Phylogeny and systematics of Arabian lacertids from the Mesalina guttulata species complex (Squamata, Lacertidae), with the description of a new species
Abstract Background The lacertid genus Mesalina has been the subject of several phylogenetic and biogeographic studies as well as taxonomic revisions within the last decade. The genus is partitioned into seven main clades, some of which represent species complexes of morphologically very similar spe...
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2025-07-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-025-00233-3 |
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| author | Jiří Šmíd Doubravka Velenská Lukáš Pola Karin Tamar Salem Busais Mohammed Shobrak Mohammed Almutairi Al Faqih Ali Salim Saad Dasman Alsubaie Raed Hamoud M. AlGethami Abdulaziz Raqi AlGethami Abdulkarim Saleh K Alanazi Ahmed Mohajja Alshammari Damien M. Egan Ricardo O. Ramalho David Olson Josh Smithson Laurent Chirio Marius Burger Ryan van Huyssteen Melissa A. Petford Salvador Carranza |
| author_facet | Jiří Šmíd Doubravka Velenská Lukáš Pola Karin Tamar Salem Busais Mohammed Shobrak Mohammed Almutairi Al Faqih Ali Salim Saad Dasman Alsubaie Raed Hamoud M. AlGethami Abdulaziz Raqi AlGethami Abdulkarim Saleh K Alanazi Ahmed Mohajja Alshammari Damien M. Egan Ricardo O. Ramalho David Olson Josh Smithson Laurent Chirio Marius Burger Ryan van Huyssteen Melissa A. Petford Salvador Carranza |
| author_sort | Jiří Šmíd |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background The lacertid genus Mesalina has been the subject of several phylogenetic and biogeographic studies as well as taxonomic revisions within the last decade. The genus is partitioned into seven main clades, some of which represent species complexes of morphologically very similar species. The Mesalina guttulata species complex is one such case. This complex currently comprises four described species that occur through Arabia and northern Africa, however, the presence of a cryptic species in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Jordan was pointed out recently. For this study, we collected new material of the various species of the M. guttulata complex, including the undescribed lineage from across Saudi Arabia. We carried out multilocus phylogenetic analyses using three mitochondrial and three nuclear markers and analysis of morphological data to verify whether the undescribed lineage deserves a species rank. Results The results show that the lineage is clearly genetically separated from the other species of the complex and shows morphological differentiation from the other species. Therefore, we describe it herein as a new species, Mesalina cryptica sp. nov. Conclusions We contribute to the taxonomy of Arabian lacertid lizards by describing a new species distributed in central Saudi Arabia, with isolated populations occurring in Kuwait and Jordan. Despite its large range, the species is genetically and morphologically homogeneous. The gap in its distribution between the Jordan and Saudi Arabia populations is ascribable to the paucity of sampling along the Saudi/Iraqi border. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c3d04dbeffb04146a2bb3e6981b87c1e |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2056-3132 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
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| series | BMC Zoology |
| spelling | doaj-art-c3d04dbeffb04146a2bb3e6981b87c1e2025-08-20T04:01:34ZengBMCBMC Zoology2056-31322025-07-0110111610.1186/s40850-025-00233-3Phylogeny and systematics of Arabian lacertids from the Mesalina guttulata species complex (Squamata, Lacertidae), with the description of a new speciesJiří Šmíd0Doubravka Velenská1Lukáš Pola2Karin Tamar3Salem Busais4Mohammed Shobrak5Mohammed Almutairi6Al Faqih Ali Salim7Saad Dasman Alsubaie8Raed Hamoud M. AlGethami9Abdulaziz Raqi AlGethami10Abdulkarim Saleh K Alanazi11Ahmed Mohajja Alshammari12Damien M. Egan13Ricardo O. Ramalho14David Olson15Josh Smithson16Laurent Chirio17Marius Burger18Ryan van Huyssteen19Melissa A. Petford20Salvador Carranza21Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles UniversityDepartment of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles UniversityDepartment of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles UniversityInstitute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra)Department of Biology, Faculty of Education, University of AdenTerrestrial wildlife conservation department, National Center for WildlifeTerrestrial wildlife conservation