Liolaemus fabiani, also known commonly as Fabian's lizard, Yanez's tree iguana, and lagartija de Fabián in Spanish, is a species of lizard in the family Liolaemidae.[3] The species is native to Chile.

Liolaemus fabiani
Liolaemus fabiani in the Salar de Atacama
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Iguania
Family: Liolaemidae
Genus: Liolaemus
Species:
L. fabiani
Binomial name
Liolaemus fabiani
Synonyms[2]

Etymology

edit

The specific name, fabiani, is in honor of Chilean ecologist Fabián Jaksic.[4]

Geographic range

edit

L. fabiani is endemic to the Salar de Atacama, the Atacama salt flat, in northern Chile.[5]

The species was first described by José L. Yáñez and Herman Núñez in 1983, from a sample collected at a high elevation, 2,450 m (8,040 ft), near San Pedro de Atacama in Llano de Vilama in September 1981 by the Chilean National Museum of Natural History.[6]

Habitat

edit

The preferred natural habitat of L. fabiani is hot desert, at altitudes of 2,300–3,000 m (7,500–9,800 ft), where it is found near water, and has been observed swimming in search of prey.[1]

Description

edit

Principle diagnostic features of L. fabiani are: "subtriangular head with temporal and occipital regions more prominent than in other species of the genus; dorsal humeral scales smooth and triangular; color pattern ornamented with red and black spots."[6]

Diet

edit

L. fabiani preys upon mosquitoes and other insects.[1]

Reproduction

edit

L. fabiani is viviparous.[2]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Nunez [sic], H.; Valladares, P.; Ruiz de Gamboa, M.; Mella, J.; Marambio, Y. (2017). "Liolaemus fabiani ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T56060171A56060173. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-2.RLTS.T56060171A56060173.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b Species Liolaemus fabiani at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
  3. ^ Liolaemus fabiani Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology.
  4. ^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Liolaemus fabiani, p. 88).
  5. ^ Escobar, Claudio M. et al. (2003). "Chemical Composition of Precloacal Secretions of Two Liolaemus fabiani Populations: Are They Different?". Journal of Chemical Ecology 29 (3): 629.
  6. ^ a b Yáñez, José L.; Núñez, Herman (1983)."Liolaemus fabiani, a New Species of Lizard from Northern Chile (Reptilia: Iguanidae)". Copeia 1983 (3): 788-790.

Further reading

edit
  • Núñez H, Yáñez J (1984). "Abas y Velosaura nuevos géneros de lagartos iguanidae y proposiciones sistemáticas respecto de los géneros aliados (Reptilia Squamata) ". Boletín del Museo Nacional de Historia Natural, Santiago de Chile 40: 91–95. (Abas fabiani, new combination). (in Spanish).
  • Ramírez-Leyton G, Pincheira-Donoso D (2005). Fauna del Altiplano y Desierto Atacama: Vertebrados de la Provincia de El Loa. Santiago de Chile: Phrynosaura Ediciones. 395 pp. (in Spanish).
edit