Morphological and genetic differentiation in the anguid lizard Pseudopus apodus supports the existence of an endemic subspecies in the Levant

Jablonski, Daniel; Ribeiro‐Júnior, Marco Antônio; Meiri, Shai; Maza, Erez; Kukushkin, Oleg V.; Chirikova, Marina A.; Pirosová, Angelika; Jelić, Dušan; Mikulíček, Peter; Jandzík, Dávid

doi:10.3897/vz.71.e60800

Cited by 8 publications

(19 citation statements)

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“…In view of the low genetic variability in three species considered in the past to be E . sauromates we hypothesize that their current ranges reflect relatively rapid dispersion events during the Late Pleistocene or even the Early Holocene (see also another large-sized reptile of the region, Pseudopus apodus 31 ). Fossil records (as shown in Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…apodus levantinus ), species (e.g., Daboia palaestinae ), and genus levels (e.g., Phoenicolacerta spp. 30 , 31 ). This could be related to rapid past environment changes which supported speciation and strong selection from Oligocene up to Pliocene 42 , 62 – 64 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This was not tested, and the Levant population is currently assigned to E. sauromates 12,22,29,30 . On the other hand, a high level of reptile endemism in Southern Levant region 31 , and the wide (~ 400 km) gap between the Southern Levant Elaphe population and closest populations of the genus, may imply the Levant is a fourth geographic centre of independent evolution in the E. quatuorlineata group and the population potentially deserving species status.…”

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confidence: 99%

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A new, rare, small-ranged, and endangered mountain snake of the genus Elaphe from the Southern Levant

Jablonski

Ribeiro‐Júnior

Simonov

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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The genus Elaphe Fitzinger, 1833 includes 17 species of charismatic, large-sized, non-venomous, Eurasian snakes. In the Western Palearctic, the genus is represented by three species from the Elaphe quatuorlineata group ranging from the Apennine peninsula to Central Asia. The southernmost population of this group is distributed in the mountains of the Southern Levant, with more than 400 km gap to other Elaphe populations. This population has been known to science for only 50 years and is virtually unstudied due to its extreme rarity. We studied these snakes’ morphological and genetic variation from the three countries where they are known to occur, i.e., Israel (Hermon, the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights), Lebanon, and Syria. We used nine mitochondrial and nuclear genes, complete mitogenome sequences, and a comprehensive morphological examination including published data, our own field observations, and museum specimens, to study its relationship to other species in the group. The three currently recognized species of the group (E. quatuorlineata, E. sauromates, E. urartica), and the Levant population, form four deeply divergent, strongly supported clades. Three of these clades correspond to the abovementioned species while the Southern Levant clade, which is genetically and morphologically distinct from all named congeners, is described here as a new species, Elaphe druzei sp. nov. The basal divergence of this group is estimated to be the Late Miocene with subsequent radiation from 5.1 to 3.9 Mya. The revealed biogeography of the E. quatuorlineata group supports the importance of the Levant as a major center of endemism and diversity of biota in Eurasia. The new species is large-sized and is one of the rarest snakes in the Western Palearctic. Because of its small mountain distribution range, in an area affected by land use and climate change, the new Elaphe urgently needs strict protection. Despite political issues, we hope this will be based on the cooperation of all countries where the new species occurs.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A new, rare, small-ranged, and endangered mountain snake of the genus Elaphe from the Southern Levant

Jablonski

Ribeiro‐Júnior

Simonov

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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“…These are Gerrhonotinae, Anniellinae, and the extinct Glyptosaurinae (Sullivan 1979(Sullivan , 2019Gauthier et al 2012;. Nowadays, anguines are represented solely by legless forms (note, however, that some fossil taxa were not legless, see Sullivan et al 1999;Čerňanský and Klembara 2017) included in three genera: the glass lizard Ophisaurus Daudin, 1803 from Northern America, Southeast Asia [=Dopasia Gray, 1853], and Northern Africa [=Hyalosaurus Günther, 1873]; the slow worm Anguis Linnaeus, 1758 from Europe and Western Asia; and the Sheltopusik Pseudopus Merrem, 1820, from southeastern Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia (Estes 1983;Sindaco and Jeremčenko 2008;Jablonski et al 2021). All three taxa are also present in the Neogene of Europe.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Today, Pseudopus is represented only by a single extant species Pseudopus apodus. Populations of this species are considered to pertain to three sub-species: Pseudopus apodus thracius Obst, 1978 from the western-most part of the geographic range of the species (i.e., coastal Croatia, Greece, Northwestern Anatolia), Pseudopus apodus apodus Pallas, 1775 from Asia Minor and Central Asia, and Pseudopus apodus levantinus Jablonski, Ribeiro-Junior, Meiri, Maza, Mikulíček & Jandzik, 2021 from the Levant (Jandzik et al 2018;Glavaš et al 2020;Jablonski et al 2021). The genus Pseudopus is also known in the fossil record by a plethora of upper Cenozoic remains from localities all across Europe (Klembara 1981;Klembara and Rummel 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The easternmost record of the largest anguine lizard that has ever lived – Pseudopus pannonicus (Squamata, Anguidae): new fossils from the late Neogene of Eastern Europe

