Plica is a genus of tropidurid lizards found in South America and the Caribbean. Species in the genus Plica are arboreal, medium-sized lizards.[1]
Taxonomy
For a long time, the genus Plica was considered to include four species: two relatively widespread ones (P. plica and P. umbra) and two tepuis-associated species with narrow distributions (P. lumaria and P. pansticta). However, recent research has shown that P. plica is a cryptic species complex, and four new species were described in 2013. The species count will likely increase as there are still several undescribed species.[1]
Species
The currently recognized species are the following:[2]
- Plica lumaria Donnelly & C. Myers, 1991
- Plica pansticta (C. Myers & Donnelly, 2001)
- Plica plica (Linnaeus, 1758) – collared tree runner, tree runner
- Plica umbra (Linnaeus, 1758) – blue-lipped tree lizard, harlequin racerunner
Formerly included in Plica plica:[1]
- Plica caribeana Murphy & Jowers, 2013 – Caribbean treerunner
- Plica kathleenae Murphy & Jowers, 2013 – Kathleen's treerunner
- Plica medemi Murphy & Jowers, 2013 – Medem's treerunner
- Plica rayi Murphy & Jowers, 2013 – Ray's treerunner
Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Plica.
References
- ^ a b c Murphy JC, Jowers MJ (2013). "Treerunners, cryptic lizards of the Plica plica group (Squamata, Sauria, Tropiduridae) of northern South America". ZooKeys (355): 49–77. Bibcode:2013ZooK..355...49M. doi:10.3897/zookeys.355.5868. PMC 3867189. PMID 24363569.
- ^ Plica at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 21 May 2014..
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