| Scelotes | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scelotes mossambicus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Family: | Scincidae |
| Subfamily: | Scincinae |
| Genus: | Scelotes Fitzinger, 1826 [1] |
| Scelotes | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Scelotes mossambicus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Family: | Scincidae |
| Subfamily: | Scincinae |
| Genus: | Scelotes Fitzinger, 1826 [1] |
The following 21 species are recognized as being valid. [3]
Nota bene : A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Scelotes.
Lygodactylus is a genus of diurnal geckos with 82 species. They are commonly referred to as dwarf geckos. They are mainly found in Africa and Madagascar although two species are found in South America. Lygodactylus picturatus, the best known species, is found in Kenya and commonly known as the white-headed dwarf gecko. Recently, illegal importation from Tanzania of brightly colored, Lygodactylus williamsi, known as electric blue geckos, has been gaining attention for Lygodactylus geckos in the reptile trade.
Pachydactylus is a genus of insectivorous geckos, lizards in the family Gekkonidae. The genus is endemic to Africa, and member species are commonly known as thick-toed geckos. The genus also displays rich speciation, having 57 distinct species identified when compared to other closely related gecko genera like Rhoptropus, most of which have emerged since 35Ma. It has been suggested that the reason for this rich speciation not from adaptive radiation nor nonadaptive radiation, but that the genus represents a clade somewhere between the two drivers of speciation. P. bibronii geckos have been used by NASA as animal models for experimentation.
The genus Cordylus includes a wide variety of species of small to medium spiny lizards from Africa, collectively called girdle-tailed lizards or girdled lizards. All are diurnal and ovoviviparous. Most species are rupicolous (rock-dwelling), while a few species are arboreal or live in burrows. They defend themselves with osteoderms and by quickly retreating into rock crevices or burrows. Many species live in groups, and males defend territories.
Platysaurus is a genus of lizards, commonly known as flat lizards for their flat backs, in the family Cordylidae.
Pseudocordylus is a genus of small to large girdled lizards from South Africa, commonly known as crag lizards. Six species of Pseudocordylus are known; they are distinguished from girdled lizards of the genus Cordylus by the presence of granular scales on the back instead of osteoderms.
Acontias is a genus of limbless skinks, the lance skinks, in the African subfamily Acontinae. Most are small animals, but the largest member of the genus is Acontias plumbeus at approximately 40 cm (16 in) snout-vent length. All members of this genus are live-bearing sandswimmers, with fused eyelids. A recent review moved species that were formerly placed in the genera Typhlosaurus, Acontophiops, and Microacontias into this genus, as together these form a single branch in the tree of life. This new concept of Acontias is a sister lineage to Typhlosaurus, and these two genera are the only genera within the subfamily Acontinae.
Melanoseps is a genus of lizards, known commonly as limbless skinks, in the family Scincidae. The genus is endemic to Sub-Saharan Africa.
Mochlus is a genus of skinks, lizards in the family Scincidae. The genus is endemic to Africa.
Ichnotropis is a genus of African lizards in the family Lacertidae. Species in the genus Ichnotropis are commonly called rough-scaled lizards.
Psammophis is a genus of snakes in the family Psammophiidae. The genus comprises 33 species, which are found in Africa and Asia. Psammophis are diurnal and prey on lizards and rodents which they actively hunt. All species in the genus are venomous, and the venom is considered mild and not dangerous to humans.
Günther's dwarf burrowing skink, also known commonly as Günther's burrowing skink, was a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species was endemic to Natal, South Africa.
Kasner's dwarf burrowing skink, also known commonly as Kasner's burrowing skink, is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae.
Trachylepis is a skink genus in the subfamily Mabuyinae found mainly in Africa. Its members were formerly included in the "wastebin taxon" Mabuya, and for some time in Euprepis. As defined today, Trachylepis contains the clade of Afro-Malagasy mabuyas. The genus also contains a species from the Brazilian island of Fernando de Noronha, T. atlantica, and may occur in mainland South America with Trachylepis tschudii and Trachylepis maculata, both poorly known and enigmatic. The ancestors of T. atlantica are believed to have rafted across the Atlantic from Africa during the last 9 million years.
Lycodonomorphus is a genus of snakes commonly referred to as African water snakes. They are small, nonvenomous snakes, with all members being endemic to Africa, especially Tanzania.
Vivian Frederick Maynard FitzSimons, born in Pietermaritzburg, was a notable herpetologist in South Africa. Also, he contributed to the collection of spermatophyte samples for the National Herbarium which has become part of the South African National Biodiversity Institute at the Pretoria National Botanical Garden. In 1937, together with Anna Amelia Obermeyer, he collected some of the earliest plant specimens from the Eastern Highlands of Rhodesia.
Scelotes anguinus, the Algoa dwarf burrowing skink or Boulenger's burrowing skink, is a species of lizard which is endemic to South Africa. Note that the correct name for this species is anguinus. The name anguineus is a synonym of a different species Scelotes bipes.
Scelotes caffer, the Cape dwarf burrowing skink or Peters's burrowing skink, is a species of lizard which is endemic to South Africa.
Scelotes fitzsimonsi, commonly known as Fitzsimons' dwarf burrowing skink, is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is indigenous to southern Africa.
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