Carvalho's mabuya (''Panopa carvalhoi'') 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
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 ...
, a
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 ...
Scincidae. The species is native to northern
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 ...
, ''carvalhoi'', is in honor of Brazilian herpetologist
Antenor Leitão de Carvalho
Antenor Leitão de Carvalho is a Brazilian herpetologist and ichthyologist, born on 15 April 1910 and died on 11 December 1985 in Rio de Janeiro.
Taxa named in his honor
* '' Pipa carvalhoi''
* '' Plecostomus carvalhoi''
* '' Discocystus c ...
.
[ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Mabuya carvalhoi'', p. 49).]
Geographic range
''P. carvalhoi'' is found in the
Brazilian state of
Roraima
Roraima (, ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil. Located in the country's North Region, it is the northernmost and most geographically and logistically isolated state in Brazil. It is bordered by the state of Pará to the southeast, Amazonas ...
, and in
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
.
Habitat
The preferred natural
habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
s of ''P. carvalhoi'' are
forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
and
savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
.
Reproduction
''P. carvalhoi'' 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 ...
.
[
]
References
Further reading
*Rebouças-Spieker, Regina; Vanzolini, Paulo Emilio (1990). "Mabuya carvalhoi, ''espécie nova do estado de Roraima, Brasil (Sauria: Scincidae)''". ''Revista Brasileira de Biologia'' 50 (2): 377–386. (''Mabuya carvalhoi'', new species). (in Portuguese).
* Rivas GA, Molina CR, Ugueto GN, Barros TR, Barrio-Amorós CL, Kok PJR (2012). "Reptiles of Venezuela: an updated and commented checklist". ''Zootaxa'' 3211: 1–64.
Panopa
Skinks of Brazil
Reptiles of Venezuela
Reptiles described in 1990
Taxa named by Regina Rebouças-Spieker
Taxa named by Paulo Vanzolini
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