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Gymnophthalmus underwoodi GRANT, 1958

IUCN Red List - Gymnophthalmus underwoodi - Least Concern, LC
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Higher TaxaGymnophthalmidae (Gymnophthalminae), Gymnophthalmini, Sauria, Gymnophthalmoidea, Squamata (lizards)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Smooth-scaled Tegulet, Underwcod's Spectaded Tegu 
SynonymGymnophthalmus underwoodi GRANT 1958: 228
Gymnophthalmus underwoodi — SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1991: 411
Gymnophthalmus underwoodi — KIZIRIAN & COLE 1999
Gymnophthalmus underwoodi — PIANKA & VITT 2003: 120
Gymnophthalmus cf. underwoodi — OLIVEIRA et al. 2014
Gymnophthalmus underwoodi — MACIEL et al. 2021 
DistributionVenezuela, Brazil (Amazonas), Guyana, Suriname, Barbados, Trinidad, Tobago, Guadeloupe (incl. Les Saintes, Terre-de-Haut), St. Vincent, Martinique, Antigua [HR 30: 110], St. Kitts, Petit Cul-de-sac, Saint-Barthélemy

Introduced to Cuba, Saba (Dutch Caribbean)
Possibly introduced to Brazil (Pará) (Maciel et al. 2021)

Type locality: Barbados.  
Reproductionoviparous; Unisexual and parthenogenetic species.  
TypesHolotype: INHS (= UIMNH) 42334. 
DiagnosisAdditional details, e.g. a detailed description or comparisons (660 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. 
CommentAvila-Pires (1995) and GORZULA & SEÑARIS (1999) treat close relatives of G. underwoodi (cryptus, leucomystax, speciosus, underwoodi) as the “G. underwoodi complex”, which apparently form separate, but “cryptic” species. KIZIRIAN & COLE provide evidence that G. cryptus is the “maternal” species of G. underwoodi.

Distribution: for a map see Maciel et al. 2021: 292 (Fig. 1). 
EtymologyNamed after Garth Leon Underwood (1919-2002), British herpetologist (obituary in Copeia 2003: 222-225). 
References
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  • Breuil M, Serre-Collet F. 2012. Gymnophthalmus underwoodi (Smooth-scaled Worm Lizard). Distribution. Caribbean Herpetology 30: 1 - get paper here
  • Breuil, Michel 1999. Atlas des Amphibiens et Reptiles de Martinique. Parc Naturel Régional de la Martinique
  • Breuil, Michel; Fortuné Guiougou; Karl Questel; Béatrice Ibéné 2009. Modifications du peuplement les Antilles françaises, 2 ème partie. Le Courrier de la Nature n° 251: 36-43
  • Censky, Ellen J.;Lindsay, Kevin 1997. Geographic Distribution. Gymnophthalmus underwoodi. Herpetological Review 28 (4): 210 - get paper here
  • Cole C J. DESSAUER H C. MARKEZICH A L. 1993. Missing Link Found: The Second Ancestor of Gymnophthalmus underwoodi (Squamata: Teiidae), A South American Unisexual Lizard of Hybrid Origin. American Museum Novitates (3055): 1-13. - get paper here
  • Cole C J. DESSAUER H C. TOWNSEND C R. ARNOLD M G. 1990. Unisexual lizards of the genus Gymnophthalmus (Reptilia Teiidae) in the neotropics: genetics origin and systematics. American Museum Novitates (2994): 1-29. - get paper here
  • Cole, Charles J.; Carol R. Townsend, Robert P. Reynolds, Ross D. MacCulloch, and Amy Lathrop 2013. Amphibians and reptiles of Guyana, South America: illustrated keys, annotated species accounts, and a biogeographic synopsis. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 125 (4): 317-578; plates: 580-620 - get paper here
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  • Jairam, Rawien 2016. Attempted predation on a Smooth-scaled Worm Lizard, Gymnophthalmus underwoodi (Grant 1958) by a Rainbow Whiptail, Cnemidophorus lemniscatus (Linnaeus 1758) in Suriname. IRCF Reptiles & Amphibians 23 (2): 93–94 - get paper here
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  • RECODER, RENATO SOUSA; FRANCISCO DAL VECHIO, SERGIO MARQUES-SOUZA, MAURO JR. TEIXEIRA, MAIUME SILVA-DA-SILVA, ALFREDO P. SANTOS-JR., SÍRIA RIBEIRO, CESAR BARRIO-AMORÓS, MIGUEL TREFAUT RODRIGUES 2018. Geographic variation and taxonomy of red-tailed Gymnophthalmus (Squamata: Gymnophthalmidae) from Amazonian Savannas. Zootaxa 4497 (1): 061–081 - get paper here
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