Caribicus anelpistus (Schwartz, Graham & Duval, 1979:3)
Giant Hispaniolan galliwasp, San Cristobal galliwasp, Altagracia giant forest lizard
Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Synonym/s: Diploglossus anelpistus Schwartz, Graham & Duval, 1979:3 (basionym); Celestus anelpistus (Schwartz, Graham & Duval, 1979:3); Celestus warreni anelpistus (Schwartz, Graham & Duval, 1979:3)
Conservation Status
Last record: 21 July 1977 (Schools & Hedges, 2024)
Since Rediscovered (De Jesus et al., 2023)
IUCN RedList status: Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct)
There is a possible record of this species from 2004 or earlier (McGinnity & Powell, 2004). It was then Rediscovered (De Jesus et al., 2023).
Distribution
Villa Altagracia, San Cristóbal Province, south-central Dominican Republic, Hispaniola
Biology & Ecology
Hypodigm
Holotype: USNM 197336
Media
References
Original scientific description:
Schwartz, A., Graham, E. D. and Duval J. J. (1979). A new species of Diploglossus (Sauria: Anguidae) from Hispaniola. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 92: 1-9.
Other references:
De Jesus, N., Marte, C., Espinal, R. J. & Inchaustegui, S. J. (2023). Rediscovery of the Altagracia Giant Galliwasp (Caribicus anelpistus) at Villa Altagracia, Dominican Republic. Reptiles & Amphibians 30(1): e20611-e20611.
Hallermann, J. and Böhme, W. (2002). On giant anguids from the West Indies with special reference to Celestus warreni (Schwartz, 1970) and its relatives from Hispaniola (Reptilia: Squamata: Anguidae). Mitt. Hamb. Zool. Mus. Inst. 99: 169-178.
Hedges, S. Blair, Powell, R., Henderson, R. W., Hanson, S. and Murphy, J. C. (2019). Definition of the Caribbean Islands biogeographic region, with checklist and recommendations for standardized common names of amphibians and reptiles. Caribbean Herpetology 67:1-53. https://doi.org/10.31611/ch.67
Henderson, R. W. (1988). Diploglossus anelpistus Schwartz, Graham and Duval. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles No.424.
Landestoy, M., Inchaustegui, S. and Hedges, S. B. (2016). Celestus anelpistus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T39258A71739779. Downloaded on 17 December 2016.
Landestoy, M., Schools, M. and Hedges, S. Blair. (2022) A new genus and species of Caribbean forest lizard (Diploglossidae; Celestinae) from southern Hispaniola. Zootaxa 5219(3): 201-226.
McGinnity, D. (Nashville Zoo, Tennessee, USA) & Powell, R. (Avila University, Kansas, USA). (2004). Celestus anelpistus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2004: e.T39258A10180795. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2004.RLTS.T39258A10180795.en. Downloaded on 14 December 2015.
Powell, Robert and Henderson, Robert W. (2012). Island lists of West Indian amphibians and reptiles. Bulletin of the Florida Museum of Natural History 51(2): 85-166. [considers this taxon possibly extinct]
Regalado, Pedro Galán. (2015). Los Anfibios y Reptiles Extinguidos: Herpetofauna Desaparecida Desde el Año 1500. Monografías de la Universidade da Coruña 155: 1-509.
Schools, Molly and Hedges, S. Blair. (2021). Phylogenetics, classification, and biogeography of the Neotropical forest lizards (Squamata, Diploglossidae). Zootaxa 4974(2): 201-257. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4974.2.1
Schools, Molly and Hedges, S. Blair. (2024). A new forest lizard fauna from Caribbean islands (Squamata, Diploglossidae, Celestinae). Zootaxa 5554(1): 1-306. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5554.1.1
Schwartz, A. and Henderson, R. W. (1991). Amphibians and reptiles of the West Indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. University of Florida Press, Gainesville, Florida. 720 pp.
http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Celestus&species=anelpistus
https://extinctanimals.proboards.com/thread/12319/celestus-anelpistus-giant-hispaniolan-galliwasp