Calumma uetzi PRÖTZEL, VENCES, HAWLITSCHEK, SCHERZ, RATSOAVINA & GLAW, 2018
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Calumma uetzi
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| Higher Taxa | Chamaeleonidae, Sauria, Iguania, Squamata (lizards) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Uetz’s soft-nosed chameleon G: Uetzs Weichnasenchamäleon |
| Synonym | Calumma uetzi PRÖTZEL, VENCES, HAWLITSCHEK, SCHERZ, RATSOAVINA & GLAW 2018 |
| Distribution | N Madagascar (Antsiranana: Sorata massif, Marojejy National Park) Type locality: Sorata massif (13.6944°S, 49.4441°E, 1100 m a.s.l.), Antsiranana Province, northern Madagascar. |
| Reproduction | oviparous |
| Types | Holotype: ZSM 1688/2012 (FGZC 3627), adult male with completely everted hemipenes (hemipenis on the right removed for micro-CT scanning), collected on 27 November 2012 by F. Glaw, O. Hawlitschek, T. Rajoafiarison, A. Rakotoarison, F. M. Ratsoavina, and A. Razafimanantsoa. Paratypes: ZSM 1686/2012 (FGZC 3674), subadult male, collected in Sorata above the campsite (13.6804°S, 49.4395°E, 1396 m a.s.l.) on 28 November 2012; ZSM 1685/2012 (FGZC 3593), adult female, collected in Sorata above the campsite (13.6805°S, 49.4451°E, 1417 m a.s.l.) on 26 November 2012; ZSM 1687/2012 (FGZC 3640), adult female, collected in Sorata, bamboo forest above the campsite (13.6746°S, 49.4406°E, 1516 m a.s.l.) on 28 November 2012; UADBA-R uncatalogued (FGZC 3628), adult female, collected in Sorata (13,6944°S, 49,4441°E, 1100 m a.s.l.) on 27 November 2012; all collected by F. Glaw, O. Hawlitschek, T. Rajoafiarison, A. Rakotoarison, F. M. Ratsoavina, and A. Razafimanantsoa. |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis: Calumma uetzi sp. nov. is a member of the phenetic C. nasutum species group (Prötzel, Ruthensteiner & Glaw, 2016), on the basis of the presence of a soft, dermal unpaired rostral appendage, absence of gular or ventral crests, and heterogeneous scalation on the lower arm, consisting mostly of tubercles of diameter 0.3–0.5 mm. Within the group, it is one of the smallest species, at 42.0–45.7 mm SVL and 87.3–101.2 mm total length. The brown to olive-green chameleon is characterized by a long and distally rounded rostral appendage, occipital lobes that are clearly notched but not completely separated, a distinctly elevated rostral crest, a dorsal crest in both sexes, absence of axillary pits and unique skull morphology. Calumma uetzi sp. nov. differs from C. fallax, C. gallus, C. nasutum, Calumma peyrierasi (Brygoo, Blanc & Domergue, 1974), C. vatosoa, and C. vohibola of the C. nasutum group by the presence of occipital lobes; from C. linotum and C. boettgeri in the clearly notched occipital lobes with a depth of 0.5–1.0 mm (vs. not or slightly notched with 0–0.3 mm and 0–0.6 mm); add- itionally, from C. boettgeri by the higher number of large juxtaposed tubercle scales on the extremities (15–18 in line vs. 7–14, isolated from each other). From the most similar taxa, C. gehringi and C. guibei (Prötzel et al., 2017), C. uetzi sp. nov. differs in the smaller body size of 42.0–45.7 mm SVL in adults (vs. 47.5–53.7 mm in C. gehringi and 48.1–53.7 mm in C. guibei); a longer tail relative to SVL in females of 108–118% (vs. 89–106% in C. gehringi and 95–101% in C. guibei); the presence of a dorsal crest in females (vs. absence); a straight-lined dorsal margin of the supralabial scales vs. serrated (character ‘en dents de scie’ of Angel, 1942); furthermore, in skull morphology of adult males of C. gehringi and C. guibei (Prötzel et al., 2017), by a completely closed brain case in adults (vs. presence of a frontoparietal fenestra with a diameter of 0.7– 2.6 mm); elevated protuberances at the anterior end of the maxillae in males (vs. absence); and in a broadened parietal with a width at its midpoint of 24.8% related to skull length (vs. 9.9–15.3%). Furthermore, C. uetzi sp. nov. differs from all other species by a unique color- ation of males in life. |
| Comment | Habitat: primary mid-elevation rainforest that has recently been degraded at different levels. Most individuals were found at night roosting in the vegetation on thin branches or on the tip of leaves ~1–3 m above the forest floor and had red mites between the fingers and toes. Behavior: When a male and a female were put in close proximity on the same branch, both sexes quickly changed colour and became brightly coloured (Fig. 2), and the female threatened the male with an open mouth. Conservation: Sorata is experiencing high deforestation pressure, and forest has been largely eradicated from sea level to ~1200 m a.s.l. As such, the deforestation pressure is directly impacting the distribution range of C. uetzi sp. nov. in this area [criterion B, subcriterion b(iii)]. As the EOO of the species is < 5000 km2, and the number of threat- defined locations is fewer than five, the species qualifies as Endangered under IUCN criterion B1ab(iii). |
| Etymology | “This species is dedicated to our colleague and friend Peter Uetz, who developed and has maintained the Reptile Database (http://www. reptile-database.org/) voluntarily for > 20 years. This database is the most important online resource for information on reptile species, thereby providing a priceless service to herpetology and a model for what should be available for all organism groups.” (Prötzel et al. 2018). See Uetz & Etzold 1996 and Uetz 2016 for a history of the database. |
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