Species:

Takydromus septentrionalis  GÜNTHER, 1864

Synonyms:

Tachydromus septentrionalis  GÜNTHER, 1864

Takydromus septentrionalis  STEJNEGER, 1907

Common names:

Northern grass lizard (English)
的北草蜥 (Chinese)

Types:

Types: BMNH 1946.8.4.27 (and possibly additional specimens).

Terra Typica:

Ningpo (= Ningbo Shi, Zhejiang Province, China).

Relevant taxonomic literature:

• Günther, A. (1864) -  Description of Takydromus septentrionalis. -  In: “The Reptiles of British India”. London (Taylor & Francis), xxvii + 452 pp.  

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• Cai, Y. & Yan, J. & Xu, X.-F. & Lin, Z.-H. & Ji, X. (2012) -  Mitochondrial DNA phylogeography reveals a west–east division of the northern grass lizard (Takydromus septentrionalis) endemic to China -  Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research, Berlin, 50 (2): 137-144.    

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  We sequenced partial mitochondrial DNA from the cytochrome b gene (1143 bps) for 385 northern grass lizards (Takydromus septentrionalis) from 14 mainland and 14 island populations covering almost the lizard’s entire range to examine the influence of geographic barriers (mountain ranges and water bodies) on the diversification of lineages. Phylogenetic analyses revealed a detailed distribution of three evolutionary lineages (W, E and G). Lineage G included individuals exclusively from Guiyang, in the south-western distributional limit. Lineage W included individuals from the central and western parts of the lizard’s range on the mainland. Lineage E included individuals from East China, both on the mainland and on islands in the East China Sea. Haplotypes from lineages W and E were co-distributed in Chuzhou and Chibi. The averaged pairwise distance of 6.23% between these lineages indicated a Miocene-Pliocene lineage-split. Lineage E was further subdivided to three sublineages: E1 and E2 comprised of haplotypes from the Zhoushan Islands, and E3 included haplotypes from the eastern mainland, the Zhoushan Islands and two islands south of the Zhoushan Islands. Lineages W and E showed evidence of demographic extensions. The isolation caused by the last transgression (0.01 Ma) has not yet led to a significant genetic differentiation between mainland and island populations in East China. However, divergence among some small islands may be driven by the restriction of migration and genetic drift.

• Hu, J.-G. & Peng, L.-F. & Tang, X.-S. & Huang, S. (2019) -  The complete mitochondrial genome of Takydromus septentrionalis (Reptilia: Lacertidae). -  Mitochondrial DNA Part B, 4:2, 2193-2194.     

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  The complete mitochondrial genome sequence of Takydromus septentrionalis was determined by shotgun sequencing. The total length of mitogenome is 18,304 bp, and contains 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNA genes, 2 ribosome RNA genes, and 2 control regions. Most of the genes of T. septentrionalis were distributed on the H-strand, except for the ND6 subunit gene and eight tRNA genes which were encoded on the L-strand. The phylogenetic tree of T. septentrionalis and 8 other closely related species was reconstructed. The phylogenetic analyses based on these mitogenomes presented here will be useful for further insights on the evolutionary relationships of Takydromus.