Morphological Differentiation and Species Delimitation of Lizards of the Genus Enyalius

• Grant number: 23/04311-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: June 01, 2023
• End date: May 31, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Morphology of Recent Groups
• Principal Investigator: Miguel Trefaut Urbano Rodrigues
• Grantee: Gabriel Neves Cardoso Coelho
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The genus Enyalius (Squamata, Leiosauridae) comprises small to mid-sized lizards that occupy forested areas in eastern South America. Their distribution is mostly limited to the Atlantic Forest, however they are also found in other Brazilian biomes. Currently, eleven species are formally recognized in the genus, but the taxonomy of Enyalius is complex, especially due to the high variation in color patterns and shapes, characteristic of the clade. Recent genetic studies carried out with the genus point to the existence of unrecognized diversity, indicating probable candidate species not yet described. Thus, when examining the external morphology of the taxon, through the analysis of meristic and morphometric characters, the present study aims to investigate the limit between the species of the genus, the existence of diagnostic morphological characters and describe the possible new species that prove to be morphologically distinct, with a special focus on populations of Enyalius catenatus, which occupy different regions of Bahia, and on the species E. perditus, currently recovered as paraphyletic in recent molecular phylogenies. This project is also willing to serve as a morphological database for molecular studies that are currently being carried out with the genus, whose phylogeny is being revised, thus helping in the taxonomic improvement of this lineage. This is of paramount importance for the elaboration of effective conservation policies that take into account the real diversity of the genus, especially in view of the current scenario of biodiversity crisis.