Biology:Mesaspis moreletii

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Mesaspis moreletii
Mesaspis moreletii.jpg
Scientific classification edit
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Anguidae
Genus: Mesaspis
Species:
M. moreletii
Binomial name
Mesaspis moreletii
(Bocourt, 1872)
Mesaspis moreletii distribution.png
Synonyms[2]
  • Gerrhonotus moreletii Bocourt, 1872
  • Barisia moreletii Tihen, 1949
  • Mesaspis moreleti Liner, 1994

Mesaspis moreletii, commonly known as Morelet's alligator lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Anguidae. The species is endemic to Central America.[1]

Etymology

The specific name, moreletii, is in honor of French naturalist Pierre Marie Arthur Morelet.[3]

Geographic range

M. moreletii is native to southern Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and possibly Nicaragua.[1]

Habitat

The natural habitat of M. moreletii consists of Central American pine-oak forests and cloud forests between 1,450 and 2,530 metres (4,760 and 8,300 ft) above sea level.[1]

Subspecies

The following subspecies are recognized as being valid:[1]

  • Mesaspis moreletii moreletii (Bocourt, 1872)
  • Mesaspis moreletii fulvus (Bocourt, 1871)
  • Mesaspis moreletii rafaeli (Hartweg & Tihen, 1946)
  • Mesaspis moreletii salvadorensis (Hartweg & Tihen, 1946)
  • Mesaspis moreletii temporalis (Hartweg & Tihen, 1946)

Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Mesaspis.

The subspecific name, rafaeli, is in honor of Mexican herpetologist Rafael Martín del Campo.[3]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Veselý M. (2010). "Mesaspis moreletii ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010. https://www.iucnredlist.org/details/176254/0. Retrieved 7 April 2012. 
  2. "Mesaspis moreletii ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN:978-1-4214-0135-5. ("Del Campo", p. 69; "Mesaspis moreleti [sic]", pp. 182-183; "Mesaspis moreleti [sic] rafaeli", p. 215).

Further reading

  • Bocourt MF ("1871", 1872). "Description de quelques Gerrhonotes nouveaux provenant du Mexique et de l'Amérique centrale ". Nouvelles Archives du Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle de Paris 7 (4): 101-108. ("Gerrhonotus moreleti [sic], n. sp.", new species, p. 102; "Gerrh. moreletii [sic]", pp. 103–104). (in French).

Wikidata ☰ Q2712286 entry