Confirmation of the presence of the Striped Lizard Eater, Mastigodryas dorsalis (Bocourt, 1890) (Squamata, Colubridae), in Mexico

Abstract

The snake Mastigodryas dorsalis (Bocourt, 1890) is generally considered absent from Mexico, but a few sources indicate otherwise. Herein we resolve this issue by re-examining a historical specimen and by reporting new records for M. dorsalis in Chiapas, Mexico. These records extend the known distribution of the species 87 km northwest of the nearest pre-existing record in Guatemala. Additionally, based on these new records and an exhaustive literature review, we present an updated distribution for the species and revise its known elevational range to 300–2110 m. A complete Spanish translation of this paper is available in the Supplemental Data. Una traducción completa al español de este artículo está disponible en los Datos Suplementarios.

Bridging the gap: A new species of arboreal Abronia (Squamata: Anguidae) from the Northern Highlands of Chiapas, Mexico

“…In Mexico, the mountains of the southernmost state of Chiapas remain especially promising for undocumented herpetofaunal diversity. These areas of Chiapas recently yielded range extensions and the first records for Mexico of a snake and a rarely-seen salamander [ 50 , 51 ], plus an endemic arboreal Abronia species entirely new to science [ 44 ]. A likely region for additional such finds is the underexplored system of massifs in the north-central part of the state.…”

An updated list of the Mexican herpetofauna: with a summary of historical and contemporary studies

“…Similar numbers of amphibians (376) and reptiles (864) were reported by Parra-Olea et al (2014) and Flores-Villela and García-Vázquez (2014) , respectively; however, more recent studies showed an increase to 1,395 native species (394 amphibians, and 898 reptiles; Johnson et al 2017 ; Balderas-Valdivia et al 2022 ). These studies did not consider any introduced species and should be updated with recent taxonomic changes and new species and records (i.e., Hidalgo-García et al 2023 ). Additionally, increases in the richness and diversity of the herpetofauna is constantly monitored (i. e. Herpetología Mexicana 2023 ; Mesoamerican Herpetology Taxonomic List 2023 ) but they do not provide a historical analysis of the richness or the proportion of state herpetofaunal biodiversity.…”