{"id":3069,"date":"2020-01-17T20:00:30","date_gmt":"2020-01-17T20:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.moroccoherps.com\/?page_id=3069"},"modified":"2020-03-23T18:29:07","modified_gmt":"2020-03-23T18:29:07","slug":"acanthodactylus_longipes","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.moroccoherps.com\/en\/ficha\/acanthodactylus_longipes\/","title":{"rendered":"Species page of Acanthodactylus longipes"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Long Fringe-fingered Lizard
\nAcanthodactylus longipes<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0Boulenger, 1918<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n
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By\u00a0Mario Schweiger<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Updated:\u00a04\/10\/2012<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Taxonomy:\u00a0Sauria\u00a0|\u00a0Lacertidae\u00a0|\u00a0Acanthodactylus\u00a0|\u00a0Acanthodactylus longipes<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Acanthodactylus
Acanthodactylus longipes. Merzouga. Photo: \u00a9 Mario Schweiger.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Range<\/p>\n

\"\"\u00a0\u00a0Acanthodactylus longipes<\/span><\/p>\n

Distribution map of
\nAcanthodactylus longipes<\/span>
\nin Morocco.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Gallery: 3 photos.\u00a0[ENTER]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Phylogenetic frame<\/h2>\n

Acanthodactylus scutellatus<\/span>\u00a0var.\u00a0longipes<\/span>\u00a0Boulenger, 1918;
\nAcanthodactylus longipes<\/span>\u00a0Bons & Girot, 1962
\nAcanthodactylus longipes panousei<\/span>\u00a0Bons & Girot 1964 is, following Crochet\u00a0et al.<\/em>, 2003 not valid.<\/p>\n

Description<\/h2>\n

Acanthodactylus longipes<\/span>\u00a0belongs to the\u00a0A.\u00a0scutellatus<\/span>\u00a0group. Over a wide range from Morocco in the west to Libya in the east it shares the same distribution and also nearly the same habitat with\u00a0Acanthodactylus dumerilii<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\"Acanthodactylus
Male. Merzouga. Photo: \u00a9 Mario Schweiger.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

It is nearly impossible to assign a specimen to one of these two species in field, because they share most of the diagnostic features. Both species only differ in the number of dorsal scale rows, but these counting are hard to do without a magnifier and on a life specimen.<\/p>\n

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Scalation differences between\u00a0A. dumerilii<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0A. longipes<\/span>\u00a0after Crochet\u00a0et al.<\/em>, 2003.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
<\/th>\nA. dumerilii<\/span><\/th>\nA. longipes<\/span><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Dorsal scale rows at midbody<\/th>\n39 – 51<\/td>\n55 – 57<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ventrals transversal rows<\/th>\n12 – 17<\/td>\n13 – 19<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ventrals longitudinal rows<\/th>\n28 – 38<\/td>\n28 – 37<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Supraciliary granules rows<\/th>\n1
\n1.5
\n2
\n2.5<\/td>\n		55.7%
\n16.2%
\n27.0%
\n1.1%<\/td>\n		1
\n1.5
\n2
\n2.5
\n3<\/td>\n		7.8%
\n6.3%
\n62.5%
\n0.9%
\n12.5%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

For us, the most easy difference in the field was the coloration of both species. While\u00a0A.\u00a0dumerilii<\/span><\/a>\u00a0shows some dark brown to black tiny spots on the flanks, these have been lacking in all\u00a0A.\u00a0longipes<\/span> specimens. Therefore, A.\u00a0longipes<\/span> has a much more uniform appearance in coloration.<\/p>\n

Ecology and habits<\/h2>\n

Acanthodactylus longipes<\/span>\u00a0is a lizard species of the open, wind blown dunes. We observed them high up in the dunes or in dune valleys, far away from any vegetation. Only a very few specimens have been encountered at the edge of dunes with some more dense vegetation (bushes, halfa grass), where it shares the habitat with\u00a0A.\u00a0dumerilii<\/span><\/a>\u00a0(own observations at Erg Chebbi, SE Morocco). It hides in self burrowed holes, which are digged every day new.<\/p>\n

Like other desert species, it is active during full sunshine on the hot sand. To avoid burnings, it lifts its body or its feet from the hot sand regulary.<\/p>\n

Distribution, habitat and abundance<\/h2>\n

Acanthodactylus longipes<\/span>\u00a0is distributed throughout the Sahara from the Atlantic coast in the west (Mauritania) the Sinai in the east. To the south it lives up to the Sahel zone. In Morocco\u00a0Acanthodactylus longipes<\/span>\u00a0lives in the dunes of Erg Chebbi and the dunes of Mhamid. There is no official record for the Western Sahara, although it is known from very close regions in Mauritania (dunes of Ouarane) (Geniez\u00a0et al.<\/em>\u00a02004).<\/p>\n

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\"Habitat
Habitat. Merzouga. Photo: \u00a9 Mario Schweiger.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

We could observe them only on large open dunes with no or just very few vegetation. Near the Erg Chebbi, where it is very common, we didn\u2019t find it on smaller dunes, separated by less than 2 kilometers of black Reg desert from the Erg, some kilometres north of Merzouga.<\/p>\n

Whole range of species: Lower risk-least concern (LR-Lc).<\/p>\n

References<\/h3>\n