Tag Archives: Leiocephalus cuneus

Leiocephalus cuneus ssp. ‘Antigua’

Antigua Curly-tailed Lizard (Leiocephalus cuneus ssp.)  

The Antigua Curly-tailed Lizard is known only from subfossil remains, which are assigned to the Barbuda Curly-tailed Lizard (Leiocephalus cuneus Etheridge).  

I’d like to refer to this form from the island of Antigua, Antigua and Barbuda, as a subspecies distinct from its Barbudan congener, since both islands, Antigua and Barbuda, are disconnected since the end of the Pleistocene era about 10000 years ago.  

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References:  

[1] Gregory K. Pregill: Systematics of the West Indian Lizard Genus Leiocephalus (Squamata: Iguania: Tropiduridae). Miscellaneous Publications of the Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas 84: 1-69. 1992

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edited: 08.09.2019

Leiocephalus cuneus Etheridge

Barbuda Curly-tailed Lizard (Leiocephalus cuneus)  

This species was described in 1964 based on subfossil bones that had been found one year prior on the island of Barbuda, Antigua and Barbuda.  

The species is said to have been the largest within its genus, it might in fact have reached sizes of over 40 cm (including the tail). [1][2]  

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The Barbuda Curly-tailed Lizard has survived at least until the 15th century, but died out shortly after the arrival of the first European settlers who also introduced rats to the islands, which again probably killed many of the endemic reptiles.  

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References:  

[1] David W. Steadman; Gregory K. Pregill; Storrs L. Olson: Fossil vertebrates from Antigua, Lesser Antilles: Evidence for late Holocene human-caused extinctions in the West Indies. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 81: 4448-4451. 1984 
[2] Gregory K. Pregill: Systematics of the West Indian Lizard Genus Leiocephalus (Squamata: Iguania: Tropiduridae). Miscellaneous Publications of the Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas 84: 1-69. 1992  

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edited: 08.09.2019