A review of the genus Trachylepis (Sauria: Scincidae) from the Gulf of Guinea, with descriptions of two new species in the Trachylepis maculilabris (Gray, 1845) species complex
Author
Ceríaco, Luis M. P.
Author
Marques, Mariana P.
Author
Bauer, Aaron M.
text
Zootaxa
2016
4109
3
284
314
journal article
39124
10.11646/zootaxa.4109.3.2
b41b5c54-72ae-46e7-b725-b9737afb4e61
1175-5326
266320
7085BDAD-ED47-459A-8CEA-7CE824FE61E1
Trachylepis ozorii
(
Bocage, 1893
)
(
Fig. 11
)
Mabuia Ozorii
Bocage 1893
: 47
Mabuia Osorii
(
Bocage 1897: 195
)
Mabuya blanlingii
[sic] (Hallowell) (
Manaças 1958: 185
)
Mabuya ozorii
Bocage, 1893
(
Bocage 1903
: 59
;
Boulenger 1906
: 205
;
Jesus
et al.
2003
: 20
; Jesus
et al.
2005)
Trachylepis ozorii
(
Bocage, 1893
)
is one of the world’s most poorly known species of reptiles. Described in 1893 based on a single specimen collected by Francisco Newton on
Annobon
Island and named after Baltazar Osório (
1855-1926
), a Portuguese ichthyologist and naturalist at the National Museum of Lisbon, the species has been reported very few times since its description (
Bocage 1897
;
Boulenger 1906
;
Jesus
et al.
2003
). According to Jesus
et al.
(2005), the species is unrelated phylogenetically to all other Gulf of
Guinea
oceanic island
Trachylepis
, suggesting that the ancestors of this species colonised
Annobon
from the continent soon after the island's emergence and not by “island-hopping”. We were not able to include any tissue samples of this species in our phylogenetic analysis However, given morphological characters, such as the spinose palms, size, scalation and colouration, we suggest that this species is closely related to
Trachylepis polytropis
(
Boulenger, 1903
)
and
Trachylepis makolowodei
Chirio, Ineich,
Schmitz & Lebreton, 2008
. This hypothesis, however, requires confirmation by means of a thorough molecular study.
FIGURE 10.
Trachylepis affinis
(Gray, 1838)
(IICT 36-1954). (Photo: Luis Ceríaco).
Diagnosis.
Trachylepis ozorii
is a medium-sized skink (SVL
63.9–85.9 mm
) with a tail approximately 1.8 times SVL. Large and acuminate head (HW/HL 60,7%), 21.2 % as long as SVL. Supraciliaries usually 7, sometimes 6; five labials anterior to subocular; rectangular and enlarged subocular, in direct contact with the lip and not reduced basally by the intrusion of adjacent supralabials. Prefrontals always in contact. Supranasals always separated. Midbody scales rows 34–36, paravertebral scales 58–61, with three keels on vertebral and dorsal scales. Lamellae beneath the fourth finger 15–17, beneath the fourth toe 20–23. Digital lamellae keeled and spinose.
Back uniformly olive-green with many dark speckles and irregular dots and belly light green in alcoholpreserved specimens; infralabials and supralabials greenish, mental yellowish; absence of distinct longitudinal stripes or transverse dorsal bands. Colour in life olive-green on dorsum, with many dark speckles and irregular dots. Venter uniform yellowish-green.
Distribution.
This species occurs only on
Annobon
Island,
Equatorial Guinea
(
Jesus
et al.
2003
).
Habitat and natural history notes.
Almost nothing is known about the habitat, ecology and natural history of this species.
Jesus
et al.
(2003)
noted that the species was common and widespread on
Annobon
Island, but was usually not found in wet and shaded places such as the dense forest that covers the upper slopes of the island.
Boulenger (1906)
stated that the species occurs from sea level to
500 m
.