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First Records of the Rainbow Mabuya Trachylepis Quinquetaeniata (Lichtenstein, 1823) (Squamata: Scincidae) in Algeria

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First Records of the Rainbow Mabuya Trachylepis Quinquetaeniata (Lichtenstein, 1823) (Squamata: Scincidae) in Algeria Herpetology Notes, volume 9: 167-169 (2016) (published online on 24 August 2016) First records of the Rainbow Mabuya Trachylepis quinquetaeniata (Lichtenstein, 1823) (Squamata: Scincidae) in Algeria Rouag Rachid1,*, Dahel Ramdane2, Rahmouni Salima2, Benkacimi Sara2 and Ziane Nadia3 The genus Mabuya represents a species-rich group of arboreal but several species (e.g. T. planifrons, T. mostly medium sized lizards of the family Scincidae, maculilabris) spend much of their time in trees (Spawls subfamily Lygosominae. It was one of the largest genera et al., 2002). of the family Scincidae, and the only skink genus with a The Five-lined Mabuya (T. quinquetaeniata), also circumtropical distribution (Greer and Broadley, 2000; called Rainbow Mabuya or blue-tailed Skink (due to the Greer and Nussbaum, 2000). Phylogenetic studies blue tail) Trachylepis quinquetaeniata is a medium sized published during the last decade led to the splitting of lizard reaching a total length of about 20 centimeters. The the genus Mabuya sensu lato into four geographically coloration of this species is quite variable, depending distinct monophyletic genera (Eutropis in Asia, Mabuya on the gender and the age. The scales are glossy, with sensu stricto in the Neotropics and Chioninia in the Cape metallic reflections. The basic colour is usually olive- Verde archipelago (Mausfeld et al., 2002; Carranza and brown or dark brown, sometimes with pearly whitish Arnold, 2003), with the African skinks placed in the spots and with three light olive or dark brown stripes genus Trachylepis (Mausfeld et al., 2002; Bauer et al., running from the head to the electric blue tail. These 2003). stripes may fade and become indistinct in the adults. Trachylepis is a genus of largely robust scincoid The head shows a pointed snout and clearly visible lizards, with over 70 species currently known (Uetz, ears holes. Just behind the ear opening, there are some 2010). They vary in snout-vent length from 6 up to black spots. Legs are dark brown, short and strong, with almost 16 cm (Spawls et al., 2002). They are active, relatively long toes. The flanks are mainly yellowish diurnal lizards. Some are solitary (e.g. Trachylepis and the underside of the body is whitish. Juveniles are varia), others live in large groups that may be structured much more contrasting, with brilliant blue tails. Adult colonies, for example T. quinquetaeniata (Spawls et al., 2002). Some species patronize human habitation, in particular T. striata (Broadley and Bauer, 1999). Occupying a wide range of habitats from semi-desert to tropical forest, this genus includes some species that live on the ground, but others are more commonly seen climbing over rocks, walls, trees. None are totally 1 Université Chadli Bendjedid, 36100, El Tarf, Algeria. 2 Parc National de Chréa, Boulevard Mohamed Boudiaf, 09000, Blida, Algeria. 3 Université Badji Mokhtar, BP. 12, El Hadjar, 23000, Annaba, Algeria. Figure 1. The juvenile specimen of Trachylepis quinquetaeniata * Corresponding author e-mail: [email protected] found in Algeria. Photo by Rahmouni Salima. 168 Rouag Rachid et al. This species has a wide native distribution in eastern, central, and western Africa, from Kenya through the arid sub-Saharan belt west to Senegal; at least one non-indigenous population exists in Egypt (Ineich and Chirio, 2004). It has been introduced and is established in Port St. Lucie, St. Lucie County, Florida (Krysko et al., 2010). Recent observation in the National Park of Chréa revealed the presence of a previously undocumented population of T. quinquetaeniata. This represents the Figure 2. Habitat of the specimen in the National Park of first record of this species and the confirmation of the Chréa. Photo by Dahel Ramdane. presence of the genus Trachylepis in Algeria. A juvenile specimen was found in July 2014, in El Hamdania locality (Coordinates: 36.359664° N; 2.765244° E, 350 m sea level) under sunny skies (35° C) at 11:25 am. The specimen was photographed near a garden of citrus males lose the dorsal striation, except for the most trees and right next to a river (Fig. 1). The region of El lateral stripe, which is orange-yellow; dorsum is olive, Hamdania is located in the South-West of the national tail yellowish, throat and sides of neck black, upper lips park and is characterized by high plant cover. The white (Ineich and Chirio, 2004). presence of juvenile such as this individual provides Figure 3. Map showing the approximate geographic distribution of T. quinquetaeniata in Africa (yellow) with the new location of Algeria (red). In North Africa, through the Sahara desert, this species is only present in Egypt with native distribution and at least one