Patrick:

Richard F. Hoyer 'Discovery of a Probable New Species in the Genus Contia' Northwestern Naturalist Winter 2001, 82:116-122



I have all reviewer's comments but it isn't worth the effort going back and reviewing that frustating period of time. The new species is not truly cryptic but what I would term as pseudo-cryptic as adults of the two species can be segregated one from the other by visual means. This major visual differentiation is by relative tail length. I originally called Contia tenuis as the short-tailed Contia and the new species as the long-tailed Contia.



There are two distinct morphological features in which at this point in time, there is no overlap between the species. Those two features are relative tail length (tail length divided by total length) and number of caudals. A third trait that is different between the species in a significant way, but where there is overlap, is the number of ventrals.



As mentioned, I found the first specimen of the new species in July, 1998 (still have her). By the fall of 1998, I had uncovered some anecdotal information from 3 biologists that along with other observations, began to suggest the new species scenario rather than simply clinal variation or subspecies level distinction. I had only examined C. tenuis in Oregon and contacted Chris Feldman in late 1998 trying to find some localities I might find Contia in Calif. It was at that point he told me of the peculiar results he had obtained when he ran mtDNA tests on 11 Calif. Contia. Two of the 11 samples indicated a divergence in the 6-7% range whereas the other 9 samples were within 1- 2% or thereabouts. His outgroup of the Ringneck snake diverged by 11% if my memory serves me correctly.



Immediately this strenghtened my suspicions that a new species was at hand. By July, 1999 I had all the data to support the new species scenario. At the urging of Drs. Robert Mason, here at OSU, and Dr. Robert Stebbins of Kensington, Calif. (now Walnut Creek, CA), I incorporated the Contia from the CAS collection in order to increase both sample size and geographical representation of both forms of Contia.



In the meantime, Chris had turned over, or was about to turn over, his samples and results to a researcher here at OSU. In a Sept. 1999 meeting with Chris and one of his advisors (Dr. Ted Papenfuss) in the MVZ collection at U.C. Berkeley, I urged that he take credit for his unique discovery with Dr. Papenfuss agreeing. At that meeting, I asked Chris to get the jar of Contia from Mendocino County, Calif. as I knew both species occurred in that county. Before even taking the lid off the jar, I pointed out that both species could be veiwed side by side in the jar. Although I had long before mentioned the tail length difference to Chris, I am pretty sure both gentlemen were quite surprised that it was that easy to distinguish between the two species.



Chris and I are to write a formal description of the new species. I got started with recording the data on one of Dr. Mason computers at OSU here in Corvallis but have been sidetrack some with my interests in the Rubber Boa. In the meantime, Chris first moved to St. Louis, Mo. and Wash. U., then got married and moved to Maryland, and more recently they moved to Logan, Utah where he will be pursuing his PhD. Once our hot spell passes here in W. Oregon and our second collecting season kicks in, I will be going afield to find a few S. All. Lizards for Chris and his thesis project.



Richard F. Hoyer



P.S. Have gobs or reprints.

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