Chalarodon madagascariensis

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Chalarodon madagascariensis
Three-eyed lizard (Chalarodon madagascariensis) male Toliara.jpg
male
Three-eyed lizard (Chalarodon madagascariensis) female Toliara.jpg
female
both Toliara, Madagascar
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Iguania
Family: Opluridae
Genus: Chalarodon
Species:
C. madagascariensis
Binomial name
Chalarodon madagascariensis
Peters, 1854

Chalarodon madagascariensis is a species of Malagasy terrestrial iguanian lizard native to western, southern, and south eastern Madagascar. [1] Until 2015, it was thought to be the only member of its genus, but a second species, C. steinkampi was recognised in 2015. [2] It is not yet clear if the distributional range of these two species overlaps.

Contents

Habitat

The species inhabits mainly coastal, semi-arid to arid regions and almost entirely open, or very sparsely vegetated habitats with sandy soil in the province of Toliara, and in the southwestern provinces of Fianarantsoa and Majunga in the southwest of Madagascar.

Distribution

This species is widespread in western, southern, and eastern Madagascar. [1]

Morphology

Calarodon madagascariensis is most easily distinguished from C. steinkampi by its keeled gular and ventral scales, which are unkeeled in the latter species. [2] Total length is up to 223mm, usually about 200mm. [1]

Nutrition

The Madagascar sand lizards are insectivores. In addition to insects, sometimes plants are ingested, particularly in the form of leaves and roots.

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<i>Chalarodon</i> Genus of lizards

Chalarodon is a genus of Malagasy terrestrial iguanian lizard. It was considered a monotypic genus, until in 2015 a second species, Chalarodon steinkampi, was recognised based on morphology and DNA sequence data. The common names of this genus include Chalarodon or Dangalia lizard.

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Chalarodon steinkampi is a species of Malagasy terrestrial iguanian lizards. It was recognised as a new species in 2015, which is probably microendemic to a small area in south eastern Madagascar.

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Achille Philippe Raselimanana is a Malagasy herpetologist.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Glaw, Frank; Vences, Miguel (2007). A Field Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Madagascar (3rd ed.). Köln: Vences & Glaw Verlags. ISBN   978-3-929449-03-7.
  2. 1 2 Miralles, Aurelien; Glaw, Frank; Ratsoavina, Fanomezana; Vences, Miguel (2015). "A likely microendemic new species of terrestrial iguana, genus Chalarodon, from Madagascar". Zootaxa. 3946 (2): 201–20. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3946.2.3. PMID   25947685.