Plica

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Plica is a genus of tropidurid lizards found in South America and the Caribbean. Species in the genus Plica are arboreal, medium-sized lizards.^[1]

Taxonomy

For a long time, the genus Plica was considered to include four species: two relatively widespread ones (P. plica and P. umbra) and two tepuis-associated species with narrow distributions (P. lumaria and P. pansticta). However, recent research has shown that P. plica is a cryptic species complex, and four new species were described in 2013. The species count will likely increase as there are still several undescribed species.^[1]

Species

The currently recognized species are the following:^[2]

• Plica lumaria Donnelly & C. Myers, 1991
• Plica pansticta (C. Myers & Donnelly, 2001)
• Plica plica (Linnaeus, 1758) – collared tree runner, tree runner
• Plica umbra (Linnaeus, 1758) – blue-lipped tree lizard, harlequin racerunner

Formerly included in Plica plica:^[1]

• Plica caribeana Murphy & Jowers, 2013 – Caribbean treerunner
• Plica kathleenae Murphy & Jowers, 2013 – Kathleen’s treerunner
• Plica medemi Murphy & Jowers, 2013 – Medem’s treerunner
• Plica rayi Murphy & Jowers, 2013 – Ray’s treerunner

Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Plica.

References