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Article Dans Une Revue Salamandra Année : 2024

Was it premature to declare the giant Tongan Ground Skink Tachygyia microlepis extinct?

Résumé

The Tongan giant skink Tachygyia microlepis is generally considered as extinct. It is known only by its two holotypes hosted at Paris Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN) and collected about two centuries ago during a Dumont d'Urville circum-navigation expedition. In the present paper we show that this species could still exist on remote Tongan islands and its biology could explain that it was not recently observed. We also highlight its convergence with some diploglossid lizards and their biology certainly is similar and could allow to search the supposedly extinct skink species. We also show that T. microlepis most likely belong to the speciose genus Emoia and that its differences with other species of that genus are related to its adaptation to a burrowing way of life after competition with another member of that genus in Tonga.
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Dates et versions

mnhn-04459821 , version 1 (15-02-2024)

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  • HAL Id : mnhn-04459821 , version 1

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Ivan Ineich, Wolfgang Böhme. Was it premature to declare the giant Tongan Ground Skink Tachygyia microlepis extinct?. Salamandra, 2024. ⟨mnhn-04459821⟩
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