Anolis poncensis

Anolis poncensis is a species of lizard of the family of Dactyloidae. The species is endemic to Puerto Rico. It was first identified in Ponce, in the hills three miles east of the city. The Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources considers it a "vulnerable species".

Description

The body of this anole is longer and more slender than other grass Anoles. It has distinguishing brownish dorsum, greenish sides, blue eyes, a small white dewlap, a short pale lateral line, and a number of black spots behind the eyes. Males grow up to 44 mm and females up to 40 mm.
[Image:Herpetologyofpor00stej 0126-diagram.jpg|thumb|300px|left|Anolis poncensis diagram from Stejneger, L. "The herpetology of Porto Rico". Rept. United States Natl. Mus. 1902: pp. 666. (1904).]

Distribution

This species is endemic to Puerto Rico. Its distribution is rather small, being limited to the arid and semi-arid western half of the southern coast of the island. It was identified and catalogued in 1902 by Leonhard Stejneger, a curator with the Division of Reptiles and Batrachians of the United States [National Museum].

Etymology

Its species name, consisting of "ponce" plus the Latin suffix -nsis, was given in reference to the place of its discovery, the city of Ponce. Its discovery and documentation were originally published in ''Stejneger, 1904: "The herpetology of Porto Rico".''