The Martinique curlytail lizard (''Leiocephalus herminieri'') is an extinct

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 ...

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 ...

curly-tailed lizard Leiocephalidae, also known as the curlytail lizards or curly-tailed lizards, is a family of iguanian lizards restricted to the West Indies. One of the defining features of these lizards is that their tail often curls over. They were previously ...

(Leiocephalidae).

Etymology

The specific name, ''herminieri'', commemorates French naturalist Félix Louis L'Herminier.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Leiocephalus herminieri'', p. 122).

Extant specimens

There are five specimens of ''L. herminieri'', of which three are deposited in the National Museum of Natural History, Paris, one in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, and the other in

Leiden Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...

Geographic range

Though

Martinique Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in th ...

is assumed as the geographic range of ''L. herminieri'', there was some confusion about the type locality in the past. While

André Marie Constant Duméril André Marie Constant Duméril (1 January 1774 – 14 August 1860) was a French zoologist. He was professor of anatomy at the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle from 1801 to 1812, when he became professor of herpetology and ichthyology. His ...

and

Gabriel Bibron Gabriel Bibron (20 October 1805 – 27 March 1848) was a French zoologist and herpetologist. He was born in Paris. The son of an employee of the Museum national d'histoire naturelle, he had a good foundation in natural history and was hir ...

stated Martinique and

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

as type locality,

George Albert Boulenger George Albert Boulenger (19 October 1858 – 23 November 1937) was a Belgian-British zoologist who described and gave scientific names to over 2,000 new animal species, chiefly fish, reptiles, and amphibians. Boulenger was also an active botani ...

has given only Trinidad and Tobago as ''terra typica''.

Biology and extinction

The biology of ''L. herminieri'', the reasons for its extinction, and the date of extinction are unknown. This species was last collected in the 1830s.

Description

Of the three specimens of ''L. herminieri'' in Paris, the largest female is measured at snout-to-vent length (SVL), and the largest male at SVL. The large head scales are more or less distinctly striate. The large dorsal scales are keeled and forming continuous oblique series. The smaller lateral and ventral scales are keeled too. The back is greenish brown with or without irregular yellowish crossbands. The head is yellowish with four or five black bars on the sides. The venter is yellowish. The throat has oblique black transverse bands.

References

* 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. (''Liocephalus'' ic''herminieri'', p. 166). * Duméril AMC, Bibron G (1837). ''Erpétologie générale ou Histoire naturelle complète des Reptiles. Tome quatrième'' olume 4 Paris: Roret. ii + 571 pp. (''Holotropis herminieri'', new species, pp. 261–263 + Plate 44). (in French). * 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. (''Leiocephalus herminieri'', p. 217). * Schwartz A, Henderson RW (1991). ''Amphibians and Reptiles of the West Indies: Descriptions, Distributions, and Natural History''. Gainesville, Florida: University Press of Florida. 714 pp. . *Schwartz A,

Thomas R Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

(1975). ''A Check-list of West Indian Amphibians and Reptiles''.

Carnegie Museum of Natural History The Carnegie Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as CMNH) is a natural history museum in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Pittsburgh-based industrialist Andrew Carnegie in 1896. Housing some 22 millio ...

Special Publication No. 1. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Carnegie Museum of Natural History. 216 pp. (''Leiocephalus herminieri'', p. 130).

External links

Illustration of ''Leiocephalus herminieri'' by Duméril and Bibron, PDF, 754 kb
Leiocephalus Reptile extinctions since 1500 Extinct reptiles Reptiles described in 1837 Taxa named by André Marie Constant Duméril Taxa named by Gabriel Bibron Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Endemic fauna of Martinique {{iguanidae-stub