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Vol. 42 No. 3, 2003
Taxonomic Status of the Legless Lizard Ophisaurus (Squamata: Anguidae) in Taiwan: Molecular Data, Morphology, and Literature Review
Si-Min Lin1, Wen-Shiang Chang2, Szu-Lung Chen3, Gaus Shang1 and Kuang-Yang Lue1,*
1Department of Biology, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan 106
2Vivarium Landscape Design Company, Sindian City, Taipei County, Taiwan 231
3Taipei Zoo, Mucha, Taipei, Taiwan 116
Si-Min Lin, Wen-Shiang Chang, Szu-Lung Chen, Gaus Shang and Kuang-Yang Lue (2003) The legless lizard genus Ophisaurus is in the family Anguidae. Two species are currently recognized in Taiwan: O. harti with blue dorsal markings, and O. formosensis with uniform dorsal coloration. However, due to the secretive life history and extremely few records, the taxonomic status of O. formosensis remains problematic. In order to resolve this controversy, molecular and morphology data were obtained from 14 Ophisaurus individuals with blue dorsal markings (O. harti) and 5 without markings (O. formosensis). Complete 12S rRNA and partial cytochrome b
sequences revealed no genetic differentiation between these 2 color
morphs; in addition, some of their haplotypes are shared. We reviewed
the related literature and evaluated 8 different morphological
characters that were once mentioned or still apply for species
recognition, but none of them provided a diagnostic distinction between
these 2 color morphs in our samples. Furthermore, some characters of O. formosensis
proposed by recent herpetologists are incongruent with the description
of the holotype in the original paper. Based on their sympatric
distribution, we conclude that there is only 1 Ophisaurus species in Taiwan, and O. formosensis should be a synonym of O. harti.
Key words: Legless lizards, Ophisaurus, Anguidae, Taiwan.
*Correspondence: Tel: 886-2-29326234 ext. 312. E-mail: biofv025@scc.ntnu.edu.tw
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