A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae)
Tobago is a small island on the southeast edge of the Caribbean Plate with a continental flora and fauna. Using DNA sequences from Genbank, new sequences, and morphological data from the snakes Erythrolamprus epinephalus, E. melanotus, E. reginae, and E. zweifeli, the species statu...
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doaj-989ab72258e54636a0a6abbfe2f201302020-11-25T01:04:34ZengPensoft PublishersZooKeys1313-29891313-29702019-01-0181713115710.3897/zookeys.817.3081130811A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae)John C. Murphy0Alvin L. Braswell1Stevland P. Charles2Renoir J. Auguste3Gilson A. Rivas4Amaël Borzée5Richard M. Lehtinen6Michael J. Jowers7Field Museum of Natural HistoryNorth Carolina State Museum of Natural SciencesHoward UniversityUniversity of the West IndiesUniversidad del ZuliaEwha Womans UniversityDepartment of Biology, The College of WoosterNational Institute of Ecology Tobago is a small island on the southeast edge of the Caribbean Plate with a continental flora and fauna. Using DNA sequences from Genbank, new sequences, and morphological data from the snakes Erythrolamprus epinephalus, E. melanotus, E. reginae, and E. zweifeli, the species status of specimens of a Tobago snake previously considered to be Erythrolamprus reginae was assessed. Erythrolamprus zweifeli, long considered a subspecies of E. reginae, was found to be a northern Venezuela-Trinidad endemic and the sister to E. reginae. The trans-Andean species E. epinephalus is shown to be non-monophyletic while the Costa Rican lineage of E. epinephalus is weakly supported as the sister to the Tobago population. The Tobago Erythrolamprus is described as a distinct taxon based upon five specimens from four localities in lower montane rainforest. Much of the new species range includes the Main Ridge Forest Reserve of Tobago, the oldest protected forest in the Western Hemisphere. All known locations fall within a 400-ha area, and its total geographic distribution is likely to be less than 4,566 ha. The restricted distribution of this new snake makes it a likely candidate for threatened status. The new species also becomes another biogeographic link between northern Venezuela and Tobago. https://zookeys.pensoft.net/article/30811/ |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
John C. Murphy Alvin L. Braswell Stevland P. Charles Renoir J. Auguste Gilson A. Rivas Amaël Borzée Richard M. Lehtinen Michael J. Jowers |
spellingShingle |
John C. Murphy Alvin L. Braswell Stevland P. Charles Renoir J. Auguste Gilson A. Rivas Amaël Borzée Richard M. Lehtinen Michael J. Jowers A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae) ZooKeys |
author_facet |
John C. Murphy Alvin L. Braswell Stevland P. Charles Renoir J. Auguste Gilson A. Rivas Amaël Borzée Richard M. Lehtinen Michael J. Jowers |
author_sort |
John C. Murphy |
title |
A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae) |
title_short |
A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae) |
title_full |
A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae) |
title_fullStr |
A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae) |
title_full_unstemmed |
A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae) |
title_sort |
new species of erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of tobago (squamata, dipsadidae) |
publisher |
Pensoft Publishers |
series |
ZooKeys |
issn |
1313-2989 1313-2970 |
publishDate |
2019-01-01 |
description |
Tobago is a small island on the southeast edge of the Caribbean Plate with a continental flora and fauna. Using DNA sequences from Genbank, new sequences, and morphological data from the snakes Erythrolamprus epinephalus, E. melanotus, E. reginae, and E. zweifeli, the species status of specimens of a Tobago snake previously considered to be Erythrolamprus reginae was assessed. Erythrolamprus zweifeli, long considered a subspecies of E. reginae, was found to be a northern Venezuela-Trinidad endemic and the sister to E. reginae. The trans-Andean species E. epinephalus is shown to be non-monophyletic while the Costa Rican lineage of E. epinephalus is weakly supported as the sister to the Tobago population. The Tobago Erythrolamprus is described as a distinct taxon based upon five specimens from four localities in lower montane rainforest. Much of the new species range includes the Main Ridge Forest Reserve of Tobago, the oldest protected forest in the Western Hemisphere. All known locations fall within a 400-ha area, and its total geographic distribution is likely to be less than 4,566 ha. The restricted distribution of this new snake makes it a likely candidate for threatened status. The new species also becomes another biogeographic link between northern Venezuela and Tobago.
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url |
https://zookeys.pensoft.net/article/30811/ |
work_keys_str_mv |
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