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TERRA TYPICA. Alashan desert. DISTRIBUTION. It is distributed mainly in the north China (Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang-Uyghur Autonomous Region) and in Mongolia, from where it penetrates into the territory of the neighbouring Tuva. In North Eurasia the species is widely distributed in the western and southern Mongolia (Ubsunur, Kobdo, Dzabkhan, Gobi-Altai, Bayan-Khongor, Uwer-Khangai, South-Gobi, East-Gobi, Middle- Gobi aimaks) and in Tuva [in Russia]. In the flood-plain of the river Nariin-Gol lives the subspecies E. p. tuvensis Szczerbak, 1970. CONSERVATION STATUS. E. p. tuvensis is included into the Red Data book of the Russian Federation (2001): category 3 – rare species within the limits of Russia known on the northern periphery of the distribution range.

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The National University of Mongolia, the Mongolian State University of Education, the University of Nebraska, and the University of Kansas conducted four collaborative expeditions between 2010 and 2014, resulting in accounts for all species of lacertid and agamid, except Phrynocephalus kulagini. These expeditions resulted in a range extension for Eremias arguta and the collection of specimens and tissues across 134 unique localities. In this paper we summarize the species of the Agamidae (Paralaudakia stoliczkana, Ph. hispidus, Ph. helioscopus, and Ph. versicolor) and Lacertidae (E. argus, E. arguta, E. dzungarica, E. multiocellata, E. przewalskii, and E. vermiculata) that were collected during these four expeditions. Further, we provide a summary of all species within these two families in Mongolia. Finally, we discuss issues of Wallacean and Linnaean shortfalls for the herpetofauna of the Mongolian Gobi Desert, and provide future directions for studies of community assemblages and population genetics of reptile species in the region.

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From the perspectives of biodiversity conservation and management, there is an urgent need to have at hand current synopses of classification and distributions of species. In this paper, we review and summarize the classifications, Chinese and English names, type specimens, type localities and distributions of China’s lizard fauna to promote scientific exchange and species conservation among relevant people in China and internationally. As of December 31, 2020, a total of 230 species of lizard, belonging to 44 genera and 12 families, have been recorded from China, including 4 invasive species: 2 in the family Gekkonidae, 1 in Iguanidae and one in Dactyloidae. There are 115 endemic species, accounting for 50% of this group. The proportion of endemic species to China was the highest in the family Eublepharidae (84.62%), and the number of endemic species to China was the highest in the family Agamidae (42 species). The species distributions and classification in the “Fauna Sinica (Reptilia 2): Squamata (Lacertilia)” were updated. Among the provincial administrative units, there is a larger number of species in the southern provinces, such as Yunnan, Guangdong, Guangxi and Taiwan. Sichuan, Yunnan, and Taiwan harbour relatively more endemic species than others. A total of 154 species of lizards were first discovered in China, and the type localities of these species are concentrated in Yunnan, Taiwan, Tibet, Xinjiang, and Sichuan.

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The variability of some Mongolian populations of three species from the genus Eremias (Eremias argus W. Peters, E. multiocella Günther and E. przewalskii (Strauch)) was studied. Not only the intraspecific variability of a number of morphological characters, especially that of the pholidose of the pileus, but the homologous variability between the different species, were also analysed. Some of these characters reveal a close relationships between the different species of the genus. Some new locality data are also published

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In this paper, the complete mitochondrial genome of Eremias przewalskii (Squamata: Lacertidae) is reported, which is a circular molecule of 18,225 bp in size. The base composition of mtDNA is as follows: 30.3% A, 27.9% T, 27.9% C and 13.9% G. The genome consists of 13 protein coding genes, 22 transfer RNAs, 2 ribosomal RNA genes and one putative control region.

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From the publisher: Before you a unique atlas-determinant. For the first time in one edition descriptions of all species of amphibians and reptiles living on the territory of Russia are presented, illustrated with beautiful color photographs. The book is written by E.A. Dunaev and V.F. Orlova, the famous Russian herpetologists, researchers of the Zoological Museum of Moscow State University named after MV Lomonosov. Lomonosov. A simple and accessible form of presentation, detailed descriptions of the external appearance, lifestyle and behavior, photographs reflecting all variants of the variability of these animals, will help the curious reader to become more familiar with turtles, snakes, lizards, frogs and other representatives of the herpetofauna. And special keys will allow you to determine who you met on a country walk, in a city park, at a dacha or while traveling to different corners of our country. The book is of great interest not only for nature lovers, but also for specialists in herpetology and students of biological faculties of universities. It lists the amphibians and reptiles of the native fauna, reflects the latest changes in the taxonomy of these groups, lists species included in the Red Book of Russia and regional Red Books, lists reference and scientific publications on reptiles and amphibians of Russian fauna.

