Abstract
A combined approach based on karyology and DNA taxonomy allowed us to characterize the taxonomic peculiarities in 10 Mesoamerican lizard species, belonging to six genera and five families, inhabiting two Biosphere Reserve in Chiapas, Mexico: La Sepultura Biosphere Reserve, and Montes Azules Biosphere. The karyotypes of four species,Phyllodactylussp. 3 (P. tuberculosusspecies group) (2n = 38),Holcosus festivus(Lichtenstein et von Martens, 1856) (2n = 50),Anolis lemurinusCope, 1861 (2n = 40), andA. uniformisCope, 1885 (2n = 29–30) are described for the first time, the last one showing a particular X1X1X2X2/X1X2Y condition. InAspidoscelis deppii(Wiegmann, 1834) (2n = 50) andAnolis capitoPeters, 1863 (2n = 42), we found a different karyotype from the ones previously reported for these species. Moreover, inA. capito, the cytogenetic observation is concurrent with a considerable genetic divergence (9%) at the studied mtDNA marker (MT-ND2), which is indicative of a putative new cryptic species. The skinkScincella cherriei(Cope, 1893), showed high values of genetic divergence (5.2% at 16S gene) between the specimens from Montes Azules and those from Costa Rica and Nicaragua, comparable to the values typical of sister species in skinks. A lower level of genetic divergence, compatible with an intraspecific phylogeographic structure, has been identified inLepidophyma flavimaculatumDuméril, 1851. These new data identify taxa that urgently require more in-depth taxonomic studies especially in these areas where habitat alteration is proceeding at an alarming rate.
Highlights
The Mesoamerican biota, with its number of endemics in different groups of taxa is one of the most diverse and interesting on the planet
This study aims to extend the genetic characterization of lizard species in two additional Biosphere Reserves in Mesoamerica: La Sepultura and Montes Azules Biosphere Reserves, both in Chiapas state, Mexico
Combined karyological and DNA taxonomic approaches have allowed us to highlight some interesting taxonomic peculiarities in 10 Mesoamerican lizard species belonging to six genera and five families
Summary
The Mesoamerican biota, with its number of endemics in different groups of taxa is one of the most diverse and interesting on the planet (for revision see Ríos-Muñoz 2013). The herpetofauna of this region is one of the richest in taxa groups in the continent (Savage 1982; Wilson and Johnson 2010). Part of this richness is managed and protected under the Biosphere Reserves (UNESCO 2018), which comprises terrestrial, marine, and coastal ecosystems and promote conservation of biodiversity along with its sustainable use. Even conventional karyotypes data can be informative in taxonomy (e.g. Santos et al 2007; Matos et al 2016; Hardy et al 2017; Giovannotti et al 2017)
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