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| Cordylus phonolithos Marques, Ceríaco, Stanley, Bandeira, Agarwal & Bauer, 2019 Photo by Luis Ceríaco facebook.com/LuisCeriaco |
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| Cordylus phonolithos
Marques, Ceríaco, Stanley, Bandeira, Agarwal & Bauer, 2019
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Abstract
A new species of rupicolous girdled lizard is described from Serra da Neve Inselberg, Namibe Province, southwestern Angola. We sequenced two mitochondrial gene regions (16S and ND2) for the new species and compared these data with those previously published for other Cordylus species. The new species is genetically divergent from the closely related Cordylus machadoi and C. namakuiyus and morphologically distinguished by head scale arrangement, coloration, and osteological characters. Serra da Neve is the second highest peak in Angola and one of the most understudied areas of the country. The discovery of this new species highlights the importance of this inselberg for regional endemism and emphasizes the high conservation importance of the area.
Keywords: Reptilia, Cordylus phonolithos sp. nov., molecular phylogeny, computed tomography, endemism, taxonomy, Africa
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| Cordylus phonolithos sp. nov. in life ([Holotype] CAS 263581). N’Dolondolo, Serra da Neve, southwestern Angola.
Photo by Luis Ceríaco
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| Cordylus phonolithos sp. nov. in life ([Paratype] INBAC: AMB 10272). N’Dolondolo, Serra da Neve, southwestern Angola.
Photo by Luis Ceríaco
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Cordylus phonolithos sp. nov.
C. namakuiyus [part]: Stanley et al. (2016: 209)
Etymology. The specific epithet “phonolithos” is a noun in apposition from the Greek “phono” = sound + “lithos” = rock, which means “sound stone”. In the local Mucobal language the type locality name, “N’Dolondolo” means literally “rock that sounds like a bell” or “bell” and stems from the presence of a large and famous phonolite stone at the locality. Phonolites are rare igneous volcanic stones of intermediate composition between felsic and maphic, with aphanitic to porphyritic texture that produce a very distinctive metallic sound when hit, similar to the ringing of a metallic bell. We suggest “N’Dolondolo Girdled Lizard” and “Lagarto Espinhoso de N’Dolondolo” as the English and Portuguese common names, respectively, for this species.
Mariana P. Marques, Luis M. P. Ceríaco, Edward L. Stanley, Suzana Bandeira, Ishan Agarwal and Aaron M. Bauer. 2019. A New Species of Girdled Lizard (Squamata: Cordylidae) from the Serra da Neve Inselberg, Namibe Province, southwestern Angola. Zootaxa. 4668(4); 503–524. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4668.4.4
Edward L. Stanley, Luis M. P. Ceríaco, Suzana Bandeira, Hilaria Valerio, Michael F. Bates and William R. Branch. 2016. A Review of Cordylus machadoi (Squamata: Cordylidae) in southwestern Angola, with the Description of A New Species from the Pro-Namib Desert. Zootaxa. 4061(3): 201–226. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4061.3.1
