Ablepharus alaicus Elpatjevsky, 1901
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publication ID |
https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/herpetozoa.37.e116071 |
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publication LSID |
lsid:zoobank.org:pub:1B80F815-2554-477E-848E-0E46FADD626C |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/2E1A39AF-E53C-5FEC-BCBE-967E57657CF3 |
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treatment provided by |
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scientific name |
Ablepharus alaicus Elpatjevsky, 1901 |
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Ablepharus alaicus Elpatjevsky, 1901 View in CoL
Chinese names.
阿赖山泛蜥 ( Ā Lài Shān Fàn Xī).
Description of specimens from China.
The sample size comprised 14 specimens, all specimens were collected by Peng Ding, Lin Leng and Ke-fan Wu. The main descriptions of this species were based on one specimen (XND2023092704). Additional descriptions were based on the other 13 specimens (in parentheses). All specimen morphological data is in the Suppl. material 3.
The body was small and nearly uniform in thickness, SVL 60.4 mm (26.1-51.1 mm); body mass was 2.93 g (0.29-2.24 g); eyes were small, ED 1.77 mm (1-1.5 mm); END 2.9 mm (1.7-3.3 mm); IND 2.37 mm (1.1-2.3 mm); the head was small, but longer than its width or depth, HL 11.97 mm (6.2-12.5 mm); HW 7.28 mm (3.8-6.9 mm); HD 6.5 mm (2.5-4.7 mm); AG 34.13 mm (14.1-33.1 mm); body was slender (BW/SVL ratio 0.17, 0.12-0.17) with an elongated trunk (AG/SVL ratio 0.56, 0.45-0.64); tail, broken or regenerated tails were excluded, was not as wide (TBW, 5.2 mm, 2.3-5.2 mm) as the trunk, but was longer (64.5 mm, 24.7-55.4 mm) than SVL (TL/SVL ratio 1.06, 0.94-1.17). Limbs were short, FLL 12.53 mm (8.1-12.7 mm) and HLL 16.45 mm (9.5-15.8 mm); the tips of the digits of the fore-limb and hind-limb did not meet each other when the limbs were adpressed against each other along the body axis, but for twelve of fourteen individuals they did meet each other. The lengths of the digits (measurements in parentheses) were as follows: left manus IV (2.68)> III (2.65)> II (1.91)> V (1.6)> I (1); left pes IV (5.07)> III (3.26)> V (2.8)> II (2.15)> I (0.95).
The rostral was single; wider than it was high; and was in contact with the first supralabials, nasals and frontonasals. The nasal rhomboid comprised circular nostrils, located at the centre of the nasal cavity. Fronto-nasal was fan-shaped and connected to the prefrontals. Prefrontals were pentagonal, a pair of prefrontals were connected with a border between them, located between the fronto-nasal and frontal (seven of fourteen individuals); three of the 14 individuals had frontals, fronto-nasals and a pair of prefrontals connected by a point; 3 of the 14 individuals had the frontal and frontal-nasal widely in contact with each other and the prefrontals were separate from each other. The frontal was wedge-shaped, which contacts with the prefrontals, the third and fourth supraoculars and a pair of frontoparietals posterolaterally. Six of the 14 individuals had frontals in contact with fronto-nasals, the prefrontals were not in contact with each other. The second supraocular region, in contact with the frontal and prefrontal regions, was a single tiny supracular hexagon, between the second supraocular and prefrontal regions. A pair of frontoparietals were in broad contact with each other; besides each frontoparietal was in contact with the frontal, third, fourth supraoculars, the parietal and interparietal. The interparietal rhomboid, in contrast with the frontoparietals, was posteriorly in contact with the parietals. A pair of parietals contact each other; additionally, each parietal was in contact with the interparietal, frontoparietal, fourth supracular and temporals. There were three scales between the nasal cavity and eyes; 10 of the individuals had at least four scales on one side. There were seven supralabials, four loreals between the nasal and eyes and a fourth tiny loreal. The specimen had seven infralabials; three individuals had six infralabials on each side. The temporal 1+2 and the second subtemporal were large and trapezoidal. The mental was wider than long, in contact with the first infralabial laterally and postmental posteriorly. There was a single, large postmental with four pairs of large chin-shields; the first pair was in contact with the second pair narrowly separated by a single medial scale. Dorsal scalation was homogeneous with four columns; there were longitudinal scale rows at mid-body 25 (25-28). There were 28 (25-29) scales around the middle of the neck and 50 (42 -51) ventral scales. There were 17 toe IV lamellae.
Colouration in life. The back was coppery brown, with dark longitudinal spots on the edges of the scales, which generated three black lines continuing on-to the tail; there were white longitudinal spots in the middle of the scales, generating three irregular lines continuing to the back of the tail base. A dark sooty area on each side was sharply defined above, but faded below the belly. The dark sooty area began after the nasal cavity and ended at the middle of the tail (Fig. 5 View Figure 5 ). The abdomen of the females was slightly orange-red during the breeding seasons.
Reproduction, activity, habitats, diet and distribution.
Viviparity. All fourteen specimens were collected during the day, from 12:00 to 18:00 h; therefore, this species appears to be diurnal. These individuals were collected at the bottom of a hill at an altitude of 2466 m and the microhabitats were covered with shrubs and gravel. Their diet remains poorly understood, but they are thought to be carnivorous. This species has been observed in Qapqal Xibe Autonomous County, China and probably in adjacent Zhaosu County, which, along with Tianshan, has populations that are connected to those in Kazakhstan (Fig. 1 View Figure 1 ).
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.