''Cercosaura'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
lizard
Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...
s in the
family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
Gymnophthalmidae
Gymnophthalmidae is a family of lizards with at least 250 species, sometimes known commonly as spectacled lizards or microteiids. They are called "spectacled" because of their transparent lower eyelids, which allow them to still see with closed ...
. The genus is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to South America.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Cercosaura'' includes 18
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
according to studies that transfer species from the two
genera
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...
''Pantodactylus'' and ''
Prionodactylus'' to this genus.
Species
The genus ''Cercosaura'' contains the following recognized species:
[. www.reptile-database.org.]
*''
Cercosaura anomala'' – anomalous cercosaura
*''
Cercosaura anordosquama''
*''
Cercosaura argulus
''Cercosaura argulus'', the elegant eyed lizard or white-lipped prionodactylus is a species of lizard in the family Gymnophthalmidae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, French Guiana, Peru, and Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federati ...
'' – elegant eyed lizard, white-lipped prionodactylus
*''
Cercosaura bassleri'' – ocellated tegu
*''
Cercosaura doanae''
*''
Cercosaura eigenmanni'' –
Eigenmann's prionodactylus
*''
Cercosaura hypnoides''
*''
Cercosaura manicata'' – slender prionodactylus
*''
Cercosaura nigroventris''
*''
Cercosaura ocellata'' – ocellated tegu
*''
Cercosaura olivacea'' – olive tegu
*''
Cercosaura oshaughnessyi'' – white-striped eyed lizard
*''
Cercosaura pacha''
*''
Cercosaura parkeri'' –
Parker's many-fingered teiid
*''
Cercosaura phelpsorum''
*''
Cercosaura quadrilineata'' – lined many-fingered teiid
*''
Cercosaura schreibersii'' –
Schreibers' many-fingered teiid, long-tailed little lizard
*''
Cercosaura steyeri''
''
Nota bene
( ; plural: ) is the Latin language, Latin phrase meaning ''note well''.
In manuscripts, ''nota bene'' is abbreviated in upper-case as NB and N.B., and in lower-case as n.b. and nb; the editorial usages of ''nota bene'' and ''notate bene'' fi ...
'': A
binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Cercosaura''.
References
Further reading
*
Boulenger GA (1885). ''Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume II. ... Teiidæ ...'' London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 497 pp. + Plates I-XXIV. (Genus ''Cercosaura'', p. 395).
*
Wagler J (1830). ''Natürliches System der AMPHIBIEN, mit vorangehender Classification der SÄUGTHIERE und VÖGEL. Ein Beitrag zur vergleichenden Zoologie.'' Munich, Stuttgart and Tübingen: J.G. Cotta. vi + 354 pp. + one plate. (''Cercosaura'', new genus, p. 158). (in
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
and
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
).
Lizard genera
Taxa named by Johann Georg Wagler
{{Gymnophthalmidae-stub