Search

Kingsnakes of the Lampropeltis getula complex range throughout much of North America. Using morphology and color pattern, Blaney made the last revision of this species complex nearly 30 years ago and recognized seven subspecies. Furthermore, Blaney hypothesized that populations in the eastern United States consist of two closely related taxa, L. g. getula & L. g. floridana, whichare morphologically divergent from all other subspecies. At the same time, Means hypothesized that an undescribed taxon existed in the Eastern Apalachicola Lowlands in the Florida panhandle. To test these hypotheses as well as help better understand phylogenetic relationships, we examine morphological characters and color pattern of L. getula throughout its range, particularly those populations in the eastern United States, and make comparisons to molecular data. We find that populations in the eastern United States represent a well-supported monophyletic group. Although some infraspecific clades (i.e., subspecies) within the L. getula complex may be weakly supported by homoplasious characters, at least one synapomorphy supports the monophyly of each group, including the two currently recognized subspecies in the eastern United States and the unnamed entity in the Eastern Apalachicola Lowlands, described herein as L. g. meansi. Justification for naming this natural clade at the infraspecific level (rather than species level) is provided. Furthermore, this panhandle clade is diagnosed by more synapomorphies than any other currently recognized taxon of L. getula, and overlaps in distribution with numerous other endemic plants and animals. All molecular analyses produced very similar tree topologies as our morphological dataset.

Indigo Snakes (genus Drymarchon) occur from northern Argentina northward into to the United States, where they inhabit southern Texas and disjunct populations in Mississippi, Florida and Georgia. Based on allopatry and morphological differences Collins (1991) hypothesized that the two United States taxa-the Western Indigo Snake, D. melanurus erebennus (Cope, 1860), and the Eastern Indigo Snake, D. couperi (Holbrook, 1842)-deserved full species recognition. Building upon this hypothesis with molecular and morphological analyses we illustrate that D. couperi is split into two distinct lineages. Based on the General Lineage Concept of Species, we describe the lineage that occurs along the Gulf coast of Florida and Mississippi as a new species, Drymarchon kolpobasileus. The new species is distinguished from D. couperi by a suite of morphological features, including a shorter and shallower head, deeper and shorter 7supth/supinfralabial scales, and shorter temporal scales. Overall, the presence of a deep 7supth/supinfralabial scale provides the best univariate identifier of D. kolpobasileus sp. nov. This study illustrates the usefulness of using both morphological and genetic data in refining accurate descriptions of geographical distributions.

We document the first specimen of a dipsadid snake from the Anguilla Cays, Cay Sal Bank, The Bahamas. We analyze 3,426 base pairs (bp) of sequence data derived from five mitochondrial loci and one nuclear locus using Maximum Likelihood (ML) and Bayesian Inference (BI) methods. Our molecular data agree with some aspects of morphology (e.g., scale counts, dentition, and color pattern) supporting identification of this specimen as the Cuban Racer, Cubophis cantherigerus cantherigerus (Bibron 1840), a species previously regarded as endemic to Cuba. This discovery provides another example of the strong Cuban affinities of the terrestrial vertebrate fauna of Bahamian islands.

The Alligator Snapping Turtle, Macrochelys temminckii, is a large, aquatic turtle limited to river systems that drain into the Gulf of Mexico. Previous molecular analyses using both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA suggested that Macrochelys exhibits significant genetic variation across its range that includes three distinct genetic assemblages (western, central, and eastern = Suwannee). However, no taxonomic revision or morphological analyses have been conducted previously. In this study, we test previous hypotheses of distinct geographic assemblages by examining morphology, reanalyzing phylogeographic genetic structure, and estimating divergence dating among lineages in a coalescent framework using Bayesian inference. We reviewed the fossil record and discuss phylogeographic and taxonomic implications of the existence of three distinct evolutionary lineages. We measured cranial (n=145) and post-cranial (n=104) material on field-captured individuals and museum specimens. We analyzed 420 base pairs (bp) of mitochondrial DNA sequence data for 158 Macrochelys. We examined fossil Macrochelys from ca. 15–16 million years ago (Ma) to the present to better assess historical distributions and evaluate named fossil taxa. The morphological and molecular data both indicate significant geographical variation and suggest three species-level breaks among genetic lineages that correspond to previously hypothesized genetic assemblages. The holotype of Macrochelys temminckii is from the western lineage. Therefore, we describe two new species as Macrochelys apalachicolae sp. nov. from the central lineage and Macrochelys suwanniensis sp. nov. from the eastern lineage (Suwannee River drainage). Our estimates of divergence times suggest that the most recent common ancestor (MRCA) of M. temminckii (western) and M. apalachicolae (central) existed 3.2–8.9 Ma during the late Miocene to late Pliocene, whereas M. temminckii-M. apalachicolae and M. suwanniensis last shared a MRCA 5.5–13.4 Ma during the mid-Miocene to early Pliocene. Examination of fossil material revealed that the fossil taxon M. floridana is actually a large Chelydra. Our taxonomic revision of Macrochelys has conservation and management implications in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama.

The taxonomy of Eurasian angular or thin-toed geckos has undergone a great deal of revision over the last 30 years. However, it is clear that a desirable level of taxonomic resolution has not yet been attained as their taxonomic assignments are somewhat arbitrary. In this paper, we discuss two lesser-known gecko species, Cyrtopodion baturense (Khan and Baig 1992) and C. walli (Ingoldby 1922). One adult specimen of Cyrtopodion baturense (the only known specimen other than the type series) and a series of 53 C. walli collected by Walter Auffenberg and the Zoological Survey Department of Pakistan (ZSD) and subsequently deposited in the University of Florida Herpetology collection were compared to the type specimens. Specimens were examined for 46 morphological characters and measurements. Cyrtopodion baturense and C. walli are diagnosable and confirmed to be distinct species. Cyrtopodion baturense is known only from the holotype locality of Pasu and the nearby village of Dih, Hunza District, in the Gilgit Agency, Federally Administered Northern Areas (FANA), Pakistan, at 2,438–3,078 m elevations. Cyrtopodion walli is known from Ayun, Chitral, Bamburet Valley, Bermoghluscht, Drosh Tehsil, and 7.0 km N Drosh, in the Chitral District, Northwest Frontier, Pakistan, at 1,970–2,120 m elevations. We also conclude that the likely paratype (BMNH 1922.5.22.1) of Gymnodactylus walli is not conspecific with the holotype (BMNH 1910.7.12.1) and is most morphologically similar to Cyrtopodion tibetanus (Boulenger 1905). We concur with Khan (1992), based on our own examination of the syntype of Gymnodactylus chitralensis Smith, 1935, that G. chitralensis is a junior synonym of Gymnodactylus walli Ingoldby, 1922. Furthermore, the tail associated with the holotype of G. walli does not belong to that individual.