Dactyloidae
| Dactyloidae | ||||||||||||
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Dactyloa heterodermus from the Colombian Andes . |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Dactyloidae | ||||||||||||
| Fitzinger , 1843 |
The Dactyloidae ( Syn .: Anolidae Cope, 1864) are a species-rich family of the iguanas (Iguania) that occur in the south of the USA , in Central and South America and on the islands of the Caribbean . The family was established in 1843 by the Austrian zoologist Leopold Fitzinger , but the genera belonging to the family were later assigned to the iguanas (Iguanidae), and since the late 1980s to the Polychrotidae . In September 2012 the Dactyloidae were revalidated by a group of American biologists. It comprises eight genera and all types of anoles that were temporarily assigned to only one genus ( anole ).
features
The species of the Dactyloidae are usually slender lizards with pointed heads and very long tails. The head-to-trunk length is in the range of 3.1 to 19 cm for the individual species. A sexual dimorphism in terms of color and the body length may be present. In this case, the males become somewhat larger and are more conspicuously colored (mostly green), the females rather inconspicuously brown or grayish.
Within the iguanas , the family can be diagnosed by the combination of the following features : The dentition is, as with all iguanas, pleurodont , i.e. H. the teeth are rootless on the inner edge of the jaw. The collarbone is slim. The cervical vertebrae 3 and 4 have no ribs, three ribs are in contact with the sternum and the lumbar vertebrae are again without ribs. The cheekbone is in contact with the scaly bone . The subocularia are unequal in size. A transverse fold on the throat, the gular fold, which can be found in many iguanas, is missing. Three greatly elongated ceratobranchial bones are connected with an erect throat pouch. The prootica crista, a raised ridge, runs along the side of the skull above the ear capsule. The anterior, lower alveolar foramen is bounded by the splenial (tongue-side bone in the anterior part of the lower jaw of most tetrapods) and the dental (tooth-bearing bone of the lower jaw). The angular (bone in the back of the lower jaw of most tetrapods) is reduced to a thin splint. Femoral pores are absent. Lamellar scales and bristles widen some fingers and toes. The center of the scales consists of twisted spines.
distribution
Species of the Dactyloidae occur in the southeastern United States, Mexico, Central America, the Greater and Lesser Antilles , the Bahamas , the Turks and Caicos Islands , the Cayman Islands , Navassa and South America from Colombia , Venezuela and the three Guayanas via the Amazon basin to Ecuador , in northern Peru , in northern Paraguay and south to the state of São Paulo in southeastern Brazil. Also on various islands off South America in the north ( Isla Margarita , Curaçao , Bonaire , La Blanquilla ) and on Malpelo in the eastern Pacific. Some species have been released by humans in other areas (e.g. in Hawaii ).
Systematics
Within the iguanas, the family Dactyloidae is most closely related to the Polychrotidae (colored iguanas ) and the Corytophanidae (basilisks and relatives). The family consists of eight genera with 22 species groups, almost 390 species and a total of around 500 species and subspecies. The following cladogram shows the relationship between the three families and the eight genera:
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literature
- Kirsten E. Nicholson, Brian I. Crother, Craig Guyer, Jay M. Savage : It is time for a new classification of anoles (Squamata: Dactyloidae) (= Zootaxa . 3477). Magnolia Press, Auckland 2012, ISBN 978-1-77557-010-3 , digital version (PDF; 8.24 MB) .