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The Darevskia raddei complex shares mtDNA with five out of seven parthenogenetic Darevskia species. The animal's distribution range includes Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran and Türkiye, and it possibly also occurs in Turkmenistan. Despite its evolutionary and ecological importance, this species has not been studied demographically and naturally no comparisons have been made among the parthenogenetic lineages. Here, we document the life history of five D. raddei populations mainly by using skeletochronology. The minimum age for all populations was calculated to be three years old. After three hibernations, they grow beyond 40 mm of snout-vent length. There were significant age differences between sexes in two of the populations studied. However, no body size difference between sexes was calculated in all populations. In some cases age and body size were significantly different between populations. In none of the results there was a relation with the altitude or climate of the distribution area. The average and maximum ages were found to be higher in populations from all studied parthenogenetic species with which D. raddei is related. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genetic diversity is not always congruent with phenotypic heterogeneity, resulting in cryptic species complexes which cause a great struggle for scientists trying to define 'species' and describe relationships among taxa. Anatololacerta is a lizard genus distributed in southern and western Anatolia and some neighboring Aegean islands. Three morphospecies were recognized in Anatololacerta but a recent molecular study revealed the presence of cryptic diversity within the genus which led to the raise of a subspecies to species level. Currently the genus includes the species A. anatolica , A. danfordi , A. budaki and A. pelasgiana. Using a comprehensive sampling concerning both the number of specimens (218 specimens) and the genetic markers (3 nuclear and 3 mitochondrial), we performed phylogenetic analyses including tree reconstruction, species delimitation and divergence times estimation. The results revealed the occurrence of one more cryptic lineage which should be regarded as a separate species for which the name A. ibrahimi stat. nov. has priority. The existence of five well differentiated species with parapatric distributions in Anatololacerta is strongly supported. There is also evidence of recent and rapid radiation of the genus which probably causes phylogenetic relationships between these species to remain largely unresolved. At last, we proceeded to some nomenclatorial changes: The current name A. budaki was synonymized with A. pelasgiana because specimens of the type-locality of A. budaki are assigned genetically to A. pelasgiana. The genetic lineage including specimens currently assigned to A. budaki was named A. finikensis stat. nov. , raising the subspecies A. b. finikensis to species level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within reptiles, lizards cover less area across the globe than snakes do. One out of every seven known species of lizards in the world is found only in its type locality. Acanthodactylus harranensis Baran, Kumlutaş, Lanza, Sindaco, Ilgaz, Avcı & Crucitti, 2005, is one of these species. It is an endemic lizard species in Turkey with a very small area of occupancy and is listed in the critically endangered category (CR) by the IUCN. Here we document the age structure and body size of A. harranensis using skeletochronological methods for the first time and aim to point out current problems and contribute to an understanding of its demography. The mean age of males was found to be significantly higher than that of females. The maximum life span was 10 years in males while it was 9 years in females. The 8-year-old age group contained a higher number of individuals than any other age group. The mean snout-vent length of specimens was not significantly different between the sexes. As in many other lizards, A. harranensis exhibits a low-level male-biased sexual dimorphism. Acanthodactylus harranensis also displayed a considerably bigger body size than other studied lacertids from Şanlıurfa province. The data presented in this study may contribute to future conservation efforts for this endangered species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Mediterranean subpopulation of T. triunguis has been listed by IUCN as critically endangered (European Reptile and Amphibian Specialist Group 1996, category CR C2A). There are very few studies for determination of distribution and population genetics of this species in the world. A total of 13 polymorphic microsatellite loci were isolated from 42 samples of T. triunguis by using biotinylated (GT)10, (CT)10, (GATA)5-enriched library. The range of observed heterozygosities was 0.000-0.833 with a mean of 0.274, and the range of expected heterozygosities was 0.081-0.607 with a mean of 0.374. It was found that four loci deviated significantly from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium after Bonferroni correction analysis. There was no evidence for large allele dropout. Null alleles may be present at ttmed-6, ttmed-8, and ttmed-9 loci, as suggested by the general excess of homozygote for most allele size classes. Designed microsatellite loci could provide a powerful tool for the population structure and conservation genetics studies of the Nile soft-shelled turtle and for captive breeding programs or to detect species illegal trade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]