Reconquering the water Vrije Universiteit Brussel
The Cercosaurini tribe stands out from other Gymnophthalmidae lizards for including several species with morphological adaptations to aquatic lifestyle (“Crocodile-Like Morphology” – CLM). Recent molecular phylogenies of Cercosaurini demonstrated the paraphyly of CLM species, implicitly suggesting that adaptations to the aquatic life evolved more than once. However, CLM species have remained poorly sampled, and a number of uncertainties ...