''Cnemidophorus'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...

s in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Teiidae Teiidae is a family of autarchoglossan lizards native to the Americas. Members of this family are generally known as whiptails or racerunners; however, tegus also belong to this family. Teiidae is sister to the Gymnopthalmidae, and both famili ...

Species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

in the genus ''Cnemidophorus'' are commonly referred to as whiptail lizards or racerunners. The genus is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

, and the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

Taxonomy

Reeder et al. (2002) re-examined the

nomenclature Nomenclature (, ) is a system of names or terms, or the rules for forming these terms in a particular field of arts or sciences. The principles of naming vary from the relatively informal naming conventions, conventions of everyday speech to the i ...

for the genus ''Cnemidophorus'' (''

sensu lato ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular co ...

'') and split it into the two

genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...

Aspidoscelis ''Aspidoscelis'' is a genus of whiptail lizards in the family Teiidae. Taxonomy The nomenclature for the genus ''Aspidoscelis'' was published by T.W. Reeder et al. in 2002. Many species that were formerly included in the genus '' Cnemidophorus' ...

'' and ''Cnemidophorus'' (''

sensu stricto ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular co ...

''). A further split by Harvey et al. (2012) added the genera ''

Ameivula ''Ameivula'' is a genus of lizard that belongs to the family Teiidae Teiidae is a family of autarchoglossan lizards native to the Americas. Members of this family are generally known as whiptails or racerunners; however, tegus also belong to ...

'' and '' Contomastix''.

Etymology

The name ''Cnemidophorus'' literally means "

greave A greave (from the Old French ''greve'' "shin, shin armour") or jambeau is a piece of armour that protects the leg. Description The primary purpose of greaves is to protect the tibia from attack. The tibia, or shinbone, is very close to the skin ...

-wearing", from the Ancient Greek ' (

combining form Neoclassical compounds are compound words composed from combining forms (which act as affixes or stems) derived from classical Latin or ancient Greek roots. New Latin comprises many such words and is a substantial component of the technical an ...

of ', "greave", a leg armor) and ' ("bearer").

Reproduction

In some of the ''Cnemidophorus''

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

, there are no males, and they reproduce through

parthenogenesis Parthenogenesis (; from the Greek grc, παρθένος, translit=parthénos, lit=virgin, label=none + grc, γένεσις, translit=génesis, lit=creation, label=none) is a natural form of asexual reproduction in which growth and development ...

. This is well known in bees and

aphids Aphids are small sap-sucking insects and members of the superfamily Aphidoidea. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white woolly aphids. A t ...

, but is very rare in

vertebrate Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () ( chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, ...

s. Those species without males are now known to originate through hybridization, or interspecific breeding. Occasionally, a mating between a female of one species and a male of another produces a parthenogen, a female that is able to produce viable eggs that are genetically identical to her own cells. The lizards that hatch from these eggs are thus also parthenogens that can again produce identical

eggs Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...

, resulting in an asexual, clonal population. Parthenogenetic species resulting from a single hybridization are diploid (that is, they have two sets of chromosomes just as sexual species do), but sometimes these females mate with other males, producing offspring which are triploid (that is, they have three sets of chromosomes, or 50% more than equivalent sexual species; see

polyploidy Polyploidy is a condition in which the cells of an organism have more than one pair of ( homologous) chromosomes. Most species whose cells have nuclei ( eukaryotes) are diploid, meaning they have two sets of chromosomes, where each set contain ...

). Over 30% of the genus ''Cnemidophorus'' are parthenogenic.

Species

The genus ''Cnemidophorus'' (''sensu stricto'') contains the following species which are recognized as being valid.. www.reptile-database.org. *'' Cnemidophorus arenivagus'' *'' Cnemidophorus arubensis'' - Aruba whiptail *'' Cnemidophorus cryptus'' - cryptic racerunner *'' Cnemidophorus duellmani'' *'' Cnemidophorus espeuti'' *'' Cnemidophorus flavissimus'' *'' Cnemidophorus gaigei'' - Gaige's rainbow lizard *'' Cnemidophorus gramivagus'' *'' Cnemidophorus lemniscatus'' - rainbow whiptail *'' Cnemidophorus leucopsammus'' *'' Cnemidophorus murinus'' - Laurent's whiptail *'' Cnemidophorus nigricolor'' *'' Cnemidophorus pseudolemniscatus'' - Colee's racerunner *'' Cnemidophorus rostralis'' *'' Cnemidophorus ruatanus'' *'' Cnemidophorus ruthveni'' *'' Cnemidophorus senectus'' *'' Cnemidophorus splendidus'' - blue rainbow lizard *'' Cnemidophorus vanzoi'' - Saint Lucia whiptail, Vanzo's whiptail ''

Nota bene (, or ; plural form ) is a Latin phrase meaning "note well". It is often abbreviated as NB, n.b., or with the ligature and first appeared in English writing . In Modern English, it is used, particularly in legal papers, to draw the atten ...

'': A

binomial authority In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Cnemidophorus''.

References

3. “Western Whiptail Lizard.” Whiptail Lizard - Desert Wildlife, digital-desert.com/wildlife/whiptail-lizard.html

External links

''Cnemidophorus deppei'' and other lizards of Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve, Nicaragua
* Reeder, Tod W.; Dessauer, Herbert C.; Cole, Charles J. (2002). Phylogenetic relationships of whiptail lizards of the genus ''Cnemidophorus'' (Squamata, Teiidae): a test of monophyly, reevaluation of karyotypic evolution, and review of hybrid origins. ''American Museum Novitates'' (3365): 1-61

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1004429 Cnemidophorus, Lizard genera Taxa named by Johann Georg Wagler