Monopeltis rhodesiana BROADLEY, GANS & VISSER, 1976
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Monopeltis rhodesiana
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| Higher Taxa | Amphisbaenidae, Amphisbaenia, Lacertoidea, Sauria, Squamata (lizards) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Zimbabwe wedge-snouted amphisbaenian |
| Synonym | Monopeltis capensis rhodesiana BROADLEY, GANS & VISSER 1976 Monopeltis sphenorhynchus — BROADLEY 1962 (not A. SMITH) (part.) Monopeltis rhodesianus — BROADLEY 1988 Monopeltis rhodesiana — BROADLEY 1997: 9 Monopeltis rhodesianus — GANS 2005: 37 Monopeltis rhodesianus — PIETERSEN et al. 2021 |
| Distribution | NW Zimbabwe, S Zambia, C Mozambique, S Malawi Type locality: Nyashanu, Save Communal Land, Buhera District, Zimbabwe. |
| Reproduction | |
| Types | Holotype: NMZB, previously UM 28699. Paratypes: AMNH 112980–112983; UM 28677–28690; 28692–28698; 28700–28710, 28713–28720, 28722–28776; taken with holotype. |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis. A derived species of the M. capensis complex, distinguished by the pigmentation restricted to the dorsal surface of the posterior half of the body, becoming heavier on the tail, where it usually extends to the ventral surface. The dorsal head shield rarely shows lateral clefts and the ocular is reduced in size or absent. There are usually not more than 12 supernumerary dorsal half- annuli (usually more in all other species except zambezensis). Usually four anterior postgenials and 4 to 6 posterior (resembling decosteri and zambezensis rather than infuscatus and capensis). (Broadley 1997) |
| Comment | Has often been treated as Monopeltis capensis. Has also been confused with M. decosteri. M. c. rhodesiana has been elevated to species status because it has a different karyotype (2n = 36 as opposed to 2n = 34 in typical M. capensis) and because of phenotypic differences. |
| Etymology | Named after its occurence in (Southern) Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was named after British imperialist Cecil Rhodes (1853-1902), a British mining magnate and “ardent believer in British imperialism” (Wikipedia). |
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