The Mbanja worm lizard (Chirindia ewerbecki), also known commonly as Ewerbeck's round-headed worm lizard, is a species of amphisbaenian in the family Amphisbaenidae. The species is endemic to Tanzania. There are two recognized subspecies.[2]
| Mbanja worm lizard | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Family: | Amphisbaenidae |
| Genus: | Chirindia |
| Species: | C. ewerbecki
|
| Binomial name | |
| Chirindia ewerbecki F. Werner, 1910
| |
Etymology edit
The specific name, ewerbecki, is in honor of German customs official Karl Ewerbeck, who collected the holotype.[3]
Geographic range edit
C. ewerbecki is found in extreme southeastern Tanzania.[1]
Habitat edit
The preferred natural habitat of C. ewerbecki is savanna, at an altitude of about 300 m (980 ft).[1]
Reproduction edit
C. ewerbecki is oviparous.[2] The adult female lays a single egg.[1]
Subspecies edit
Two subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies.[2]
- Chirindia ewerbecki ewerbecki F. Werner, 1910
- Chirindia ewerbecki nanguruwensis (Loveridge, 1962)
Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Chirindia.
References edit
- ^ a b c d Msuya CA, Ngalason W, Howell K (2021). "Chirindia ewerbecki ". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T196956A44839502.en. Accessed on 09 February 2023.
- ^ a b c Chirindia ewerbecki at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 24 February 2019.
- ^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Chirindia ewerbecki, p. 86).
Further reading edit
- Broadley DG, Gans C (1978). "Southern forms of Chirindia (Amphibaenia, Reptilia)". Annals of Carnegie Museum 47: 29–51.
- Loveridge A (1962). "New worm-lizards (Ancylocranium and Amphisbaena) from southeastern Tanganyika territory". Breviora (163): 1–6. (Amphisbaena nanguruwensis, new species, pp. 5–6).
- Spawls S, Howell K, Hinkel H, Menegon M (2018). Field Guide to East African Reptiles, Second Edition. London: Bloomsbury Natural History. 624 pp. ISBN 978-1472935618.
- Werner F (1910). "Über neue oder seltene Reptilien des Naturhistorischen Museums in Hamburg. II. Eidechsen". Jahrbuch der Hamburgischen Wissenschaftlichen Anstalten 27 (supplement 2): 1–46. (Chirindia ewerbecki, new species, p. 37). (in German).
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