''Liolaemus gravenhorstii'', commonly known as Gravenhorst's tree iguana, is a
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 ...
of
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 ...
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 ...
Iguanidae
The Iguanidae is a family of lizards composed of the iguanas, chuckwallas, and their prehistoric relatives, including the widespread green iguana.
Taxonomy
Iguanidae is thought to be the sister group to the collared lizards (family Crotaph ...
. The species 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 ...
to
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 ...
.
Etymology
The
specific name Specific name may refer to:
* in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database
In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules:
* Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...
, ''gravenhorstii'', is in honor of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
herpetologist
Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and rept ...
Johann Ludwig Christian Gravenhorst
Johann Ludwig Christian Carl Gravenhorst (14 November 1777 – 14 January 1857), sometimes Jean Louis Charles or Carl, was a German entomologist, herpetologist, and zoologist.
Life
Gravenhorst was born in Braunschweig. His early interest in insec ...
.
[Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Liolaemus gravenhorstii'', p. 106).]
Geographic range
''L. gravenhorstii'' is found in western
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
(in the provinces of
Mendoza and
San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to:
Places Argentina
* San Juan Province, Argentina
* San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province
* San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province
* San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...
) and in central
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
.
[
]
References
Further reading
* Boulenger GA (1885). ''Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume II. Iguanidæ ... ''London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 497 pp. + Plates I-XXIV. (''Liolæmus gravenhorstii'', new combination, pp. 142-143 + Plate X, figures 1, 1a).
* Gray JE (1845). ''Catalogue of the Specimens of Lizards in the Collection of the British Museum''. London: Trustees of the British Museum. (Edward Newman, printer). xxviii + 289 pp. (''Leiodera gravenhorstii'', new species, p. 211).
External links
ZipcodeZoo: ''Liolaemus gravenhorstii''How to keep lizards
gravenhorstii
Lizards of South America
Endemic fauna of Chile
Reptiles of Chile
Reptiles described in 1845
Taxa named by John Edward Gray
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
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