Cool Geckos: Does Plesiomorphy Explain Morphological Similarities between Geckos from the Southern Cone?

DAZA, JUAN D.; GAMBLE, TONY; ABDALA, VIRGINIA; BAUER, AARON M.

JOURNAL OF HERPETOLOGY

SOC STUDY AMPHIBIANS REPTILES

Año: 2017 vol. 51 p. 330 - 342

0022-1511

The South American genus Homonota comprises 10 species of Broad-Headed Geckos that reach the austral limit for theGekkota. Historically, morphological data have supported the monophyly of a group including Homonota and the Chilean genusGarthia, with the latter possibly embedded within the former. In contrast, molecular evidence indicates these two genera to be in separateclades and that Homonota is more closely related to the Leaf-Toed Geckos of the genus Phyllodactylus. Here, we analyze 592morphological characters in Garthia, Homonota, and additional phyllodactylid geckos to evaluate their morphological similarities. Ourresults indicate that Homonota and Garthia share a great majority of both external and internal characters and are nearlyindistinguishable on morphological grounds. These results are interpreted in the light of a recently published multigene molecularphylogeny, and they suggest the symplesiomorphic retention of many morphological states linked to miniaturization and terrestriality inGarthia and Homonota, and concomitant differentiation of the American Leaf-Toed Geckos.