New living fossil, Amethyst worm lizard (Amphisbaena amethysta), from Espinhaço Mountain Range, Brazil

NEWS - New species from the northern Espinhaço Mountains, Caetité municipality, Bahia state, Brazil. Amethyst worm lizard (Amphisbaena amethysta) is the 71st species of the genus with 4 precloacal pores and the 22nd species of Caatinga morphoclimatic domain. Identification of the new species shows the reptiles of the Mountains are far from complete and may contain greater diversity of endemic taxa.

A. amethysta can be distinguished by its anteriorly convex snout, slightly compressed and unkeeled, pectoral scales arranged in regular annuli, four precloacal pores, distinct head shield, 185-199 dorsal and half annuli, 13-16 caudal annuli, a conspicuous autotomy spot between the 4th-6th caudal annuli, 16-21 dorsal and ventral segments in the middle of the body, 3/3 supralabials, 3/3 infralabials and a smooth and rounded tail tip.

A. amethysta occurs in areas with an average elevation of 1000 meters in patches of deciduous and semi-deciduous forests associated with valleys, slopes, forests and containing floristic elements. Areas of savanna vegetation with rocky outcrops, typically woody at higher elevations.

The distribution pattern is similar to that of five other Amphisbaena species restricted to the highland areas of the Espinhaço Mountains in Bahia (A. bahiana, A. longinqua, A. metallurga, A. mongoyo, A. uroxena) of which four are phylogenetically closely related, but do not show a close phylogenetic relationship with A. amethysta.

The other three species do not show a clear relationship with the species from the Espinhaço Mountains but also occur at the same elevation and vegetation type (A. kiriri, A. acangaoba and A. ignatiana).

The researchers sequenced a total of 4806 base pairs and the new species is a group of A. caetitensis with 92% bootstrap. The clade composed by A. amethysta and A. caetitensis was found to be a group of A. angustifrons, A. darwini, A. kingi, A. leeseri and A. munoai with a low bootstrap (21%). The genetic distance between A. amethysta and A. caetitensis is 6.1%.

The specific epithet refers to the mineral amethyst which is a type of quartz and also the name of the type site “Brejinho das Ametistas”, a district located in the south of the municipality of Caetité, Bahia state. This area has been a center of amethyst mining since the beginning of the 20th century.

Mining activities cause several irreversible environmental changes, including habitat loss due to vegetation clearing, relocation and excavation during the opening and operation of new mines. These actions have a direct impact on terrestrial and fossil species such as amphibians.

Original research

Ribeiro S, Santos Jr AP, Martins IG, Oliveira ECS, Graboski R, Barbosa Da Silveira T, Benício MHM, Vaz-Silva W (2024). A new four-pored Amphisbaena Linnaeus, 1758 (Amphisbaenia, Amphisbaenidae) from the north of Espinhaço Mountain Range, Brazil. ZooKeys 1213: 1-27, DOI:10.3897/zookeys.1213.122265

Dlium theDlium

Rose taro (Alocasia roseus) from Aceh, Indonesia, similar to Alocasia flemingiana and Alocasia arifolia

NEWS - Rose taro ( Alocasia roseus Asih & Yuzammi, sp. nov.) from Aceh Besar District, Sumatra (Indonesia) was found to produce a striking inflorescence and is morphologically similar to Alocasia flemingiana Yuzammi & A.Hay and Alocasia arifolia Hallier f. Alocasia (Schott) G.Don (Araceae Juss.) consists of 100 species, but recent studies suggest there may be 41 additional undescribed species. The genus is distributed in tropical and subtropical Asia from Malesia to Oceania and mainland Australia. Borneo is considered to have the richest Alocasia diversity and endemism. However, the diversity and distribution of Alocasia is poorly understood in the Indonesian archipelago with about 27 known species. Prior to this study, there were 7 species recognized in Sumatra. Knowledge of Alocasia in Sumatra is inadequate. The last taxonomic revision was conducted over 25 years ago which recognized 6 taxa of Sumatran Alocasia: Alocasia alba Schott, Alocasia arifolia , Alocasia inornata

Matthias Asmuss pitcairnia (Pitcairnia asmussii) from Venezuela similar to Pitcairnia xanthocalyx Mart. 1848

NEWS - Matthias Asmuss pitcairnia ( Pitcairnia asmussii Gouda spec. nov.) discovered by Matthias Asmuss from Caracas, Venezuela, and cultivated at the Utrecht Botanical Gardens is similar to Pitcairnia xanthocalyx Martius (1848), but with shorter flower stalks with larger sepals and petals, and dimorphic, non-petiolate leaves. Pitcairnia L’Heritier (1788) is a mostly terrestrial genus widespread from Mexico to Argentina with a total of 217 species and about 52 species known from Venezuela. In 2015 Matthias Asmuss from Caracas collected a new Pitcairnia from Aragua, Venezuela. The specimen is kept in the VEN herbarium, but due to the chaotic period in the country, it may have been lost, only the photo remains. At Utrecht Botanic Gardens, Eric Gouda obtained a young specimen from the collection in November 2018 and it flowered in May (2024). This living specimen is next to the type specimen used for the description. Pitcairnia asmussii is an acaulescent or short caulescent plant, flow

Namib desert petal-bush (Petalidium namibense), previously confused with P. englerianum, P. rossmannianum and P. variabile

NEWS - Namib desert petal-bush ( Petalidium namibense Swanepoel & A.E.van Wyk, sp. nov.), previously confused with Petalidium englerianum , Petalidium rossmannianum and Petalidium variabile was established as a new species with a restricted range in the southwest, west and northwest of Puros in the Kaokoveld Centre of Endemism, northwestern Namibia. Currently, 41 species of Petalidium Nees von Esenbeck (1832) have been described in Africa. The main centre of diversity for the genus is in northwest Namibia and adjacent southwest Angola. Namibia is home to 31 species, while 13 species have been recorded in Angola, 6 in South Africa, and 33 species have been recorded in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Eswatini and Lesotho. During several expeditions to the Puros region, Wessel Swanepoel discovered an unknown Petalidium characterized by a dwarf shrubby habit, many stems from below or above the ground, white flaking bark (corky on older stems), long dendritic trichomes and flowers i

Dlium