Liolaemus yawar ABDALA, LASPIUR, AGUILAR-KIRIGIN, GUTIÉRREZ POBLETE, SEMHAN, PAZ, QUINTEROS, CERDEÑA, HUAMANÍ-VALDERRAMA, VALLADARES-FAÚNDEZ, ESQUERRÉ & CHAPARRO, 2026
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Liolaemus yawar
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| Higher Taxa | Liolaemidae, Iguania, Sauria, Squamata (lizards) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | |
| Synonym | Liolaemus yawar ABDALA, LASPIUR, AGUILAR-KIRIGIN, GUTIÉRREZ POBLETE, SEMHAN, PAZ, QUINTEROS, CERDEÑA, HUAMANÍ-VALDERRAMA, VALLADARES-FAÚNDEZ, ESQUERRÉ & CHAPARRO 2026 Liolaemus aff. forsteri — ABDALA et al., 2020 |
| Distribution | Peru (Puno) Type locality: between Putina and Mina Rinconada, on National Road 34H, 9 km after Señor de la Exaltación de Chipalca, District of Putina, Province of San Antonio de Putina, Puno Department, Peru (14º48’34.60” S, 69º39’0.00” W – WGS84 system; 4132 m a.s.l. Fig. 4); |
| Reproduction | |
| Types | Holotype. MUSA 5603 (CSA 1516), an adult male. Collected by Cristian S. Abdala, Romina V. Semhan, José L. Acosta, Roberto C. Gutiérrez, and Sebastián Barrionuevo, on 17 november 2013. Paratypes. MUSA 5602, MUBI 2501, FML (CSA 1522–23) adult males, MUSA 5604–05, FML (CSA 1519–20) adult females, FML (CSA 1524), FML (CSA 1527), MUBI 2502 juveniles, same data as holotype. |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis: Liolaemus yawar sp. nov. belongs to the subgenus Eulaemus, and within it, to the L. montanus group, based on the presence of a blade-like distal posterior process on the tibia associated with hypertrophy of the tibialis anticus muscle (Etheridge, 1995; Abdala et al., 2006). It differs from the species of the L. boulengeri group (Abdala, 2007; Schulte et al., 2000) by having posterior thigh scales of uniform size. Within the L. montanus group, L. yawar sp. nov. is a robust lizard (maximum snout vent-length [SVLmax] = 91.6 mm), differing in size from L. andinus, L. anqapuka, L. audituvelatus, L. balagueri, L. cazianiae, L. chiribaya, L. duellmani, L. eleodori, L. erroneus, L. etheridgei, L. evaristoi, L. fabiani, L. famatinae, L. fittkaui, L. foxi, L. gracielae, L. griseus, L. hajeki, L. halonastes, L. huacahuasicus, L. insolitus, L. kunza, L. lilloi, L. montanus, L. multicolor, L. nazca, L. orko, L. omorfi, L. ortizi, L. pantherinus, L. poconchilensis, L. poecilochromus, L. porosus, L. pulcherrimus, L. reichei, L. robertoi, L. rosenmanni, L. ruibali, L. salitrosus, L. schmidti, L. stolzmanni, L. tajzara, L. thomasi, L. terani, L. torresi, L. vallecurensis, L. williamsi, and L. yarabamba, all of which are smaller (SVL = 50–80 mm). The presence strongly keeled dorsal body scales distinguishes L. yawar sp. nov. from species with smooth scales, including L. andinus, L. anqapuka, L. audituvelatus, L. balagueri, L. cazianiae, L. chiribaya, L. eleodori, L. fabiani, L. foxi, L. gracielae, L. halonastes, L. insolitus, L. jamesi, L. kunza, L. nigriceps, L. omorfi, L. patriciaiturrae, L. pleopholis, L. poconchilensis, L. poecilochromus, L. porosus, L. reichei, L. robertoi, L. robustus, L. rosenmanni, L. ruibali, L. salitrosus, L. schmidti, L. scrocchii, L. terani, L. torresi, L. vallecurensis, and L. vulcanus. Liolaemus yawar sp. nov. lacks sky-blue scales on the lateral and dorsal surfaces of the body and tail, distinguishing it from L. basadrei, L. chiribaya, L. evaristoi, L. etheridgei, L. insolitus, L. multicolor, L. omorfi, L. poconchilensis, L. pulcherrimus, L. robertoi, L. ruibali, L. schmidti, and L. yarabamba. The number of midbody scales (69–78; mean = 73.2) separates L. yawar sp. nov. from species with consistently higher counts (means > 85), such as L. andinus, L. eleodori, L. gracielae, L. halonastes, L. nigriceps, L. patriciaiturrae, L. porosus, L. robertoi, L. rosenmanni, L. vallecurensis , and those with lower means (< 68), such as L. annectens, L. aymararum, L. chlorostictus, L. dorbignyi, L. etheridgei, L. fabiani, L. famatinae, L. fittkaui, L. griseus, L. hajeki, L. huayra, L. huacahuasicus, L. igneus, L. inti, L. jamesi, L. lilloi, L. melanogaster, L. montanus, L. orko, L. ortizi, L. pachecoi, L. pantherinus, L. poconchilensis, L. polystictus, L. puritamensis, L. qalaywa, L. robustus, L. scrocchii, L. tacora, L. thomasi, L. victormoralesii, L. vulcanus, L. warjantay, and