department, National Center for WildlifeTerrestrial wildlife conservation department, National Center for WildlifeTerrestrial wildlife conservation department, National Center for WildlifeTerrestrial wildlife conservation department, National Center for WildlifeTerrestrial wildlife conservation department, National Center for WildlifeTerrestrial wildlife conservation department, National Center for WildlifeBiology department, Faculty of Science, University of Ha’ilNatural History Collective VenturesKAUST Beacon Development, KAUST National Transformation Institute, Innovation Cluster, 4700 King Abdullah University of Science and TechnologyNEOM Nature Reserve, NEOMPrince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve Development AuthorityLycée Saint-ExupéryFLORA FAUNA & MAN, Ecological Services LtdFLORA FAUNA & MAN, Ecological Services LtdFLORA FAUNA & MAN, Ecological Services LtdInstitute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-Universitat Pompeu Fabra)Abstract Background The lacertid genus Mesalina has been the subject of several phylogenetic and biogeographic studies as well as taxonomic revisions within the last decade. The genus is partitioned into seven main clades, some of which represent species complexes of morphologically very similar species. The Mesalina guttulata species complex is one such case. This complex currently comprises four described species that occur through Arabia and northern Africa, however, the presence of a cryptic species in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Jordan was pointed out recently. For this study, we collected new material of the various species of the M. guttulata complex, including the undescribed lineage from across Saudi Arabia. We carried out multilocus phylogenetic analyses using three mitochondrial and three nuclear markers and analysis of morphological data to verify whether the undescribed lineage deserves a species rank. Results The results show that the lineage is clearly genetically separated from the other species of the complex and shows morphological differentiation from the other species. Therefore, we describe it herein as a new species, Mesalina cryptica sp. nov. Conclusions We contribute to the taxonomy of Arabian lacertid lizards by describing a new species distributed in central Saudi Arabia, with isolated populations occurring in Kuwait and Jordan. Despite its large range, the species is genetically and morphologically homogeneous. The gap in its distribution between the Jordan and Saudi Arabia populations is ascribable to the paucity of sampling along the Saudi/Iraqi border.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-025-00233-3LizardsMesopotamiaMiddle EastSauriaSquamatesReptiles |
| spellingShingle | Jiří Šmíd Doubravka Velenská Lukáš Pola Karin Tamar Salem Busais Mohammed Shobrak Mohammed Almutairi Al Faqih Ali Salim Saad Dasman Alsubaie Raed Hamoud M. AlGethami Abdulaziz Raqi AlGethami Abdulkarim Saleh K Alanazi Ahmed Mohajja Alshammari Damien M. Egan Ricardo O. Ramalho David Olson Josh Smithson Laurent Chirio Marius Burger Ryan van Huyssteen Melissa A. Petford Salvador Carranza Phylogeny and systematics of Arabian lacertids from the Mesalina guttulata species complex (Squamata, Lacertidae), with the description of a new species BMC Zoology Lizards Mesopotamia Middle East Sauria Squamates Reptiles |
| title | Phylogeny and systematics of Arabian lacertids from the Mesalina guttulata species complex (Squamata, Lacertidae), with the description of a new species |
| title_full | Phylogeny and systematics of Arabian lacertids from the Mesalina guttulata species complex (Squamata, Lacertidae), with the description of a new species |
| title_fullStr | Phylogeny and systematics of Arabian lacertids from the Mesalina guttulata species complex (Squamata, Lacertidae), with the description of a new species |
| title_full_unstemmed | Phylogeny and systematics of Arabian lacertids from the Mesalina guttulata species complex (Squamata, Lacertidae), with the description of a new species |
| title_short | Phylogeny and systematics of Arabian lacertids from the Mesalina guttulata species complex (Squamata, Lacertidae), with the description of a new species |
| title_sort | phylogeny and systematics of arabian lacertids from the mesalina guttulata species complex squamata lacertidae with the description of a new species |
| topic | Lizards Mesopotamia Middle East Sauria Squamates Reptiles |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-025-00233-3 |
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