non-indigenous population (Kraus, 2009) associated largely with Nile Valley fluvial habitats and not found very far from cultivated lands (Spawls et al., 2002). This may reflect a wide distribution throughout the history when the climate of the whole Sahara region was very different from now. The presence of this species in the north of Algeria can be the result of a relict population; results of the contraction of rainforest habitat during historic glaciations cycles, which played major roles in the distribution of Trachylepis in Africa (Allen, 2015). First records of the Rainbow Mabuya in Algeria 169 strong confirmation of reproduction of the population Carranza, S., Arnold, E.N. (2003): Investigating the origin of in this site. transoceanic distributions: mtDNA shows Mabuya lizards The Chréa National Park covers an area of 26.587 (Reptilia, Scincidae) crossed the Atlantic twice. Systematics and Biodiversity 1: 275-282. hectares in the hills of Blida, along the central parts Greer, A.E., Broadley, D. (2000): Six characters of systematic of the Tell Atlas and about 50 km to the south of importance in the scincid lizard genus Mabuya. Hamadryad 25: Algiers. Most of Chréa National Park is located in a 1–12. mountainous area characterized by a marked relief. This Greer, A.E., Nussbaum, R.A. (2000): New character useful in the topographical structure is mainly due to the presence systematics of the scincid lizard genus Mabuya. Copeia 2000: of several rivers (Oued Chiffa, Oued Kebir, Oued 615–618. Messaoud, Oued Mektaa etc.). These and differences in Ineich, I., Chirio, L. (2004): L’archipel afro-montagnard et les altitudes ranging from 174 m to 1650 m provide suitable affinités de son herpétofaune: description d’une nouvelle espèce indiquant des relations phylétiques entre l’Afrique de l’Ouest habitats for over 500 species of plants. Floristically, this et l’Afrique de l’Est (Lacertilia, Scincidae, genre Trachylepis). region is characterized by the presence of Barbary thuja Bulletin de la Société Zoologique de France 129(3): 317-331. (Tetraclinis articulata) throughout the western-southern Kraus, F. (2009): Alien Reptiles and Amphibians: A Scientific part and also of Aleppo pine (Pinus halepensis) over its Compendium and Analysis. Springer, New �ork. western part. In cool and valley stations we notice the Krysko, K.L., Steve, A.J., Kyle, E.G., Kurt, H.G., Travis, S.L., presence of some isolated fragments of relics subjects William, M.M. (2010): The african five-lined skink, Trachylepis of cork oak (Quercus suber) and Algerian oak (Quercus quinquetaeniata (Lichtenstein 1823): a new established species in Florida. IRCF Reptiles & Amphibians 17(3): 183-184. canariensis). Elsewhere the vegetation is composed Mausfeld, P., Schmitz, A., Böhme, W., Misof, B., Vrcibradic, D., mainly of evergreen oak (Quercus ilex), mastic (Pistacia Freder, C. (2002): Phylogenetic Affinities of Mabuya atlantica lentiscus), strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo), cistus and Schmidt, 1945, Endemic to the Atlantic Ocean Archipelago of dwarf palm. Fernando de Noronha (Brazil): Necessity of Partitioning the The present record is the northern most record of Genus Mabuya Fitzinger, 1826 (Scincidae: Lygosominae). the species in Africa. Previous records were far away Zoologischer Anzeiger 241: 281–293. from the present record. The presence of this species Spawls, S., Howell, K., Drewes, R.C., Ashe, J. (2002): A field guide in a region thousands of kilometers from its previously to the reptiles of East Africa. San Diego, CA: Academic Press. Uetz, P., Hošek, J. (2016): The Reptile Database. Available at: known range raises many questions. We know that http://www.reptile-database.org. Accessed on 17 April 2016. this species was introduced to Florida by the pet trade, although this seems to be an unlikely explanation for its presence in Algeria. So a very thorough exploration of the field is necessary to take samples and to assess the importance of the population living in this region. Molecular analysis might also be helpful in ascertaining the status and history of this population. Acknowledgments. We thank Ivan Ineich and Luca Luiselli for the confirmation of our identification of species and anonymous reviewer for helpful comments on this manuscript. References Allen, K.E. (2015): Phylogenetics and phylogeography of Central and West African Trachylepis skinks. Thesis, Villanova University, Pennsylvania, United States. Bauer, A.M., Shea, G.M., Günther, R. (2003): An annotated catalogue of the types of scincid lizards (Reptilia: Squamata: Scincidae) in the collection of the Museum für Naturkunde der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (ZMB). Zoologische Reihe. Mitteilungen aus dem Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin 79: 253-321. Broadley, D.G., Bauer, A.M. (1999): A review of the Mabuya Accepted by Hendrik Müller quinquetaeniata complex in East Africa (Sauria: Scincidae). African Journal of Herpetology 47 (2): 43-58..
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