Mesalina simoni (BOETTGER, 1881)
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Higher Taxa | Lacertidae, Eremiadinae, Sauria, Lacertoidea, Squamata (lizards) |
Subspecies | Mesalina simoni simoni (BOETTGER 1881) Mesalina simoni saharae PIZZIGALLI, CROCHET, GENIEZ, MARTÍNEZ-FREIRIA, VELO-ANTÓN & BRITO 2021 |
Common Names | |
Synonym | Podarces (Mesalina) simoni BOETTGER 1881: 571 Eremias olivieri simoni — BONS 1959 Mesalina simoni — ARNOLD 1986 Mesalina olivieri simoni — SZCZERBAK 1989 Mesalina olivieri simoni — BONS & GENIEZ 1996: Mesalina simoni — SCHLEICH, KÄSTLE & KABISCH 1996: 428 Mesalina simoni — SINDACO & JEREMČENKO 2008 Mesalina simoni saharae PIZZIGALLI, CROCHET, GENIEZ, MARTÍNEZ-FREIRIA, VELO-ANTÓN & BRITO 2021 Mesalina olivieri — KAPLI et al. 2014 (part.) Mesalina olivieri — SIMÓ-RIUDALBAS et al. 2019 (part.) |
Distribution | Morocco (central coast of the Atlantic Ocean) Type locality: “inter urbes Mogador et Marocco, unicum prope urbem Casablanca”. saharae: Morocco; Type locality. Morocco, Atlantic Sahara, road N1, 69 km past Boujdour toward Laayoune, 26.4925°N/−13.9198°W/60 m a.s.l. |
Reproduction | oviparous |
Types | Holotype: SMF 13872 (formerly 6087,1c) Holotype. MNHN-RA-2020.0018 (ex BEV.9114), adult male (Figure 9). Collected by Pierre-André Crochet and Julien Renoult on 10th September 2006. Paratypes. Adult male BEV.10849, from 6 km E of Sidi Kathari, 26.5298°N/−12.3364°W, collected by Pierre-André Crochet on 21st March 2010; adult female BEV.10850, from 4 km past Awserd toward Dakhla, 22.5709°N/−14.3544°W, collected by Pierre-André Crochet on the 18th March 2010, all preserved in the BEV collection in Montpellier. [saharae] |
Diagnosis | Diagnosis: For a time it was considered a subspecies of M. olivieri: In appearance it differs mainly by a heavier pigmentation of dark gray on the gular and ventral regions, and by having light dorsal stripes bordered with black (this black bordering lacking in M. olivieri). Scalation is very similar to M. olivieri apart from the palpebral disk, which is made up of 7 – 8 opaque or translucent plates which are never bordered in black, unlike those of M. olivieri. This species inhabits rocky plateaus with sparse vegetation, from sea level to above 3000 ft. As it has only recently been differentiated from M. olivieri, details on ecology are still lacking (Boettger, 1881, Yousefkhani et al. 2015). Additional details (1897 characters) are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. |
Comment | Synonymy: MERTENS 1922: 174 stated that this species is synonymous with Eremias guttulata. |
Etymology | Named after Hans Simon, apparently the collector of the types. The epithet “saharae” refers to the Atlantic Sahara region where this new subspecies is distributed. |
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