Cordylus namakuiyus STANLEY, CERÍACO, BANDEIRA, VALERIO, BATES & BRANCH, 2016
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Cordylus namakuiyus
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| Higher Taxa | Cordylidae (Cordylinae), Scincoidea, Sauria, Squamata (lizards) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Kaokoveld Girdled Lizard |
| Synonym | Cordylus namakuiyus STANLEY, CERÍACO, BANDEIRA, VALERIO, BATES & BRANCH 2016 Cordylus namakuiyus — LOBÓN-ROVIRA et al. 2022 |
| Distribution | Angola (Namibe Province), elevation 215–509 m Type locality: large rock outcrop near Caraculo, on the road from Lubango and Namibe, Namibe province, Angola [15°0'59.40"S, 12°38'31.30"E; 503 m elevation |
| Reproduction | ovovivparous |
| Types | Holotype: CAS 254912, an adult female, collected by E. L. Stanley, S. de Sá, S. Bandeira, H. Valerio, A. L. Kuhn, J. V. Vindum and L. Ceríaco, on 6 December 2013. Paratypes. Eight specimens: CAS 254913–14, two fetuses taken from the holotype, with the same data; CAS 256529, one juvenile collected at the same locality as the holotype [15°0'57.3"S, 12°38'32.6"E; 509 m elevation] by the same collectors; CAS 254754, adult female, CAS 254755, adult male, CAS 256530, juvenile, CAS 256531, adult female, all collected on the outskirts of Pico Azevedo [15°28'33.2"S, 12°27'45.7"E; 421 m elevation] by the same collectors of the holotype on 7 December 2013; PEM R18005, adult female, collected in a low rock outcrop bordering the road between Namibe and Omahua lodge [15°59'48.5"S, 12°24'24.6"E; 308 m elevation], Namibe Province, Angola, by W. R. Branch, K. A. Tolley and G. J. Measey on 20 January 2009. |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis: A relatively large species of Cordylus, identified to genus by the following combination of characters: four-limbed, rupicolous, viviparous, strongly depressed triangular head and body, osteoderms present, rhomboidal, imbricate and keeled dorsal scales present, occipitals non-spinose, and spinose caudal and limb scales enlarged (Branch 1998; Broadley and Branch 2002; Stanley et al., 2011). Cordylus namakuiyus sp. nov. differs from all other species in the genus except for C. vittifer and C. machadoi, by the presence of a transverse row of elongated dorsal scales immediately posterior to occipitals (vs. absence); from C. vittifer by possessing an incomplete row of pre-occipital scales between posterior parietal and occipital scales (absent in C. vittifer), and by having infralabials that are moderately-deeply corrugated (vs. usually smooth); from C. machadoi by having a large, keyhole-shaped interparietal in broad contact with frontoparietals, thereby separating anterior parietals (vs. small, diamond-shaped interparietal not in contact with frontoparietal, thereby never completely separating anterior parietals), temporal scales that are strongly keeled (vs. weakly keeled), fewer transverse gular rows (14–17 vs. 17– 24), light brown dorsal body coloration (vs. darker brown), and by the absence of dark speckles on throat and ventral body surfaces (vs. presence), presence of osteoderms on throat and ventral surfaces (vs. absence); from C. angolensis (based on original description; Bocage 1895) by having fewer ventral transverse scale rows (21–24 vs. 27), light brown dorsal body coloration (vs. brown with blackish speckles over paler dorsal ground coloration), and by the absence of longitudinal series of whitish speckles along dorsal surface (vs. presence of two longitudinal series of small whitish speckles along dorsum), and presence of a loreal (vs. absence). |
| Comment | |
| Etymology | The specific epithet “namakuiyus” is the masculine latinised form of namakuiya, which means “thorny” in the Herero language, referring to the sharp spines on the limbs and tail of this species. |
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