Calotes aurantolabium

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Orange-lipped forest lizard
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Iguania
Family: Agamidae
Genus: Calotes
Species: aurantolabium
Binomial name
Calotes aurantolabium
Shreyas Krishnan, 2008

The Orange-lipped forest lizard (Calotes aurantolabium) is an agamid lizard found in the forests of the southern Western Ghats and is currently known from the Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve. The species was formerly wrongly synonymized with Calotes andamanensis of the Andaman Islands.

[edit] Description

Calotes aurantolabium is diagnosed by having orange colored upper lips, green body; acutely keeled scales over body (dorsally and ventrally), head, and throat; postero-ventral orientation of the dorsal scales; antehumeral pit absent; 63 scales around midbody; small tympanum (5.5% HL); toe III and IV subequal. Distinguished from Calotes andamanensis in having acutely keeled dorsals, all of which are directed posteroventrally; antehumeral pit absent; acutely keeled ventrals, limb and head scales; smaller occipital, nuchal, temporal regions. Distinguished from all known species of the Calotes versicolor group in having posteroventral orientation of dorsal scales (posterodorsal in C. versicolor group). Distinguished from species of the Calotes liocephalus group in lacking antehumeral pit, and in having a proportionately smaller head, ulnar length proportionately longer, tibial length proportionately shorter. Distinguished from Calotes rouxii and Calotes ellioti in lacking an antehumeral fold and spines, toe-IV and III subequal.

Holotype Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) 1436 (Orange-lipped forest lizard) an adult female, collected by N. M. Ishwar at Kakkachi in Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve, Tamil Nadu, India in 1997.

[edit] References

  • Boulenger, G.A. 1891 On new or little known Indian and Malayan reptiles and batrachians. Ann. Mag. nat. Hist. (6) 8: 288-292
  • Ishwar, N.M. & Das, I. 1998 Rediscovery of Calotes andamanensis Boulenger 1891, and a reassessment of the type locality. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 95: 513-514
  • Krishnan, S. accepted 2008. New Species of Calotes (Reptilia: Squamata: Agamidae) from the Southern Western Ghats, India. Journal of Herpetology.