Leposoma puk, Rodrigues, Dixo, Pavan & Verdade, 2002

Rodrigues, Miguel Trefaut, Dixo, Marianna, Pavan, Dante & Verdade, Vanessa Kruth, 2002, A New Species Of Leposoma (Squamata, Gymnophthalmidae) From The Remnant Atlantic Forests Of The State Of Bahia, Brazil, Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia 42 (14), pp. 335-350 : 337-343

Leposoma puk sp.nov.

Holotype: MZUSP 87.959 , an adult male from Una : state of Bahia: Brazil (15°10’S, 39°03’W), collected by Marianna Dixo on 25 February 2000; field number MD 2592 .

Paratypes: MZUSP 66.475 , an adult male from São José do Macuco , presently São José da Vitória (Fazenda Unacau): state of Bahia: Brazil (15°09’S, 39°18’W); collected by Miguel Trefaut Rodrigues on 15. x. 1986, field number 86.7231, and MZUSP 89334 , an adult male from Serra do Teimoso : Jussari: state of Bahia: Brazil (15°09’S, 39°31’W); collected by M . T. Rodrigues, D. Pavan, M. Dixo and V. K. Verdade on 20.iii.2001, field number MRT 6160 .

Etymology: puk derives from the vocabulary of the now extinct Botocudo indians who formerly lived in the Atlantic forests of State of Bahia, Brazil. It means “the one who cries”, and here is intended to reflect the loss of the Botocudo culture, as well as the highly threatened and dwindling present condition of the Atlantic Rainforests, the remaining habitat of these little forest lizards.

Diagnosis: A Leposoma of the scincoides group characterized by a single frontonasal, elongate dorsal and lanceolate ventral scales arranged in diagonal rows and having: 1) weakly striated to smooth scales on top of head; 2) interparietal longer than wide, with almost straight lateral margins; 3) parietals longer than wide; 4) 17-18 pores; 4) third supraocular the largest one, wider than long and clearly rectangular in shape; 5) a suture between frontal and frontoparietal scales that coincides with the middle of the third supraocular, and, 6) a black pigmentation in the venter or along venter margins in males.

Description of the holotype: ( Figs. 1-2 ). Snout normal, sligthly acuminate. Rostral broad, wider than high, contacting first supralabial, nasal and frontonasal. Frontonasal entire, as wide as long; in broad contact with rostral, nasal, loreal, and prefrontal, always indenting posteriorly the latter; separating or just touching first supraocular. Prefrontals as long as large, in broad contact at midline and with first supraocular; indented anteriorly by the frontonasal and posteriorly by the frontal. Frontal hexagonal, with almost straight lateral margins; approximately twice as long as broad; indenting posteriorly a pair of frontoparietals. Frontoparietals pentagonal, larger than prefrontals, in broad contact; their midline suture approximatelly the same size as suture between prefrontals. Interparietal wider and longer than frontal, with almost straight lateral margins, longer than wide; almost straight posteriorly. Parietals irregularly hexagonal, longer than wide; as large as and as long as interparietal, always reaching the level of its posterior margin. Supraoculars four; first smallest, triangular, longer than wide and contacting loreal. Third supraocular the largest, roughly rectangular, wider than second and fourth supraoculars that are equivalent in size; all supraoculars contacting superciliaries. Nasal above first supralabial, large, longer than wide, with the nostril in the center. Nasal semidivided superiorly or divided at the level of posterior margin of nostril. Ventral margin of nasal slightly convex, dorsal margin straight. Loreal narrow, posterior to nasal, diagonally and ventro-posteriorly oriented; contacting nasal, internasal, first supraocular and first superciliar, a small preocular granule, and frenocular. Frenocular contacting nasal and followed by a series of four infraorbital elongate scutes; the first one quadrangular, smaller than frenocular, the second, third and fourth elongate, the fifth enlarged, quadrangular, and followed by a temporal scute with about the same size. Six supralabials, first and third the longest, fifth highest, third and fourth bellow eye. Sixth supralabial followed by a granule much smaller than last supralabial and separated from the tympanum by two similar granules. Five superciliaries, first largest, sligthly larger than first supraocular, expanded both on lateral and dorsal surface of head and in broad contact with loreal and a small granule placed between the latter and frenocular. Other superciliaries elongated, the last being the largest one. Eyelid with semitrans- parent disc formed by two enlarged scales. Temporal region almost all covered with smooth or slightly keeled and juxtaposed scales that are larger around tympanum, around parietals and surrounding postocular area. Lateral surface of neck with conical and juxtaposed keeled granules, irregularly arranged in transversal rows. Ear opening bordered by a series of very small, smooth, granules; tympanum distinct, subovoid. Scales of the top of head with very slight, low relief irregular longitudinal striations; almost smooth when compared to most of other Leposoma .