L. williamsi. The number of ventrals from the mental and the cloaca (70–80; mean = 74.8) in L. yawar sp. nov. is lower than in species with higher counts (means > 85), including L. andinus, L. annectens, L. audituvelatus, L. cazianiae, L. chlorostictus, L. eleodori, L. erroneus, L. foxi, L. gracielae, L. hajeki, L. halonastes, L. hauthali, L. huayra, L. inti, L. kunza, L. multicolor, L. multiformis, L. nigriceps, L. pachecoi, L. patriciaiturrae, L. pleopholis, L. poecilochromus, L. porosus, L. robertoi, L. rosenmanni, L. salitrosus, L. torresi, L. vallecurensis; and higher than species with mean counts below 70, such as L. ortizi and L. thomasi. The dorsal scale counts (74–84; mean = 78.7) further separates L. yawar sp. nov. from species with higher mean values (> 85), such as L. andinus, L. cazianiae, L. eleodori, L. erroneus, L. forsteri, L. gracielae, L. halonastes, L. nigriceps, L. patriciaiturrae, L. pleopholis, L. poecilochromus, L. porosus, L. pulcherrimus, L. robertoi, L. rosenmanni, L. schmidti, L. torresi, L. vallecurensis, and lower values (< 70) found in L. aymararum, L. chiribaya, L. chlorostictus, L. dorbignyi, L. etheridgei, L. fittkaui, L. griseus, L. hajeki, L. huayra, L. huacahuasicus, L. igneus, L. inti, L. jamesi, L. lilloi, L. melanogaster, L. montanus, L. nazca, L. ortizi, L. pachecoi, L. poconchilensis, L. polystictus, L. puritamensis, L. qalaywa, L. robustus, L. scrocchii, L. tacora, L. thomasi, L. victormoralesii, L. vulcanus, L. warjantay, L. williamsi, and L. yauri. Among four examined females of L. yawar sp. nov., only one exhibited a precloacal pore (range = 0–1). This contrasts with species where females consistently show numerous precloacal pores, such as L. aymararum, L. cazianiae, L. chiribaya, L. chlorostictus, L. dorbignyi, L. eleodori, L. erroneus, L. etheridgei, L. fabiani, L. famatinae, L. griseus, L. hajeki, L. hauthali, L. huayra, L. huacahuasicus, L. inti, L. jamesi, L. lenzi, L. montanus, L. multiformis, L. nazca, L. nigriceps, L. orko, L. pachecoi, L. pantherinus, L. patriciaiturrae, L. porosus, L. pulcherrimus, L. qalaywa, L. scrocchii, and L. vulcanus. Phenotypically, the new species is similar to L. forsteri; however, it can be distinguished because its males have greater NW, AL, FT-iv, and FOL but a shorter HDL than L. forsteri (Table 2, Table S5). Furthermore, it differs by having lower scale counts in DH, DS, V, and T compared to L. forsteri (Table 3, Table S9). The distinct combination of coloration pattern traits observed in both males and females of Liolaemus yawar sp. nov. clearly distinguishes it from all other known species of the genus. (Abdala et al. 2026) Unfortunately we had to temporarily remove additional information as this was scraped by multiple AI companies who sell that data. However, these details, e.g. detailed descriptions (about about 4.28 pages) are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us if you need any of this material. |
| Comment | |
| Etymology | Named after the Quechua word for ‘blood’, referring primarily to the striking blood-red coloration exhibited by adult males, arguably the most distinctive diagnostic trait of this new species. Beyond its descriptive value, the name carries deep cultural resonance in the Andean world, where yawar appears in the name of the Inca ruler Yawar Huaca (“He Who Weeps Blood”), a figure whose story was recorded by the chronicler Inca Garcilaso de la Vega in Comentarios Reales de los Incas (Ardito & Castro, 2024). Tradition holds that the young prince was given this name after shedding tears of blood as a child, an event regarded at the time as a powerful omen. Thus, the epithet not only emphasizes one of the species’ most striking diagnostic characters but also honors the linguistic and cultural heritage of the Quechua language, spoken throughout much of the central Andes, including the region where this species occurs. |
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