Kalahari worm lizard | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Clade: | Amphisbaenia |
Family: | Amphisbaenidae |
Genus: | Monopeltis |
Species: | M. leonhardi |
Binomial name | |
Monopeltis leonhardi F. Werner, 1910 | |
Synonyms | |
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The Kalahari worm lizard (Monopeltis leonhardi), also known commonly as the Kalahari spade-snouted worm lizard, is a species of amphisbaenian in the family Amphisbaenidae. The species is indigenous to southern Africa.
Etymology
The specific name, leonhardi, is in honor of German ethnographer Leonhard Schultze-Jena.
Geographic range
M. leonhardi is found in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Habitat
The preferred natural habitat of M. leonhardi is shallow sand.
Description
M. leonhardi is purplish pink dorsally, and pinkish ventrally. Adults usually have a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of 20–25 cm (7.9–9.8 in). The maximum recorded SVL is 29 cm (11 in).
Reproduction
The mode of reproduction of M. leonhardi is unknown.
References
- ^ Monopeltis leonhardi at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 24 February 2019.
- Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Monopeltis leonhardi, p. 155,; "Schultze", p. 238).
- ^ Branch, Bill (2004). Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa. Third Revised edition, Second impression. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 399 pp. ISBN 0-88359-042-5. (Monopeltis leonhardi, p. 125 + Plate 41).
Further reading
- Gans C (2010). "Checklist and Bibliography of the Amphisbaenia of the World". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History (289): 1–130. (Monopeltis leonhardi, p. 36).
- FitzSimons V, Brain CK (1958). "A Short Account of the Reptiles of the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park". Koedoe, African Protected Area Conservation and Science 1 (1): 99–104. (Monopeltis leonhardi, p. 102).
- Werner F (2010). "Reptilia et Amphibia". pp. 279–370. In: Schultze L (1910). "Zoologische und anthropologische Ergebnisse einer Forschungsreise im westlichen und zentralen Südafrika ausgeführt in den Jahren 1903–1905 mit Unterstützung der Kgl. preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin. Vierter Band: Systematik und Tiergeographie. Zweite Lieferung ". Denkschriften der medicinisch-naturwissenschaftlichen Gesellschaft zu Jena 16: 1–522 + Plates I–XIX. (Monopeltis leonhardi, new species, p. 328 + Plate VI, figures 2, 2a, 2b, 2c). (in German).
Taxon identifiers | |
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Monopeltis leonhardi |
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