Abstract
The discovery of three new species of Enyalioides from the tropical Andes in Ecuador and northern Peru is reported. Enyalioides altotambo sp. n. occurs in northwestern Ecuador and differs from other species of Enyalioides in having dorsal scales that are both smooth and homogeneous in size, a brown iris, and in lacking enlarged, circular and keeled scales on the flanks. Enyalioides anisolepis sp. n. occurs on the Amazonian slopes of the Andes in southern Ecuador and northern Peru and can be distinguished from other species of Enyalioides by its scattered, projecting large scales on the dorsum, flanks, and hind limbs, as well as a well-developed vertebral crest, with the vertebrals on the neck at least three times higher than those between the hind limbs. Enyalioides sophiarothschildae sp. n. is from the Amazonian slopes of the Cordillera Central in northeastern Peru; it differs from other species of Enyalioides in having caudal scales that are relatively homogeneous in size on each caudal segment, a white gular region with a black medial patch and several turquoise scales in males, as well as immaculate white labials and chin. A molecular phylogenetic tree of 18 species of hoplocercines is presented, including the three species described in this paper and Enyalioides cofanorum, as well as an updated identification key for species of Hoplocercinae.
Highlights
The iguanian lizard clade Hoplocercinae includes 16 currently recognized species assigned to Enyalioides, Hoplocercus, and Morunasaurus distributed from Panama to central Brazil (Torres-Carvajal et al 2011)
With nearly 40% of the total number of species described in the last seven years from Ecuador and Peru (Torres-Carvajal et al 2008; Torres-Carvajal et al 2009; Venegas et al 2011; Venegas et al 2013), woodlizards represent one of the South American lizard groups with the highest species discovery rate in the last decade. This is a striking fact given that woodlizards are among the largest and most colorful lizards in South American tropical forests and is most likely the result of recent fieldwork in poorly explored areas of the central and northern Andes
We contribute to this growing body of taxonomic knowledge with the description of three new species of Enyalioides, one from the Pacific slopes of the Andes in northern Ecuador, and the other two from the Amazonian slopes of the Andes in southern Ecuador and northern Peru
Summary
The iguanian lizard clade Hoplocercinae includes 16 currently recognized species assigned to Enyalioides, Hoplocercus, and Morunasaurus distributed from Panama to central Brazil (Torres-Carvajal et al 2011).
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