Ateuchosaurus

Ateuchosaurus
Ateuchosaurus chinensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Scinciformata
Infraorder:	Scincomorpha
Family:	Ateuchosauridae Hedges, 2014 [1]
Genus:	Ateuchosaurus Gray, 1845
Species
Three, see text.

Ateuchosaurus is a genus of skinks, the only genus of the family Ateuchosauridae. The genus contains only two species which are indigenous to East Asia and Southeast Asia.

Taxonomy

The genus Ateuchosaurus is usually placed in the subfamily Scincinae. This group seems to be paraphyletic however, and the present genus is apparently not closely related to most or all of them. Different molecular studies find Ateuchosarus to instead to be more closely related either to Acontias ^[2] or to lygosomine skinks, ^[3] and it is therefore sometimes considered to represent a distinct family or subfamily.

Species

The following species are recognized as being valid. ^[4]

• Ateuchosaurus chinensis Gray, 1845 – Chinese short-limbed skink, Chinese Ateuchosaurus
• Ateuchosaurus okinavensis (Thompson, J.C. 1912) – Ryukyu short-legged skink
• Ateuchosaurus pellopleurus (Hallowell, 1861) – Ryukyu short-legged skink

Nota bene : A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Ateuchosaurus.

References

1. Hedges, S. Blair (2014-02-19). "The high-level classification of skinks (Reptilia, Squamata, Scincomorpha)". Zootaxa. 3765 (4): 317–338. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3765.4.2. ISSN   1175-5334.
2. Austin, J.J.; Arnold, E.N. (2006). "Using ancient and recent DNA to explore relationships of extinct and endangered Leiolopisma skinks (Reptilia: Scincidae) in the Mascarene islands". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 39 (2): 503–511. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2005.12.011. ISSN   1055-7903. PMID   16473026.
3. Hedges, S. Blair (2014). "The high-level classification of skinks (Reptilia, Squamata, Scincomorpha)". Zootaxa. 3765 (4): 317–38. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3765.4.2. ISSN   1175-5334. PMID   24870904.
4. Genus Ateuchosaurus at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.

Further reading

• Gray, John Edward (1845). Catalogue of the Specimens of Lizards in the Collection of the British Museum. London: Trustees of the British Museum. (Edward Newman, printer). xxviii + 289 pp. (Ateuchosaurus, new genus, p. 107; A. chinensis, new species, p. 107).
• Hallowell, Edward (1861). "Report upon the Reptilia of the North Pacific Exploring Expedition, under command of Capt. John Rogers, U. S. N.". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia12: 480–510. (Lygosaurus pellopleurus, new species, pp. 496–497).