''Mabuya'' 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 ...
of long-tailed
skink
Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae, a family in the infraorder Scincomorpha. With more than 1,500 described species across 100 different taxonomic genera, the family Scincidae is one of the most diverse families of lizards. Ski ...
s restricted to
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 ...
from various Caribbean islands. They are primarily carnivorous, though many are omnivorous. The genus is
viviparous
Among animals, viviparity is development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. This is opposed to oviparity which is a reproductive mode in which females lay developing eggs that complete their development and hatch externally from the m ...
, having a highly evolved
placenta
The placenta is a temporary embryonic and later fetal organ that begins developing from the blastocyst shortly after implantation. It plays critical roles in facilitating nutrient, gas and waste exchange between the physically separate mater ...
that resembles that of
eutheria
Eutheria (; from Greek , 'good, right' and , 'beast'; ) is the clade consisting of all therian mammals that are more closely related to placentals than to marsupials.
Eutherians are distinguished from noneutherians by various phenotypic tra ...
n
mammal
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
s. Formerly, many
Old World
The "Old World" is a term for Afro-Eurasia that originated in Europe , after Europeans became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia, which were previously thought of by the ...
species were placed here, as ''Mabuya'' was a kind of "
wastebasket taxon
Wastebasket taxon (also called a wastebin taxon, dustbin taxon or catch-all taxon) is a term used by some taxonomists to refer to a taxon that has the sole purpose of classifying organisms that do not fit anywhere else. They are typically defined ...
". These Old World species are now placed in the
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 ...
''
Chioninia
__NOTOC__
''Chioninia'' is a genus of skinks, lizards in the subfamily Lygosominae. For long, this genus was included in the "wastebin taxon" ''Mabuya''. The genus ''Chioninia'' contains the Cape Verde mabuyas.
Description
Species in the genus ' ...
'', ''
Eutropis
''Eutropis'' is a genus of skinks belonging to the subfamily Mabuyinae. For long, this genus was included in the "wastebin taxon" ''Mabuya''; it contains the Asian mabuyas. They often share their habitat with the related common skinks (''Spheno ...
'', and ''
Trachylepis
''Trachylepis'' is a skink genus in the subfamily Mabuyinae found mainly in Africa. Its members were formerly included in the "wastebin taxon" ''Mabuya'', and for some time in '' Euprepis''. As defined today, ''Trachylepis'' contains the clade ...
''. Under the older classification, the
New World
The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...
species were referred to as "American mabuyas", and now include the genera ''
Alinea Alinea may refer to:
* Alinea (restaurant) in Chicago
* In several languages : an indenting or a pilcrow
The pilcrow, ¶, is a handwritten or typographical character used to identify a paragraph. It is also called the paragraph ma ...
'', ''
Aspronema
''Aspronema'' is a genus of skinks.
Species
The following 2 species, listed alphabetically by specific name, are recognized as being valid:
*'' Aspronema cochabambae'' (Dunn, 1935)
*'' Aspronema dorsivittatum'' (Cope, 1862) – Paraguay mabuy ...
'', ''
Brasiliscincus
''Brasiliscincus'' is a genus of skinks. Species are endemic to Brazil. Species were previously placed in the genus ''Mabuya''.
Species
The following 3 species, listed alphabetically by Specific name (zoology), specific name, are recognized as b ...
'', ''
Capitellum
In human anatomy of the arm, the capitulum of the humerus is a smooth, rounded eminence on the lateral portion of the distal articular surface of the humerus. It articulates with the cupshaped depression on the head of the radius, and is limite ...
'', ''
Maracaiba
''Maracaiba'' is a genus of skinks.
Species
The following 2 species, listed alphabetically by specific name, are recognized as being valid:
*'' Maracaiba meridensis'' ()
*'' Maracaiba zuliae'' ()
''Nota bene'': A binomial authority
In ...
'', ''
Marisora'', ''
Varzea'', and ''
Copeoglossum
''Copeoglossum'' is a genus of skinks. They were previously placed in the genus ''Mabuya''.
Species
The following five species, listed alphabetically by specific name, are recognized as being valid:
*'' Copeoglossum arajara'' (Reboucas-Spieker ...
''.
Most species in this genus are feared to be
possibly extinct
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biologi ...
due to introduced predators.
Species
Listed alphabetically by
specific name.
''Mabuya''
The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
*''Mabuya cochonae
Cochon's skink (''Mabuya cochonae'') is a species of skink found in Guadeloupe. It is considered to be possibly extinct
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List ...
'' – Cochon's skink (possibly extinct)
*''Mabuya desiradae
The Désirade skink (''Mabuya desiradae'') is a species of skink found in Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of ...
'' – Désirade skink
*''Mabuya dominicana
The Dominica skink (''Mabuya dominicana'') is a species of skink found in Dominica
Dominica ( or ; Kalinago: ; french: Dominique; Dominican Creole French: ), officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. T ...
'' – Dominica skink
*''Mabuya grandisterrae
The Grande-Terre skink (''Mabuya grandisterrae'') is a species of skink found in Guadeloupe. It is considered to be possibly extinct
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the I ...
'' – Grande-Terre skink (possibly extinct)
*'' Mabuya guadeloupae'' – Guadeloupe skink (possibly extinct)
*'' Mabuya hispaniolae'' – Hispaniolan two-lined skink (possibly extinct)
*''Mabuya mabouya
The Greater Martinique skink (''Mabuya mabouya'') is a species of skink found on Martinique. It has shiny, bronze-colored skin, with a pair of light stripes that run along its upper flanks.
It was previously thought to be widespread throughou ...
'' – Greater Martinique skink (possibly extinct)
*'' Mabuya montserratae'' – Montserrat skink (possibly extinct)
*'' Mabuya parviterrae'' – Petite Terre skink
''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 ''Mabuya''.
References
Further reading
* Fitzinger LI (1826). ''Neue Classification der Reptilien nach ihren natürlichen Verwandtschaften. Nebst einer Verwandtschafts-tafel und einem Verzeichnisse der Reptilien-Sammlung des K.K. Zoologischen Museums zu Wien''. Vienna: J.G. Heubner. 5 unnumbered + 67 pp. + one plate. (''Mabuya'', new genus, p. 23). (in 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 ...
and Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
).
External links
*
*
''Mabuya'' by Cyberlizard
at web.archive.org.
Skinks
Taxa named by Leopold Fitzinger
Lizard genera
{{Lygosominae-stub