Karusasaurus jordani explained

Karusasaurus jordani, also known commonly as Jordan's girdled lizard and the Namibian girdled lizard, is a species of small, spiny lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is endemic to Namibia.

Etymology

The specific name, jordani, is in honor of German-born British entomologist Heinrich Ernst Karl Jordan.^[1]

Geographic range

K. jordani is found in central Namibia.

Habitat

The preferred natural habitat of K. jordani is rocky hillsides in savanna, at altitudes of .

Description

Adults of K. jordani usually have a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of, and maximum recorded SVL is . The body is robust, not flattened. Adults are uniformly olive-brown, but juveniles are buff with dark crossbars. Males have only 5–8 femoral pores.^[2]

Reproduction

The mode of reproduction of K. jordani has been described as viviparous and as ovoviviparous.

Further reading

• Parker HW (1936). "Dr. Karl Jordan's Expedition to South-West Africa and Angola: Herpetological Collections". Novitates Zoologica (Tring) 40: 115–146. (Zonurus jordani, new species, pp. 133–134).
• FitzSimons VF (1943). The Lizards of South Africa. Pretoria: Transvaal Museum. xv + 528 pp. (Cordylus jordani, new combination).
• Schleicher, Alfred (2020). Reptiles of Namibia. Windhoek, Namibia: Kuiseb Publishers. 271 pp.
• Stanley EL, Bauer AM, Jackman TR, Branch WR, Mouton PLFN (2011). "Between a rock and a hard polytomy: Rapid radiation in the rupicolous girdled lizards (Squamata: Cordylidae)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 58: 53–70. (Karusasaurus jordani, new combination).

Notes and References

1. [species:Bo Beolens|Beolens, Bo]
2. [William Roy Branch|Branch, Bill]