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Issue: Vol. 4527 No. 1: 4 Dec. 2018
Type: Article
Published: 2018-12-03
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4527.1.12
Page range: 140–150
Abstract views: 115
PDF downloaded: 2

A new species of African snake-eyed skink (Scincidae: Panaspis) from central and northern Namibia

Museu de História Natural e da Ciência da Universidade do Porto, Praça Gomes Teixeira, 4099-002 Porto, Portugal Departamento de Zoologia e Antropologia (Museu Bocage), Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Ciência, Universidade de Lisboa, Rua da Escola Politécnica 58, 1269-102 Lisboa, Portugal Department of Biology, Villanova University, 800 Lancaster Avenue, Villanova, Pennsylvania 19085-1699, USA.
†Research Associate, Department of Zoology, P.O. Box 77000, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Port Elizabeth 6031, South Africa. (Deceased, 14 October 2018)
Department of Biology, Villanova University, 800 Lancaster Avenue, Villanova, Pennsylvania 19085-1699, USA.
Reptilia endemism Panaspis namibiana arid environments cryptic species taxonomy

Abstract

A recent molecular revision of the snake-eyed skinks of the genus Panaspis Cope, 1868 uncovered extensive cryptic diversity within the P. wahlbergi (Smith, 1849) and P. maculicollis Jacobsen & Broadley, 2000 species complexes. We here describe an unnamed central and northern Namibian lineage of the P. maculicollis group as a new species. We base the description on previously published molecular evidence and newly collected morphological, meristic and coloration data. Members of the group share a conservative morphology and the newly described species is very similar to P. maculicollis, from which it differs mostly on the basis of its coloration. This description raises the number of Panaspis recognized to 17 species and reinforces the already strong evidence that northern Namibia is a hotspot of reptile diversity.

 

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