Mental broad, wider than long. Postmental single, contacting first infralabial. Three pairs of enlarged genials, all contacting infralabials; first pair the smallest one, second largest, both in broad contact at middline, and in contact with infralabials. Third pair of genials wider than long, separated medially by two elongate granules. An additional series of relatively large, diagonally oriented and flat chin-shield like scutes follows the genials. Mental, postmental and genials smooth. Infralabials five; first largest, followed by second in size. Scales immediately posterior and lateral to third pair of genials, juxtaposed, smooth, flat. From there they gradually change to lanceolate, imbricate and keeled, like posterior gulars. Gulars variable in shape, in nine transverse rows; anterior rows smooth, rounded and juxtaposed, changing progressively to lanceolate, imbricate, keeled and mucronate. Collar fold indistinct.

Dorsal scales large, strongly keeled, mucronate, lanceolate, and imbricate anteriorly, becoming wider and laterally juxtaposed with almost straight lateral sides at midbody; 28 regular transverse rows between interparietal and posterior level of hind limbs. Lateral scales resembling dorsals but more lanceolate; changing progressively to ventrals except for an area with small, rounded, almost smooth and juxtaposed conical granules around arm level. Groin scales identical to flank scales except for their smaller size. Twenty seven scales around midbody. Ventrals leaf-shaped, keeled, mucronate, imbricate, in 21 regular transverse and diagonal rows from interbrachials (included) to preanals. Posterior margin of the vent with five scales; central and lateral scales the smallest, paramedials the largest. Total pores 18; 4 of them preanal.

Scales of tail imbricate, keeled, in complete rings that became more regular ventrally. Near the base of tail dorsal and lateral tail scales are more strongly keeled and wider than ventral tail scales, becoming gradually identical towards the extremity.

Limb scales keeled and imbricate, except on ventral surface of brachium and on posterior surface of thigh which are mostly subimbricate or juxtaposed, sometimes granular. Palmar and plantar surfaces with small, conical granules. Subdigital lamellae double, 13 on Finger IV and 17 on Toe IV. Fingers and toes clawed, with the following relative sizes: 1 <2 = 5 <3 <4 and 1 <2 <5 <3 <4, respectively.

Dorsal surface of body and tail light brown with irregular dark brown or black spots. Dorsal surface of head lighter.A dorsolateral light stripe one to one and half scale wide extends from lateral part of parietal scale, converge to occipital region and run to third part of tail. The dorsolateral stripe is more conspicuous anteriorly, fading progressively towards midbody. An irregular longitudinal dark brown to black area one to three scales size marginate inferiorly the dorsolateral light stripe. The dorsolateral stripes delimit a midorsal light brown area of about 4 scales wide with the characteristic dark brown reticulate background. Flanks and lateral surface of tail slightly darker than back with a few small light spots more conspicuous on neck. Dorsal surface of head lighter with scattered dark brown reticulation. Lateral surface of head darker, coloured as flanks. Ventral parts of head and body cream with a very conspicuous reticulate pattern of irregularly disposed dark spots. The dark reticulation is more concentrated in the ventrolateral area. In the ventral part of tail only the anterior third remains with some light pigmentation, rest of tail almost entirely black. Limbs dark brown dorsally, mottled with cream; ventrally yellowish cream, like in the ventral parts of body and tail.

