Sekukhune flat lizard explained

The Sekukhune flat lizard (Platysaurus orientalis) is a species of lizard in the family Cordylidae. The species is endemic to South Africa. It has two subspecies.

Description

Females and juveniles of P. orientalis have a black back with white stripes, as well as a white belly. Adult males have a green body, and a tail which is orange or red above, and yellow underneath. Adults usually have a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of ; the longest recorded SVL is .^[1]

Geographic range and habitat

The Sekukhune flat lizard lives in a small area of savannah in South Africa in the Sekhukhuneland natural region. This includes the Mpumalanga Escarpment.^[1]

Reproduction

Female Sekukhune flat lizards lay two eggs in a rock crack in early summer.^[1]

Diet

The diet of the Sekukhune flat lizard includes insects, including caterpillars.^[1]

Subspecies

Two subspecies are recognized.^[2]

• P. o. orientalis – Drakensberg mountains in Mpumalanga in South Africa.
• P. o. fitzsimonsi – eastern Sekhukhuneland.

The subspecific name, fitzsimonsi, is in honor of South African herpetologist (Mr.) Vivian Frederick Maynard FitzSimons.^[3]

See also

• Platysaurus
• Cordylidae

Further reading

• FitzSimons V (1941). "Descriptions of some New Lizards from South Africa and a Frog from Southern Rhodesia". Annals of the Transvaal Museum 20 (3): 273-281. (Platysaurus minor orientalis, new subspecies, p. 280).
• Jacobsen NHG, Newbery RE (1989). "The Genus Platysaurus A. Smith 1844 in the Transvaal". African Journal of Herpetology 36: 51-63. (Platysaurus orientalis, new combination; Platysaurus orientalis fitzsimonsi, new combination).
• Loveridge A (1944). "Revision of the African Lizards of the Family Cordylidae". Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 95 (1): 1-118 + Plates 1-12. (Platysaurus guttatus fitzsimonsi, new subspecies, pp. 88–89).
• 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 (1): 53–70.

External links

• More Information

Notes and References

1. [William Roy Branch|Branch, Bill]
2. www.reptile-database.org.
3. [species:Bo Beolens|Beolens, Bo]