Anolis poncensis explained

Anolis poncensis (commonly known as Ponce small-fanned anole, Ponce anole and dryland grass anole;^[1]) is a species of lizard of the family of Dactyloidae.^[2] The species is endemic to Puerto Rico.^[3] It was first identified in Ponce, in the hills three miles east of the city.^[4] The Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources considers it a "vulnerable species".^[5]

Description

The body of this anole is longer and more slender than other grass Anoles. It has distinguishing brownish dorsum, greenish sides, blue eyes, a small white dewlap, a short pale lateral line, and a number of black spots behind the eyes.^[6] Males grow up to 44 mm and females up to 40 mm.^[7]

Distribution

This species is endemic to Puerto Rico.^[8] Its distribution is rather small, being limited to the arid and semi-arid western half of the southern coast of the island.^[9] It was identified and catalogued in 1902 by Leonhard Stejneger, a curator with the Division of Reptiles and Batrachians of the United States National Museum.^[10]

Etymology

Its species name, consisting of "ponce" plus the Latin suffix -nsis, was given in reference to the place of its discovery, the city of Ponce.^[11] Its discovery and documentation were originally published in Stejneger, 1904: "The herpetology of Porto Rico".^[12]

See also

• Fauna of Puerto Rico
• List of reptiles of Puerto Rico

External links

• Anolis poncensis. Distribution of Anolis poncensis within Puerto Rico.
• CaribHerp: Amphibians and reptiles of Caribbean Islands. Caribbean Herpetology. 2016. Accessed 14 June 2016. Map illustrating the distribution of Anolis poncensis within Puerto Rico.
• Anolis poncensis STEJNEGER 1904 (accepted name). Catalogue of Life: 2011 Annual Checklist, describing A. poncensis as belonging to the "Family Polychrotidae".

Further reading

• Brandley, M.C. & De Queiroz, K. 2004. Phylogeny, ecomorphological evolution, and historical biogeography of the Anolis cristatellus series. Herpetological Monographs 18: 90-126.
• Grant, C. 1932. Herpetological notes from the Puerto Rico area. Jour. Dept. Agric. Puerto Rico 16(1): 161-165
• Nicholson, Kirten E.; Brian I. Crother, Craig Guyer & Jay M. Savage 2012. It is time for a new classification of anoles (Squamata: Dactyloidae). Zootaxa 3477: 1–108
• Poe, S. 2004. Phylogeny of anoles. Herpetological Monographs 18: 37-89.
• Poe, S. 2013. 1986 Redux: New genera of anoles (Squamata: Dactyloidae) are unwarranted. Zootaxa 3626 (2): 295–299.
• Rivero, J.A. 1978. Los anfibios y reptiles de Puerto Rico. M. Pareja Montana, 16, Barcelona, España: x + 152 + 148pp.
• Schmidt, K.P. 1928. Scientific Survey of Porto Rico and the Virgin Islands: Amphibians and land reptiles of Porto Rico, with a list of those reported from the Virgin Islands. New York Academy of Sciences 10 (1):160 pp.
• Schwartz, A. and Henderson, R.W. 1985. A guide to the identification of the amphibians and reptiles of the West Indies exclusive of Hispaniola. Milwaukee Public Museum, 165 pp.
• Schwartz,A. & Henderson,R.W. 1991. Amphibians and Reptiles of the West Indies. University of Florida Press, Gainesville, 720 pp.
• Stejneger, L. 1904. The herpetology of Porto Rico. Rept. United States National Museum. 1902: 549-724.
• Werning, H. 2012. Zwischen Anolis und Cycluren: Unterwegs auf Puerto Rico. Reptilia (Münster) 17 (95): 100-109.

Notes and References

1. http://eol.org/pages/795790/names/common_names Anolis poncensis.
2. http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Anolis&species=poncensis&search_param=%28%28search%3D%27anolis+poncensis%27%29%29 Anolis poncensis STEJNEGER, 1904.
3. http://lntreasures.com/prr.html PUERTO RICO: Checklist of Endemic Reptile Species.
4. http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Anolis&species=poncensis&search_param=%28%28search%3D%27anolis+poncensis%27%29%29 Anolis poncensis STEJNEGER, 1904.
5. http://www.jp.gobierno.pr/Portal_JP/Portals/0/Documentos%20Ambientales/2012-121-044JP5AnejoEvaluacionAmbiental.pdf Construccion de Infraestructuras Minimas Recreativas y Educativas en la Reserva Natural Punta Cucharas: Evaluacion Ambiental: Punta Cucharas.
6. http://warminganoles.weebly.com/puerto-rican-anolis.html Vulnerability of Tropical Ectotherms to Climate Warming.
7. Schwartz & Henderson, 1991 : Amphibians and Reptiles of the West Indies: Descriptions, Distributions, and Natural History. Florida University Press. pp. 1-736.
8. http://www.jp.gobierno.pr/Portal_JP/Portals/0/Documentos%20Ambientales/2012-121-044JP5AnejoEvaluacionAmbiental.pdf Construccion de Infraestructuras Minimas Recreativas y Educativas en la Reserva Natural Punta Cucharas: Evaluacion Ambiental: Punta Cucharas.
9. http://warminganoles.weebly.com/puerto-rican-anolis.html Vulnerability of Tropical Ectotherms to Climate Warming.
10. https://books.google.com/books?id=5QNHAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA554 The Herpetology of Porto Rico.
11. http://lizardsandfriends.org/?p=660 Lizards may be smarter than you think.
12. https://archive.org/details/annualreportofbo1902smith Full Text of Stejneger's Herpetology of Porto Rico.