On Specimens of Ophisops elegans Menetries 1832, (Sauria; Lacertidae) Collected From Hatay, Turkey

Abstract

This survey contains a detailed morphological review of Ophisops elegans population from Hatay, and furthermore, a comparison of Ankara (O.e.centralanatoliae), Van (O.e.elegans) and Hatay populations, which are quite similar in colour feature. Comparisons are based on the number of dorsal scales+ventral plates at mid-trunk Ñthe important character used to recognize the subspecies of O.elegansÑ and the number of temporals, which carry less significance. No discrimination among the subspecies is possible based on the number of temporals, which show wide variation. The Ankara and Van populations are distinct from one another in accordance with the main characteristic (the number of dorsal scales+ventral plates at mid-trunk), as pointed out by Bodenheimer (1) and Öktem (2). The Hatay population, however, shows more similarity to the Van population based on this characteristic. O.e.ehrenbergi is not recorded in the districts of Hatay, and according to the literature, O.e.ehrenbergi is found in the regions of Turkey neighboring Syria. The existence of O.e.ehrenbergi in Turkey is doubtful and we believe that this conclusion should be supported by new material collected from the regions bordering Syria. In this study, the Ophisops elegans population from Hatay was attributed to the nominate subspecies O.e.elegans.