Loréal¹,

Syromyatnikova²,

Danilov³

et al. 2023

foss-rec

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We here report on new material of Pseudopus pannonicus, the iconic and largest-known representative of the lizard clade Anguinae, from several late Neogene localities across Moldova, Ukraine, and regions of the North Caucasus – the last representing the easternmost known occurrence of this extinct species. Today, Pseudopus apodus, the last extant Pseudopus representative, is found in a variety of habitats ranging from South-East Europe to Central Asia. In the late Cenozoic of Europe, however, several extinct species of Pseudopus existed. Among them, interestingly, P. pannonicus displayed the largest spatiotemporal range of the genus, occurring from Spain to the North Caucasus and known from the Late Miocene to the Early Pleistocene. Although it has been reported in a plethora of European localities, P. pannonicus is a taxon “with several questionings related to its few diagnostic features vs. numerous features shared with P. apodus”. The elements described here exhibit some variability, but their overall morphology undoubtedly resembles that of previously described material of P. pannonicus. The lacrimal from Tatareshty, moreover, represents the first fossil lacrimal reported for P. pannonicus. Besides, the fairly complete maxilla with a length of almost 3.7 cm is the largest maxilla ever reported for this taxon, expanding our knowledge of its gigantism. In addition, several features are described and discussed regarding their diagnostic relevance for P. pannonicus. The relationship between body size and some of these features was tested statistically. Consequently, two cranial characters and one vertebral feature peculiar to P. pannonicus were retained in the diagnosis of the species.

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Pseudopus pannonicus (Squamata), the largest known anguid lizard—Redescription of the type material and new specimens from the Neogene and Quaternary of Hungary and Poland

Loréal,

Georgalis,

Čerňanský

2024

The Anatomical Record

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Herein, we revise the material of the extinct taxon Pseudopus pannonicus from Central Europe, the largest known anguid lizard and iconic member of herpetofaunas from the Upper Cenozoic of Europe. The geographical position of Polgárdi 2, the type locality of P. pannonicus, as well as several other closely located important localities make Central Europe a valuable area of high interest for studies regarding European Cenozoic palaeoherpetological assemblages. We clarified the nature of the type material of Pseudopus pannonicus, showing that it consisted not only of the five specimens originally figured. Instead, the syntype series also includes a considerable number of specimens from Polgárdi 2 that were only described or figured 12 years after the original description of P. pannonicus. Detailed osteological descriptions are provided for specimens from the type series and Polish specimens, with the aid of high‐resolution imaging (SEM and μCT scanning), and intraspecific variability is discussed. The articular surface with the lappet of the parietal overlapping the frontal is discussed as a character potentially relevant for the diagnosis of P. pannonicus. We updated the identification of several specimens of P. pannonicus and discussed the biogeographic implications of such revisions. In Poland, P. pannonicus is an abundant component of Neogene and early Quaternary herpetofaunas, known with certainty from the Middle Miocene of Przeworno (the oldest known occurrence of the species globally), the Early–Late Pliocene of Węże I, the Late Pliocene of Rębielice Królewskie I, the Late Pliocene of Węże II, and the Early Pleistocene of Kadzielnia (one of the youngest occurrences documented globally). An indeterminate anguine with Anguis affinities is newly reported from Rębielice Królewskie II. The taxonomic status of other large anguids from the Neogene of Europe is discussed and we conclude that most are junior synonyms of P. pannonicus. We also show that another purported synonym, that is, Ophisaurus intermedius from the Early Pleistocene of Romania, is instead a nomen nudum. We conducted phylogenetic analyses (18 taxa, 65 characters) to understand the relationship of P. pannonicus relative to other anguid representatives and anguid‐related group (i.e., glyptosaurids). A single most parsimonious tree (length: 134 steps) was recovered. The clade Pseudopus is stable, comprising the two distinct sister subclades [Pseudopus laurillardi + Pseudopus ahnikoviensis] and [Pseudopus pannonicus + Pseudopus apodus]. These phylogenetic results are in accordance with previously published works.

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Morphological and genetic differentiation in the anguid lizard Pseudopus apodus supports the existence of an endemic subspecies in the Levant

Cited by 8 publications

References 71 publications

A new, rare, small-ranged, and endangered mountain snake of the genus Elaphe from the Southern Levant

A new, rare, small-ranged, and endangered mountain snake of the genus Elaphe from the Southern Levant

The easternmost record of the largest anguine lizard that has ever lived – Pseudopus pannonicus (Squamata, Anguidae): new fossils from the late Neogene of Eastern Europe

Pseudopus pannonicus (Squamata), the largest known anguid lizard—Redescription of the type material and new specimens from the Neogene and Quaternary of Hungary and Poland

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Morphological and genetic differentiation in the anguid lizard Pseudopus apodus supports the existence of an endemic subspecies in the Levant

Cited by 8 publications

References 71 publications

A new, rare, small-ranged, and endangered mountain snake of the genus Elaphe from the Southern Levant

A new, rare, small-ranged, and endangered mountain snake of the genus Elaphe from the Southern Levant

﻿The easternmost record of the largest anguine lizard that has ever lived – Pseudopus pannonicus (Squamata, Anguidae): new fossils from the late Neogene of Eastern Europe

Pseudopus pannonicus (Squamata), the largest known anguid lizard—Redescription of the type material and new specimens from the Neogene and Quaternary of Hungary and Poland

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The easternmost record of the largest anguine lizard that has ever lived – Pseudopus pannonicus (Squamata, Anguidae): new fossils from the late Neogene of Eastern Europe