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Residual yolk is assumed to be an important source of energy and nutrients during early life in nonmammalian amniotes. Available data show that the mean size of residual yolk is far smaller in lizards than in turtles, snakes, crocodiles, and birds, raising a question of whether residual yolk is of functional significance in lizards. Here, we compared data from 26 lizard species with those from other nonmammalian amniotes to test the hypothesis that residual yolk is functionally less significant in species producing more fully developed offspring. In our sample, species mean offspring water contents ranged from 73% to 84% of body wet mass; species mean proportions of carcass dry mass, fat-body dry mass, and residual yolk dry mass to offspring dry mass ranged from 84% to 99%, 0% to 5.0%, and 0% to 14.4%, respectively. Lizards are, on average, more fully developed at hatching or birth than snakes, as revealed by the fact that the mean proportion of carcass dry mass to body dry mass and offspring water contents were both higher in lizards than in snakes. We conclude that the functional significance of residual yolk during early life is generally less evident in lizards. Even in the lizards where residual yolk is of potential functional significance, this portion of yolk contributes little, if any, to postembryonic growth. Future work could usefully collect data across a wider spectrum of reptile taxa to establish a precocial–altricial continuum and test the hypothesis that species with a smaller amount of residual yolk are closer to the precocial end of the continuum.

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Eremias, or racerunners, is a widespread lacertid genus occurring in China, Mongolia, Korea, Central Asia, Southwest Asia and Southeast Europe. It has been through a series of taxonomic revisions, but the phylogenetic relationships among the species and subgenera remain unclear. In this study, a frequently studied region of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA was used to (i) reassess the phylogenetic relationships of some Eremias species, (ii) test if the viviparous species form a monophyletic group, and (iii) estimate divergence time among lineages using a Bayesian relaxed molecular-clock approach. The resulting phylogeny supports monophyly of Eremias sensu Szczerbak and a clade comprising Eremias, Acanthodactylus and Latastia. An earlier finding demonstrating monophyly of the subgenus Pareremias is corroborated, with Eremias argus being the sister taxon to Eremias brenchleyi. We present the first evidence that viviparous species form a monophyletic group. In addition, Eremias przewalskii is nested within Eremias multiocellata, suggesting that the latter is likely a paraphyletic species or a species complex. Eremias acutirostris and Eremias persica form a clade that is closely related to the subgenus Pareremias. However, the subgenera Aspidorhinus, Scapteira, and Rhabderemias seem not to be monophyletic, respectively. The Bayesian divergence-time estimation suggests that Eremias originated at about 9.9 million years ago (with the 95% confidence interval ranging from 7.6 to 12 Ma), and diversified from Late Miocene to Pleistocene. Specifically, the divergence time of the subgenus Pareremias was dated to about 6.3 million years ago (with the 95% confidence interval ranging from 5.3 to 8.5 Ma), which suggests that the diversification of this subgenus might be correlated with the evolution of an East Asian monsoon climate triggered by the rapid uplift of the Tibetan Plateau approximately 8 Ma.

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The lacertid genus Eremias Fitzinger in Wiegmann,1834,consists of approximately 36 species of racerunners,distributed throughout the desert and semi-desert regions from northern China,Mongolia,Korea,central and southwest Asia to southeastern Europe.This short review represents the history of taxonomic studies in the genus Eremias,including affirmation of the genus and its species,distribution characteristics,phylogenetic relationships and historical biogeography.Traditional taxonomic methods,as well as new approaches(mtDNA analysis) are discussed.Future potential research projects on Eremias are outlined,such as phylogeny,phylogeography and speciation process.

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We sequenced the mitochondrial genome of the Western green lizard (Lacerta bilineata) using Illumina technology and additional Sanger sequencing. The assembled 17 086 bp mitogenome had a GC content of 40.32% and consisted of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNA genes, two rRNA genes, and one control region (CR), with a gene order identical to the chordate consensus. In addition, we re-sequenced the mitogenome of the closely related Eastern green lizard L. viridis using the same techniques as for L. bilineata. The mitogenomes of L. bilineata and L. viridis showed a sequence identity of 94.4% and 99.9%, respectively, relative to the previously published L. viridis mitogenome. The phylogenetic reconstruction based on 17 Lacertinae mitogenomes using Anolis carolinensis as the outgroup supported L. bilineata and its sister species L. viridis as distinct lineages.

