this new finding, the distribution of the species 
is extended approximately 230 km to the south-east, 
thus establishing the first record for the Pampean 
eco-region.
According to Avila and Martori (1991), T. 
suquiensis seems to tolerate the environmental 
modifications inherent to highly disturbed habitats. 
However, due to the lack of records between these 
localities, it is not possible to determine if this new 
record represents a recent expansion of this species, 
or a well-established occurrence that was simply 
unknown due to the lack of information.
Acknowledgments
We thank C. Lamas, L. Galetti and B. Lovazzano for 
help during fieldwork. To D. Prado for comments 
that improved the manuscript.
Literature cited
Avila, L.J. & Martori, R.A. 1991. A unisexual species of Teius 
Merrem 1820 (Sauria Teiidae) from central Argentina. 
Tropical Zoology 4: 193-201
Avila, L.J.; Acosta, J.C. & Martori, R.A. 1992. Composición, 
variación anual y estacional de la dieta de Teius oculatus 
(Sauria: Teiidae) en la Provincia de Córdoba (Argentina). 
Cuadernos de Herpetología 7: 5-13.
Boccanelli, S.I. 2011. Dinámica de la vegetación luego del 
abandono de campos agrícolas en el sur de la Provincia de 
Santa Fe, Argentina. Phyton (Buenos Aires) 80: 227-229.
Cabrera, M.R. & Monguillot, J.C. 2007. Reptilia, Squamata, 
Teiidae, Teius suquiensis: New evidence of recent expansion 
of this partenogenetic lizard? Check List 3: 180-184.
Cacciali, P.; Morando, M.; Kohler, G. & Ávila, L.J. 2016. On 
the distribution of the genus Teius Merrem, 1820 (Reptilia: 
Squamata: Teiidae). Zootaxa 4136: 491-514.
Céspedez, J.A.; Cacciali, P. & Motte, M. 2017. Teius suquiensis 
Avila & Martori, 1991, from Santiago del Estero, Argentina: 
first record and potential case of range extension. 
Herpetozoa 30: 76-78.



Teius suquiensis: expansion of its geographical distribution and first record for the pampean eco-region (southern Santa Fe province, Argentina)

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Teius suquiensis: expansion of its geographical distribution and first record for the pampean eco-region (southern Santa Fe province, Argentina)

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