Left hemipenis everted at preservation; bilobed, with short lobes. Sulcus spermaticus medial, bifurcating centripetally towards the apex. Right and left lobes symetric with two longitudinal rows of 20-22 enlarged spines on the apex of naked W-shaped flounces.

Measurements of the holotype: Snout-vent lenght: 38 mm; tail lenght 53 mm.

Comparisons: species of genus Leposoma are separated in two distinctive groups: parietale and scincoides (Rodrigues, 1997; Rodrigues et al., 2002). Since originally proposed by Ruibal (1952) their content varied due to the description of new species but their similarity based definition stands until now. Species of the scincoides group ( annectans , scincoides , nanodactylus and baturitensis ) have elongate dorsal and lanceolate ventral scales that are characteristically arranged in diagonal rather than in longitudinal rows. In the parietale group, dorsal scales are wider and shorter than those present in species of scincoides group, and ventral scales are arranged in regular longitudinal rows. Leposoma puk , is a member of the scincoides group. Leposoma puk , Leposoma nanodactylus and Leposoma baturitensis are unique in the scincoides group in presenting an entire and smooth frontonasal and weakly striated or smooth scales on head (longitudinally divided and highly striated in L. annectans and L. scincoides ). Leposoma puk , Leposoma nanodactylus and Leposoma baturitensis are also the only species in the scincoides group presenting a characteristically black pigmentation in the venter or along venter margins in males (venter cream, immaculate in L. annectans and L. scincoides ). Leposoma puk , nanodactylus , and baturitensis can be separated by the following list of characters.

1) Supraoculars: in Leposoma puk the third supraocular is the largest one, wider than long and clearly rectangular in shape; in L. baturitensis the second supraocular is the largest, which is squared. In L. nanodactylus , the scale corresponding to the first supraocular of baturitensis and puk is characteristically divided in two scales. This implies that the largest supraocular in L. nanodactylus (the fourth), which is also squared, is actually homologous to the third of nanodactylus and baturitensis .

2) Frontal: frontoparietal suture: in Leposoma puk the suture between frontal and frontoparietal scales coincides with the middle of the third supraocular. In L. baturitensis and L. nanodactylus the suture always reaches the anterior third of the third supraocular (actually the fourth in L. nanodactylus )

3) Shape of dorsal scales: in Leposoma puk and L. baturitensis midbody dorsal scales are wider than the anterior ones and are laterally juxtaposed with almost straight lateral sides. Dorsals in L. nanodactylus are always elongate, lanceolate, imbricate.

4) In Leposoma puk , L. baturitensis and L. nanodactylus the fingers III and IV have approximately the same comparative size but in L. puk and baturitensis the size difference between the referred fingers corresponds to less than the equivalent size of the distal supradigital lamellae; in nanodactylus to two of those scales.

5) Leposoma puk has 17-18 total pores; there are 9-11 in baturitensis and 10 in nanodactylus .

6) Leposoma puk additionally differs from L. baturitensis by slight differences in the number of dorsal and ventral scales, higher counts of scales around mid- body, and of fourth finger infradigital lamellae, and from nanodactylus by a lower number of dorsal scales and higher counts of IV finger and IV toe infradigital lamellae ( Table 1). Data for L. nanodactylus includes data for two specimens (one female) recently obtained at Serra do Teimoso. Table 1 also presents comparative data for other species of the scincoides group.

Figures

Figure 1. Dorsal, ventral, and lateral view of head of the holotype of Leposoma puk from Una, state of Bahia, Brazil (MZUSP 87959).

Figure 2. Dorsal and ventral view of a paratype of Leposoma puk (MZUSP 66475) from São José do Macuco.