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We used a cold-climate viviparous lacertid lizard (Eremias prezwalskii) as a model system to test the maternal manipulation hypothesis. Twenty-four gravid females collected from a population in Inner Mongolia (northern China) were maintained in the laboratory for the whole gestation length, with 12 allowed to bask for 14-h daily and the other 12 for 10-h daily. Females selected lower body temperatures but did not thermoregulate more precisely when gravid. The mean gestation length was shorter in females provided with longer basking opportunity. Neonates in the two treatments differed in tail length and the number of ventral scales but not in other examined morphological traits, with offspring born in the 14-h treatment having longer tails but fewer ventral scales. Offspring were sexually dimorphic at birth, with females being smaller in tail length, head length and fore-limb length but having more ventral scales than males of the same size. Offspring born in the 14-h treatment were not only faster runners but also grew faster than did offspring born in the 10-h treatment. Our data validate the main predictions of the maternal manipulation hypothesis that females should shift selected body temperatures during gestation to provide optimal thermal conditions for developing embryos and that phenotypic traits determined by maternal thermoregulation should enhance offspring fitness. Our study is the first to demonstrate that the maternal manipulation hypothesis applies to cold-climate viviparous reptiles.

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Aim Body size is instrumental in influencing animal physiology, morphology, ecology and evolution, as well as extinction risk. I examine several hypotheses regarding the influence of body size on lizard evolution and extinction risk, assessing whether body size influences, or is influenced by, species richness, herbivory, island dwelling and extinction risk. Location World-wide. Methods I used literature data and measurements of museum and live specimens to estimate lizard body size distributions. Results I obtained body size data for 99% of the world`s lizard species. The body size–frequency distribution is highly modal and right skewed and similar distributions characterize most lizard families and lizard assemblages across biogeographical realms. There is a strong negative correlation between mean body size within families and species richness. Herbivorous lizards are larger than omnivorous and carnivorous ones, and aquatic lizards are larger than non-aquatic species. Diurnal activity is associated with small body size. Insular lizards tend towards both extremes of the size spectrum. Extinction risk increases with body size of species for which risk has been assessed. Main conclusions Small size seems to promote fast diversification of disparate body plans. The absence of mammalian predators allows insular lizards to attain larger body sizes by means of release from predation and allows them to evolve into the top predator niche. Island living also promotes a high frequency of herbivory, which is also associated with large size. Aquatic and nocturnal lizards probably evolve large size because of thermal constraints. The association between large size and high extinction risk, however, probably reflects a bias in the species in which risk has been studied.

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From the viewpoint of evolution, the classes of amphibians and reptiles could be considered as relicts, and because they are poikilothermic animals, it’s very difficult for these species to live under the dry and cold climatic conditions in Mongolia. Even species diversity is poor, Mongolian herpetological composition is unique, highly adopted to the country’s harsh climate and originated a long time ago. In Mongolia, 6 species of amphibians belong to four genera, four families and two orders and the recorded 21 species of reptiles belong to 13 genera in 6 families of 2 suborders.

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Here we present the main results of our 2008 field research held in the south-western Mongolia by a herpetological team of the Russian – Mongolian biological expedition. 13 reptile species belonging to five families and eight genera have been recorded. Phrynocephalus versicolor was the most widespread and abundant lizard species. Eremias przewalskii and E. multiocellata were also common in semi-fixed sands subjected to considerable over-grazing (Dundgov’, Umnegov’). Several new localities for Ph.versicolor hispida and E. m. multiocellata and E. m. reticulata are reported. Cyrtopodion elongatum was found in the Nogondov (=Nogon-Dovon) valley located in 300 km northwards from the previously known occurrence of this species. This valley inhabited by Teratoscincus przewalskii, Eremias vermiculata, and Eryx tataricus can be considered as the most western part of the Trans-Altai Gobi Desert adjacent to the Mongolian Dzungaria. The actual status of the C. elongatum populations seems to be out of concern because, according to our night observations, the population density exceeds 20 ind per 500 m². The taxonomical status of Ph. v. hispida and E. m. reticulata is discussed, and the specific status of racerunners collected in the area of their sympatry in the Hovd aimag was confirmed. Some coloration features of living adults and juveniles individuals of the lizards (especially, Eremias and Phrynocephalus species) are reported.

