Short Notes

On the synonymyand taxonomyof the Bengalmonitor lizard, Varanusbengalensis (Daudin, 1802) complex (Sauria: Varanidae)

WolfgangBöhme, Thomas Ziegler HerpetologySection,Zoologisches Forschungsinstitut undMuseum Alexander Koenig,Adenauerallee 160, D-53113Bonn,Germany Inthe last few years, two new nominal varanid species have been described: Varanus irrawadicusYang and Li, 1987, and Varanus vietnamensis Yangand Liu, 1994. Both namescaused so much confusion concerning correct spelling, taxonomic identity and distribution,thatan unequivocal assessment ofthese names and nominal taxa is desirable beforethey give rise to further errors in the literature. Inaddition tothis assessment weprovide new (hemipenial) evidence toreevaluate thestatus of the two subspecies of Varanusbengalensis, i.e.,bengalensis (s.str.) and nebulosus (Gray, 1831). ). Varanusirrawadicus Yang Datong and Li Simin, 1987 Auffenberg(1994) synonymized thistaxon with V bengalensis bengalensis, thusproving thefirst documented record of a Bengalmonitor from Chinese territory (Yunnan). Due tosome misspelling andother errors, however, hecaused some confusion: Hecited thisname erroneously asirriwadicus, giving "Simin" asthe author's name. Actually, Virrawadicus hastwo authors, viz. Yang Datong and Li Simin. This means that the familynames are Yang and Li, Datong and Simin being the corresponding forenames. Thiserror was presumably caused bythe lack of an "and" between thetwo names inthe originalpaper, sothat Auffenberg (op.cit.: 542) cited the paper under "Simin, Y.D. L.". Furthermore,heconsidered Yang and Li's (op. cit.: 60) misspelling "irrawardicus" which wasalso used by Yang and Liu (1994: 11-15), asthe valid name and correct spelling becausethe Chinese authors used it themselvesintheir type description. Another addi- tionalmisspelling (Auffenberg 1994:48), i.e., irriwardicus, contributes tothe confusion. 208 Alsothe emendation ofthis last name, i.e., irriwadicus (op.cit.), is incorrect, ascertainly irrawadicuswasmeant by the Chinese authors. This is demonstrated bythe fact that they usedthis - alsolinguistically correct - spelling inthe heading oftheir type description. Therefore,thename irrawadicus, derived from the Irrawady orIrrawaddy (notIrrawardy andnot Irriwardy!) River isthe correct synonym ofV. bengalensis bengalensis. Asall of theauthors cited above did not discuss and reflect the nomenclatoral situation, weregard noneof them as a firstrevising author in thesense of art. 24 ICZN. So, our present nomenclaturaldiscussion anddecision asto the correct spelling irrawadicus should be regardedasthe first revising action. Very recently, DeLisle (1996) considered irrawadi- cus(for a figureof the holotype seehis plate 7.7.) as a subspeciesofV. bengalensis. Thiscomplicated andconfused nomenclatural situation hasto be summarized asfollows (onlysynonyms after Mertens' (1963) checklist areconsidered): Varanusbengalensis bengalensis (Daudin) 1802Tupinambis bengalensis Daudin,Hist. nat. Rept. 3, 67.- Locus typicus: Bengal. 1987Varanus irrawadicus - Yangand Li, Chinese Herpetol. Res.,1, 60. - Locustypicus: Wanding valley,Yunnan (i.e.,Yunnan Province, China). 1987Varallus irrawardicus - Yangand Li (ex errore), ibidem, 1,60. 1993Varanus irrawadicus - Zhaoand Adler, Herpetol. China,p. 201. 1 . 1994Varanus irrawadicus Simin- Auffenberg (exerrore), Bengal Monit., p.48. 1994Varanu.c irriwardicus - Auffenberg (exerrore), Bengal Monit., p.48. 1994Varanus irrawardicus - Yangand Liu (ex errore), Zool.Res., 15, 11 ff. 1994Varanu.c irrawadicus - Zhaoand Zhao, Chinese Herpetol. Lit.Cat. Indic., Herpetol. Ser.5,303. 1995Varanus irriwadicus - Bennett (exerrore), Monitor lizards, p.60. 1996Varanus bengalensis irrawadicus - DeLisle, Nat. Hist. Monit. Lizards, p.119. Varanusvietnamensis YangDatong and Liu Wanzhao, 1994 Thisnominal taxon was described onthe basis of a largemonitor, which was purchased ona marketatHekou, Yunnan, from a Vietnamesedealer. Therefore, theauthors im- pliedaVietnamese origin ofthe lizard asis obvious from the specific name they selected. Fromthe description andaccompanying figure(Yang and Liu, 1994: fig. I) it is obvious thatin this case a specimenofVaranus bengalensis nebulosus isconcerned. Thekey characterseparating V.vietnamensis fromV. (bengalensis) nebulosus according toYang andLiu (1994: 12), viz. "without chevron-shaped marking onneck" vs. "chevron-shaped markingonneck", isindividually andontogenetically variable inV. b. nebulosus(see, e.g.,Auffenberg, 1994:42 and figs 2-21). Also other characters presumed tobe charac- teristicofV. vietnamensis (Yangand Liu, 1994), e.g., the dark colour ofthe upper and underside,theyellowish stippling ofdorsal scales, yellowish barsaround the digits and toesand the transversely widened supraoculars, aretypical ofV. bengalensis nebulosus. Itspresumed type locality (NW Vietnam) canonly be supported bya singlerecord from northernVietnam, viz. by a specimenfrom Chapa figured by Zhao and Adler (1993: plate27, fig. c), erroneously assigned toV. salvator which seems to showthe external characteristicsofnebulosus rather than of a typical bengalensis (compare ourmap: fig. 1;