First record of the lizard Procellosaurinus erythrocercus (Rodrigues

Herpetology Notes, volume 5: 35-36 (2012) (published online on 2 March 2012)
First record of the lizard Procellosaurinus erythrocercus
(Rodrigues, 1991), (Squamata: Gymnophtalmidae) for the Brazilian
state of Piauí, Brazil.
Marco Antonio de Freitas1* and Diogo Veríssimo2
The genus Procellosaurinus (Rodrigues, 1991)
currently comprises two species: Procellosaurinus
tetradactylus (Rodrigues, 1991) and P. erythrocercus
(Rodrigues, 1991). Procellosaurinus erythrocercus is a
little known lizard species considered to be endemic to
the west bank of the central São Francisco river, between
the municipalities of Barra and Casa Nova in the state of
Bahia, Brazil (Rodrigues, 1991; Rocha and Rodrigues,
2005). It is, so far, only known from its type locality.
During a visit to the municipality of Caracol, on the
10th of July, 2006 an adult individual of P. erythrocercus
(Fig. 1) was found dead in a sandy area of arboreal
1 Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade
(ICMBio). Rua do INCRA S/N. Eldorado. CEP 69932-000.
Brasiléia, AC, Brasil
2 University of Kent, Durrell Institute of Conservation and
Ecology. Canterbury, Kent CT2 7NR, UK;
*Corresponding author: [email protected]
Caatinga vegetation (-9,21 S -43,35 W; SIRGAS 200)
(Fig. 2). The specimen was deposited in the collection
of the Zoology Museum of the University of São Paulo,
in São Paulo (MZUSP 96890).
This is not only the first record for P. erythrocercus in
the state of Piauí but also the first record on the genus
Procellosaurinus outside the state of Bahia and, more
importantly, the west bank of the central São Francisco
river (Rodrigues, 1991; Rocha and Rodrigues 2005).
The known geographic distribution of P. erythrocercus
is extended 186 Km northwest of its type locality.
This novel record, which is a revised version of the
information presented by Freitas and Silva (2007)
on this species, highlights not only the need for more
research on this taxonomic group but also the need for
research on the herpetofauna of the Caatinga, a biome
subject to scientific neglect (Santos et al., 2011). Only
with improved knowledge can we hope to implement
effective management strategies for biodiversity
conservation in the only exclusively Brazilian biome.
Figure 1. Adult specimen of Procellosaurinus erythrocercus found in municipality of Caracol, Piauí, Brazil (Photo by Marco
Antonio de Freitas)
36
Marco Antonio de Freitas & Diogo Veríssimo
Acknowledgements. To the curator of the Zoology Museum
of the University of São Paulo, Hussan Zaher for receiving the
specimen and to Miguel Trefaut Rodrigues for confirming the
identification of the species.
References
Freitas, M.A. and Silva, T.F.S. (2007): A Herpetofauna das Caatingas e Áreas de Altitudes do Nordeste Brasileiro. Pelotas:
Editora União Sulamericana de Estudos da Biodiversidade.
384 p.
Pellegrino, K.C.M., Rodrigues, M.T., Yonenaga-Yassuda, Y.,
Sites, J. W. (2001): A molecular perspective on the evolution of
microteiid lizards (Squamata, Gymnophthalmidae), and a new
classification for the family. Biol. J. Linn. Soc. 74: 315–338.
Rocha, P.L.B., Rodrigues M.T. (2005): Electivities and resource
use by an assemblage of lizards endemic to the dunes of the
São Francisco River, northeastern Brazil. Pap. Avulsos Zool.
(São Paulo) 45: 261-284.
Rodrigues, M.T. (1991): Herpetofauna das dunas interiores do
Rio São Francisco: Bahia: Brasil III. Procellosaurinus: um
novo gênero de microteiideo sem pálpebra com a redefinição
do gênero Gymnophtalmus (Sauria, Teiidae). Pap. Avulsos
Zool. (São Paulo) 37: 329-3342.
Santos, J.C., Leal, I.R., Almeida-Cortez, J.S., Fernandes, G.W.,
Tabarelli, M. (2011): Caatinga: the scientific negligence experienced by a dry tropical forest. Trop. Conserv. Sci. 4: 276286.
Figure 2. New locality for Procellosaurinus erythrocercus,
Caracol, Piauí, Brazil
Accepted by Philip de Pous