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Here we present the main results of our 2008 field research held in the south-western Mongolia by a herpetological team of the Russian – Mongolian biological expedition. 13 reptile species belonging to five families and eight genera have been recorded. Phrynocephalus versicolor was the most widespread and abundant lizard species. Eremias przewalskii and E. multiocellata were also common in semi-fixed sands subjected to considerable over-grazing (Dundgov’, Umnegov’). Several new localities for Ph.versicolor hispida and E. m. multiocellata and E. m. reticulata are reported. Cyrtopodion elongatum was found in the Nogondov (=Nogon-Dovon) valley located in 300 km northwards from the previously known occurrence of this species. This valley inhabited by Teratoscincus przewalskii, Eremias vermiculata, and Eryx tataricus can be considered as the most western part of the Trans-Altai Gobi Desert adjacent to the Mongolian Dzungaria. The actual status of the C. elongatum populations seems to be out of concern because, according to our night observations, the population density exceeds 20 ind per 500 m². The taxonomical status of Ph. v. hispida and E. m. reticulata is discussed, and the specific status of racerunners collected in the area of their sympatry in the Hovd aimag was confirmed. Some coloration features of living adults and juveniles individuals of the lizards (especially, Eremias and Phrynocephalus species) are reported. Key words: herpetofauna, geographic distribution, population density, habitats, body coloration, southwestern Mongolia.

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We provide an integrative analysis of the diversity of the E. multiocellata—E. przewalskii species complex in Central and Middle Asia using morphological and molecular (COI DNA-barcoding) data. We report preliminary data on mtDNA variation within this group and clarify the taxonomic status and distribution of the members of the species complex. We also provide a description of a new Eremias species from Eastern Kazakhstan and western Mongolia, where it occurs in sympatry with E. multiocellata sensu stricto, from which it can be clearly differentiated using both morphological and molecular characters. The new species, described as Eremias dzungarica sp. nov., is assigned to the subgenus Pareremias on the basis of the following features: subocular not reaching mouth edge; one frontonasal; two supraoculars; the row of small granular scales between supraoculars and frontal with frontoparietals absent; distance between the femoral pore rows being wide; femoral pore rows not reaching knee-joint; coloration pattern with light colored ocelli with black edging. The new species can be distinguished from its congeners on the basis of the following morphological attributes: a mediumsized lacertid lizard, maximum snout-vent length (SVL) = 64.5 mm, tail being ca. 1.5 times longer than body length (SVL), hindlimbs relatively long (hindlimb length to SVL ratio 0.46); subocular scale not reaching mouth edge, in touch with 6–8 supralabials; males with bright coloration consisting of 2–3 dorsolateral rows of light-colored ocelli with thick black edging; the ventral row of ocelli in life is greenish to bluish; dorsal pattern consisting of black irregular blotches along the middorsal line. We also report on the high genetic and morphological diversity of E. multiocellata in Mongolia and China, synonymize E. m. bannikowi with the nominative form E. m. multiocellata, discuss variation within E. przewalskii, synonymize E. p. tuvensis with the nominative form E. przewalskii, provide new data on E. cf. reticulata and E. m. tsaganbogdensis, confirm validity and clarify distribution ranges of E. stummeri, E. szczerbaki and E. yarkandensis and discuss further progress on taxonomic studies of the E. multiocellata—E. przewalskii species complex.

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Many animals display complex colour patterns that comprise several adjacent, often contrasting colour patches. Combining patches of complementary colours increases the overall conspicuousness of the complex pattern, enhancing signal detection. Therefore, selection for conspicuousness may act not only on the design of single colour patches, but also on their combination. Contrasting long- and short-wavelength colour patches are located on the ventral and lateral surfaces of many lacertid lizards. As the combination of long- and short-wavelength-based colours generates local chromatic contrast, we hypothesized that selection may favour the co-occurrence of lateral and ventral contrasting patches, resulting in complex colour patterns that maximize the overall conspicuousness of the signal. To test this hypothesis we performed a comparative phylogenetic study using a categorical colour classification based on spectral data and descriptive information on lacertid coloration collected from the literature. Our results demonstrate that conspicuous ventral (long wavelength-based) and lateral (short wavelength-based) colour patches co-occur throughout the lacertid phylogeny more often than expected by chance, especially in the subfamily Lacertini. These results suggest that selection promotes the evolution of the complex pattern rather than the acquisition of a single conspicuous colour patch, possibly due to the increased conspicuousness caused by the combination of colours with contrasting spectral properties.

