Review of Lizard Diversity, Natural History and Ecology from the Northern Monte Desert, Argentina
Avila, Luciano Javier
Instituto Patagónico para el Estudio de los Ecosistemas Continentales IPEEC-CONICET
Puerto Madryn
Chubut, Argentina SA
avilacnp@gmail.com
Acosta, Juan Carlos
Department of Biology
FCEFyN San Juan National University San Juan
San Juan, Argentina SA
Minoli, Ignacio
Instituto Patagónico para el Estudio de los Ecosistemas Continentales IPEEC-CONICET
Puerto Madryn
Chubut, Argentina SA
Blanco, Graciela
Acosta, Rodrigo
Department of Biology
FCEFyN San Juan National University San Juan
San Juan, Argentina SA
Sites Jr., Jack W.
Department of Biology and Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum
Brigham Young University
Provo, UT USA
Morando, Mariana
Instituto Patagónico para el Estudio de los Ecosistemas Continentales IPEEC-CONICET
Puerto Madryn
Chubut, Argentina SA
Much of southern South America consists of diverse montane, arid, and semiarid regions characterized by high squamate endemism as a result of a complex interplay between lineage histories, Tertiary geological changes, and Pleistocene climatic shifts. The Monte Desert region extending from 24° to 32° S in north-western Argentina, and characterized by small mountain ranges and closed basins, with subtropical to temperate warm climates. Here we provide an updated review of lizard biodiversity in the northern ecoregion of the Monte Desert, the Monte of Mountains and Closed Basins, and we review some aspects of the phylogeographic, taxonomic, ecological, physiological, and behavioral research carried out here in the last 30 years. We have documented 35 species of lizards (14 described since 1998, 15 species of snakes, and one turtle species, Endemism is relatively high in lizards (22/35 species; 63%), but low in snakes (1/15, 6.6%). The Monte resembles parts of the North American Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts, with which it shares several plant genera but few (Crotalus) animal taxa.