Taxonomic status and distribution of the scincid lizards Emoia adspersa Steindachner and E. lawesii Gunther on islands of the southwestern Pacific
Schwaner TD and Brown WC. 1984. Taxonomic status and distribution of the scincid lizards Emoia adspersa Steindachner and E. lawesii Gunther on islands of the southwestern Pacific. Herpetologica. 40(2):158-164
The taxonomic statuses of Emoia adspersa Steindachner, 1870, and E. lawesii Günther, 1874, are reviewed. Re-examination of types, previous collections, and new material from Western Samoa and American Samoa, demonstrates that the two species are distinct, differing in color pattern, adult body size, number of and shape of subdigital lamellae beneath the toes, and number of infralabial scales. They also are distributed allopatrically along a chain of Micronesian and Polynesian islands.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Schwaner, Terry; Brown, Walter
- Units
- NPSA
- Keywords
- Animal Studies, Emoia (Scincidae), Emoia adspersa, Lawes skink (Emoia lawesii), Lizards (Lacertilia)