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By the PAAG electrophoretic spectra of Coomassi-stained 61-73 bands from 4 “tissues” (heart, skeletal muscle, kidney, liver proteins) for each of 17 specimens representing at least 3 or 4 species, (Eremias vermiculata Blanf., E. przewalskii Str., E. sp. and E. multiocellata Gunther) were compared.Most of the specimens were collected in Mongolia. Their tree, based on several measures of genetic distances, showed the order of the species listed above, with E. sp., the closest to the point of divergency, and situated between E. przewalskii and the specimen of E. multiocellata from several localities and biotypes. The genetic similarity of the biotypes of the last species is discussed in regard with other data on the body size and proportion, pholidosis, coloration.

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The karyotype of Eremias przewalskii from Minqin county,Gansu province was examined using medulla cells and the colchicines-hypotonic air dry technique.Result showed that the karyotype formula of E.przewalskii is 2n=38=36I+2m with NF=38,belonging to type of Eremias argus,consistent with the karyotypes of genus Eremias and family Lacertidae. On the basis of reviewing the reported karyological data of Eremias, the evolution of karyotypes in this genus is discussed.

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In the present study, relationships among all Chinese species of lacertids in the genus Eremias, E. velox, E. grammica, E. vermiculata, E. przewalskii, E. multiocellata, E. arguta, E. brenchleyi, and E. argus, were assessed using 574 aligned base positions of 16S rRNA mitochondrial DNA sequences from 103 individuals collected from 28 populations. Three kinds of phylogenetic tree (MP, ME, and NJ) were reconstructed and were found to be concordant. All eight species well form a monophyletic group. The resulting genetic distance between E. przewalskii and E. multiocellata is surprisingly low, only 0.008. The result could be due to introgression of the mtDNA molecule. All Eastern-Asia lacertids except E. vermiculata grouped together and formed a monophyletic clade. E. vermiculata are closely related to E. arguta, a Central-Asia species. E. brenchleyi and E. argus formed a monophyletic clade as the sister group of E. multiocellata. The Central-Asia species (E. arguta, E. grammica and E. velox) originated from Central-Asia and Eastern-Asia species (the rest) from China. The phylogenetic relationships among E. grammica, E. velox, E. arguta-vermiculata, E. argus-brenchleyi, and E. multiocellata-przewalskii are unclear in the study, which needs more comprehensive taxonomic sampling from Western Asia and Europe, and additional genetic evidence to resolve it.

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The major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes have been well characterized in mammals, birds, amphibians and fishes, but little is known about their organization in reptiles, despite the fact that reptiles occupy an important phylogenetic position for understanding the evolutionary history of vertebrates MHC genes. In this study we used polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and reverse transcription- polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to amplify the genomic exon 3 and exon 4 fragments of MHC class I genes in three racerunner lizards, including viviparous Multiocellated Racerunner (Eremias multiocellata), viviparous Gobi Racerunner (Eremias przewalskii), and oviparous Ordos Racerunner (Eremias brenchleyi). We also presented the molecular characterization of class I sequences for racerunner lacertids. Gene duplication was detected in the three Eremias species, at least four MHC class I loci in Multiocellated Racerunners and Ordos Racerunners, and at least five in Gobi Racerunners. A putative class I pseudogene was inferred in Ordos Racerunner for a premature stop codon in a segment of so-called exon 3. The peptide binding region, β2-microglobulin interaction sites and a conserved cysteine residue were recognized in α2 domain encoded by exon 3. The β2-microglobulin interaction sites, CD8 molecule interaction sites and a conserved cysteine residue were recognized in α3 domain encoded by exon 4. Putative classical class I genes were expressed in the uterus of both oviparous and viviparous racerunners during pregnancy, along with some alleles unexpressed in uterine. In addition, phylogenetic reconstruction suggested the existence of trans-species polymorphism in MHC class I genes in Eremias. These findings provide clues for further investigations of co-evolution of viviparity and maternal immune system, as well as evolution of squamate MHC.