[jocateme]

Hi all,
I have some unidentified reptiles and amphibians photos and would appreciate if someone could help me. I'll start with the tegus:
#1 and #4 taken in Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil.
#2 and #3 taken in São Paulo state, Brazil.

Thanks in advance

[Papuan birder]

Originally Posted by jocateme

Hi all,
I have some unidentified reptiles and amphibians photos and would appreciate if someone could help me. I'll start with the tegus:
#1 and #4 taken in Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil.
#2 and #3 taken in São Paulo state, Brazil.

Thanks in advance

Hello jocateme,

Sorry but all I can say is that they are all some type of Teju lizards; there is at least 35 described species occuring in Brazil and to that you have to add another 5-6 undescribed and the fact that many of the formely described species has been splited into several new species fairly recently; I dont have any good reference on maps where they occur; maybe some other has some better reference.

[jocateme]

Thanks for your reply, PB!
Didn't know there were so much species of tegus here... I thought all my photos were of Tupinambis teguixin.
Here are the other mysteries:
1 - Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
2 and 3 - Florida, USA

Thanks in advance

[skink1978]

Originally Posted by jocateme

Thanks for your reply, PB!
Didn't know there were so much species of tegus here... I thought all my photos were of Tupinambis teguixin.
Here are the other mysteries:
1 - Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
2 and 3 - Florida, USA

Thanks in advance

Hi Jocateme,

Your Florida lizards are likely to be exotics. Number 3 looks like Anolis sagrei (Brown Anole), while number 2 could be the same species, or possibly A. distichus (Bark Anole). Without digging out my field guide I am not too confident with these identifications. US members of the forum may have a better idea of the species. To complicate things further, A. carolinensis (Green Anole) changes brown under certain conditions e.g. stress.

Love the Tegu pictures by the way. They are one of my favourite lizards.

[jocateme]

Hi Mike,
Thanks for the response!
Since I don't know much about reptiles, I think all of the lizards you quoted are very similar and agree it might be an Anole.
Some details:
#2 has been seen in a store in St. Augustine, FL, walking among some clothes. I could notice it had a long tail. (another photo attached)
#3 has been seen in a train station in Jacksonville, FL, and there lot of small lizards there (not sure if they were the same species).

[skink1978]

Originally Posted by jocateme

Hi Mike,
Thanks for the response!
Since I don't know much about reptiles, I think all of the lizards you quoted are very similar and agree it might be an Anole.
Some details:
#2 has been seen in a store in St. Augustine, FL, walking among some clothes. I could notice it had a long tail. (another photo attached)
#3 has been seen in a train station in Jacksonville, FL, and there lot of small lizards there (not sure if they were the same species).

Hi again.
Had a quick look in my field guide and I now think No 2 is a Green Anole. These are native to Florida and are quite common around buildings and gardens. They have a longer snout than the other species, and like I said before, they can turn brown (another name for them is American chameleon). It is worth considering that Green Anoles climb more often and higher than Brown Anoles.

Still think No 3 is a Brown Anole, although to be certain I would have to see the tail. Brown Anole has a light stripe along the cetre of the back. The Bark Anole has a banded or ringed tail.

I have visited Florida several times and have found all three species common in many habitats. I have only come across Bark Anole around Miami, while the other two lizards are much more widespread.

Hope this helps you a little more

[jocateme]

This helped me very much!
I had no idea of what lizard they could be. Unfortunately I didn't notice the third one's tail, but I'll go with you and classify it as Brown Anole.
Thanks very much, Mike!
P.S.: Are you a herpetologist?

[skink1978]

Originally Posted by jocateme

This helped me very much!
I had no idea of what lizard they could be. Unfortunately I didn't notice the third one's tail, but I'll go with you and classify it as Brown Anole.
Thanks very much, Mike!
P.S.: Are you a herpetologist?

Unfortunately I'm not a herpetologist. I just have an interest in reptiles, as well as birds and mammals. Don't know much about South American wildlife, although I would love to visit Brazil some time. Keep the photos coming Jocateme, especially the reptiles!

[jocateme]

So let me say you seem to understand as much as one.
Unfortunately, I don't have further photos at the moment, but as soon as I take any unidentified reptile picture I'll post it here.

[motacilla oenenthe]

tegus have been called the varanids of the americas

[Rasmus Boegh]

Originally Posted by Papuan birder

...there is at least 35 described species occuring in Brazil and to that you have to add another 5-6 undescribed and the fact that many of the formely described species has been splited into several new species fairly recently; I dont have any good reference on maps where they occur; maybe some other has some better reference.

Actually, there are "only" 6 described species, and this is including two species that have been described within the last 10 years:

Tupinambis merianae (formerly listed as T. teguixin).
T. teguixin (formerly listed as T. nigropunctatus)
T. rufescens.
T. duseni.
T. quadrilineatus.
T. palustris.

The ones on the photo by jocateme are either T. merianae or T. teguixin. They're pretty easy to separate, as one has smooth skin and the other has spiny skin... Right now I just don't remember which applies to which species (I must be getting old)!