Browsing by Author "Mouton, P. L. F. N."

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    The conservation status of the Saldanha-Langebaan lizard fauna
    (AOSIS, 1996) Cordes, I. G.; Mouton, P. L. F. N.
    The conservation status of relic melanistic lizard species occurring in the Saldanha-Langebaan area has been investigated. A contact zone between one melanistic form and a closely related non-melanistic form has been examined in detail. Apart from melanistic populations of the girdled lizards, Cordylus niger and C. polyzonus, a melanistic morphotype of the Cape legless skink, Acontias meleagris meleagris also occurs in the area. The taxonomic status of this morphotype needs to be investigated. At Mauritz Bay, north of Saldanha, the ranges of C. niger and the non-melanistic C. cordylus are in contact over a distance of approximately 240 m, with maximum overlap of 70 m. The melanistic populations of C. polyzonus and A. m. meleagris have relatively large ranges in the Saldanha-Langebaan area and are not threatened by urban development. The C. niger population, however, is fragmented into several subpopulations, and those in the Saldanha area, including the contact zone, will be affected if urban development is allowed to continue in the area. As relic populations of other cool-adapted, melanistic invertebrate and lower vertebrate species may also occur in the area, the key areas demarcated by C. niger should be preserved.
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    Reptile fauna of the Katse Dam catchment area and a biogeographical assessment of species composition in the Lesotho Highlands
    (AOSIS, 1993) Mouton, P. L. F. N.; Van Wyk, J. H.
    With only seven lizard and five snake species recorded to date, species richness in the catchment area is much lower than expected. Species richness in the western and central districts of the Lesotho Highlands in general is low, emphasising the role of the Drakensberg-Maluti mountain complex as a barrier to species dispersal. The reptile fauna of the western/central highland area is primarily composed of widespread generalist species. The eastern highland areas, on the other hand, have a substantial endemic component, indicating the greater potential of these areas as a conservatory of geographical isolates. The direct impact of the Katse Dam on the local reptile fauna is expected to be minimal. -from Authors