Ichnotropis cf. grandiceps Broadley, 1967

Conradie, Werner, Keates, Chad, Verburgt, Luke, Baptista, Ninda L., Harvey, James, Júlio, Timóteo & Neef, Götz, 2022, Contributions to the herpetofauna of the Angolan Okavango-Cuando-Zambezi River drainages. Part 2: Lizards (Sauria), chelonians, and crocodiles, Amphibian & Reptile Conservation (e 322) 16 (2), pp. 181-214 : 198-199

Ichnotropis cf. grandiceps Broadley, 1967

Caprivi Rough-scaled Lizard ( Figs. 23–25, Map 21) Material (17 specimens): PEM R23279–80; INBAC (no number), Cuanavale River source, -13.0933° 18.89396°, 1,367 m asl; PEM R23299–300, Grassland W of Cuanavale River to Samanunga village, -13.07508° 18.88481°, 1,366 m asl; PEM R23303–9, 4 km upstream from Cuanavale River source, -13.05084° 18.89726°, 1,380 m asl; PEM R23361–2, drive to Cuanavale River camp from Samanunga village, -13.03803° 18.82977°, 1,605 m asl; PEM R23420–1, Cuando River source, -13.00345° 19.12751°, 1,343 m asl; PEM R23482, Cuando River source Trap 4, -13.00164° 19.1296°, 1,372 m asl. Description: 41–49 (44) midbody scale rows; 9–10 (10) longitudinal ventral scale rows; 30–37 (34) transverse ventral scale rows; 4–5 supralabials; 6–7 infralabials; 5–6 supraciliaries; 19–26 (22) subdigital lamellae under 4 th toe; 10–13 (12) femoral pores per thigh. Largest female: 78.2 + 126.0 mm (PEM R23362); largest male: 73.5 + 95t mm (PEM R23420, longest tail measured 117 mm [2x SVL]). Habitat and natural history notes: Juveniles were only observed in February 2016 on sandy areas around the source of the Cuanavale River, while two adults were found on the elevated grassland ridges. In October 1,143 m asl. Description: 53 midbody scale rows; 8 longitudinal and 36 transverse ventral scale rows; 7/7 supralabials; 7/7 infralabials; 4/4 supraciliaries; 17 subdigital lamellae under 4 th toe; 14 femoral pores per thigh. Largest male: 60.8 + 88.0 mm (PEM R24291). Habitat and natural history notes: Found active during the day in Zambezian Baikiaea woodland. Comment: This species is only known from a handful of records in southern Angola ( Monard 1937; Conradie et al. 2016), although it is more widespread further south and east ( Branch 1998; Pietersen et al. 2021).

2016, only adult specimens were found in sympatry with adult I. capensis . Comment: Described from the Zambezi Region in northeastern Namibia based on only three specimens ( Broadley 1967), and further known only from four additional specimens collected from northeastern Namibia ( Haacke 1970) and one specimen from western Zambia ( Pietersen et al. 2017). The newly collected material conforms in part (broad head, large overall size, dorsal coloration, and higher midbody scale counts) with the original description. These therefore represent the first records from Angola and the largest series of specimens for this species ever collected. The species displays a substantial amount of ontogenetic variation (coloration and size), which originally led to the belief that the juveniles and adults of I. grandiceps represented separate species (W. Conradie, pers. obs.). Since this is the first genetic material available for this species, a phylogenetic study is underway (W. Conradie, in prep.).