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A story of nasal horns: A new species of Iguana Laurenti, 1768 (Squamata, Iguanidae) in Saint Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, and Grenada (Southern Lesser Antilles) and its implications for the taxonomy of the genus Iguana

Michel Breuil, Barbara Vuillaume, David Schikorski, Ulrike Krauss, Matthew N. Morton, Pius Haynes, Jennifer C. Daltry, Elisabeth Corry, Glenroy Gaymes, Joanne Gaymes, Nicolas Bech, Misel Jelic, Frédéric Grandjean
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/466128
Michel Breuil
1Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Laboratoire des Reptiles et Amphibiens, Bâtiment 30, 57, rue Cuvier, CP n° 30, 75231 Paris cedex 05, France
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Barbara Vuillaume
2Laboratoire Labofarm-Genindexe, 4 rue Théodore Botrel, 22600 Loudéac, France
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David Schikorski
2Laboratoire Labofarm-Genindexe, 4 rue Théodore Botrel, 22600 Loudéac, France
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Ulrike Krauss
3Maison du Soleil, Dauphin Road, La Borne, P O Box GM1109, Saint Lucia, West Indies
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Matthew N. Morton
4Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, Les Augres Manor, Trinity, Jersey JE3 5BP, Great Britain
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Pius Haynes
5Department of Forestry, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Co-operatives, Union, Saint Lucia, West Indies
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Jennifer C. Daltry
6Fauna & Flora International, David Attenborough Building Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QZ, UK
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Elisabeth Corry
4Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, Les Augres Manor, Trinity, Jersey JE3 5BP, Great Britain
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Glenroy Gaymes
7Forestry Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Industry, Forestry, Fisheries and Rural Transformation, Richmond Hill, Kingstown, St Vincent & the Grenadines
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Joanne Gaymes
7Forestry Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Industry, Forestry, Fisheries and Rural Transformation, Richmond Hill, Kingstown, St Vincent & the Grenadines
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Nicolas Bech
8Laboratoire Écologie et Biologie des Interactions, équipe EES, UMR CNRS 6556, Université de Poitiers, 5 rue Albert Turpin, 86073 Poitiers Cedex 9, France
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Misel Jelic
9Division of Zoology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Zagreb, Rooseveltov trg 6, 10 000 Zagreb, Croatia
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Frédéric Grandjean
8Laboratoire Écologie et Biologie des Interactions, équipe EES, UMR CNRS 6556, Université de Poitiers, 5 rue Albert Turpin, 86073 Poitiers Cedex 9, France
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Abstract

The Lesser Antilles, in the Eastern Caribbean, were long considered to have only two species in the genus Iguana Laurenti 1768: the Lesser Antillean iguana Iguana delicatissima, which is endemic to parts of the Lesser Antilles, and the common green iguana Iguana iguana, which also occurs throughout Central and South America. However, herpetologists and reptile collectors have pointed out strong physical differences between some of the island populations of Iguana iguana and those from the continent. Drawing on both morphological and genetic data, this paper describes a third species Iguana insularis sp. nov. from the southern Lesser Antilles, specifically the countries of Saint Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, and Grenada. The new species is described based on the following unique combination of characters: Presence of high median and medium to small lateral horns on the snout; Small subtympanic plate not exceeding 20% of the eardrum size; Two or three scales of decreasing size anterior to the subtympanic plate; Fewer than ten small to medium triangular gular spikes; Medium sized dewlap; Low number of small to medium dispersed nuchal tubercles; Dark brown iris, with the white of the eye visible; Oval, prominent nostril; Short and relatively flat head; High dorsal spines; No swelling of the jowls in reproductively active males; Colour of head, body and tail changing from green to pale grey or creamy white in old adults; Vertical black stripes on body and tail, fading with age in some populations. This paper furthermore distinguishes two subspecies: Iguana insularis insularis from the Grenada Bank (comprising Grenada and the Grenadine islands), and Iguana insularis sanctaluciae from Saint Lucia. The form on the island of Saint Vincent has not been identified. Both subspecies are globally threatened by unsustainable hunting (including the pet trade) and by invasive alien species, including hybridization from invasive iguanas from South and Central America (I. iguana and I. rhinolopha, considered here as full species) that have become established in all three countries. The authors call for stronger measures to conserve the remaining purebred Iguana insularis sp. nov. throughout its range and for further research to identify other cryptic species and subspecies of Iguana in the Lesser Antilles.

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Posted November 08, 2018.
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A story of nasal horns: A new species of Iguana Laurenti, 1768 (Squamata, Iguanidae) in Saint Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, and Grenada (Southern Lesser Antilles) and its implications for the taxonomy of the genus Iguana
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A story of nasal horns: A new species of Iguana Laurenti, 1768 (Squamata, Iguanidae) in Saint Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, and Grenada (Southern Lesser Antilles) and its implications for the taxonomy of the genus Iguana
Michel Breuil, Barbara Vuillaume, David Schikorski, Ulrike Krauss, Matthew N. Morton, Pius Haynes, Jennifer C. Daltry, Elisabeth Corry, Glenroy Gaymes, Joanne Gaymes, Nicolas Bech, Misel Jelic, Frédéric Grandjean
bioRxiv 466128; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/466128
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A story of nasal horns: A new species of Iguana Laurenti, 1768 (Squamata, Iguanidae) in Saint Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, and Grenada (Southern Lesser Antilles) and its implications for the taxonomy of the genus Iguana
Michel Breuil, Barbara Vuillaume, David Schikorski, Ulrike Krauss, Matthew N. Morton, Pius Haynes, Jennifer C. Daltry, Elisabeth Corry, Glenroy Gaymes, Joanne Gaymes, Nicolas Bech, Misel Jelic, Frédéric Grandjean
bioRxiv 466128; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/466128

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