Conradie, W. & Keates, C. & Verburgt, L. & Baptista, N.L. & Harvey, J. & Júlio, T. & Neef, G. (2022) - Contributions to the herpetofauna of the Angolan Okavango- Cuando-Zambezi River drainages. Part 2: Lizards (Sauria), chelonians, and crocodiles. - Amphibian and Reptile Conservation, 16 (General Section): 181–214 (e322).   × This work is the second report of the results obtained from a series of rapid biodiversity surveys
of the upper Cuito, Cubango, Cuando, Zambezi, and Kwanza River basins in Angola, which were conducted
between 2015 and 2019 in conjunction with the National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project. The
herpetofauna of this region are poorly documented and the results of these surveys help to address the
knowledge gap regarding the conservation importance of this region. Here, an updated checklist is provided
for the current and historical records of lizards, chelonians, and crocodiles from the southeastern region of
Angola. A total of 369 new records were documented comprising 40 species, bringing the total number of
recognized lizard, chelonian, and crocodile species in this region to 58. These surveys documented four new
country records (i.e., Lygodactylus chobiensis, Agama armata, Pachydactylus wahlbergii, and Ichnotropis cf.
grandiceps) and increased the total number of reptile species known to occur in Angola (excluding snakes)
from approximately 157 to 161. Finally, updated distribution maps for the whole country are provided for all of
the species encountered in this study. Benito, M. & Conradie, W. & Vaz Pinto, P. & Lobón-Roviera, J. (2025) - A needle in a haystack: Rediscovery and revised description of Ichnotropis microlepidota Marx, 1956, from the central highlands of Angola. - Zoosystematics and Evolution, 101 (2): 887-906. × Ichnotropis is a genus of small and elusive ground-dwelling lizards mostly distributed in the savannas and woodlands south of the
Congo River. The genus comprises six nominal species and three subspecies; however, the phylogenetic hypothesis of this group
and the taxonomical status of several taxa remain unresolved. Among these species, Ichnotropis microlepidota stands out, as it is
only known from the type series since its discovery in the 1950s in the crop of a Chanting Goshawk in Mount Moco, in the central
highlands of Angola. Consequently, due to the lack of a precise locality and its similar morphology to other species, the taxonomic
status of this species has been debated by several authors. Thanks to the collection of new material across the Angolan territory, we
take the opportunity to revise the group, using molecular and morphological techniques. Thus, we here provide the first phylogenetic
hypothesis of the group in Angola and therefore a phylogenetic placement of I. microlepidota. As a result, we validate the taxonomic
status of this elusive species and demonstrate that it represents a distinct taxon within the bivittata group, differing by 14.99% 16S
uncorrected p-distance from I. bivittata. Furthermore, we undertake an updated description of this species, providing additional ex-
ternal and internal (i.e., cranial osteology) morphological features that can be used to compare I. microlepidota with other members
of the group. Finally, we identified two candidate new species from Angola and corroborated the importance of the central highlands
of Angola as an important center of endemism in the western slope of Central Africa. Conradie, W. & Keates, C. & Greenbaum, E. & Lobón-Rovira, J. & Tolley, K.A. & Benito, M. & Vaz Pinto, P. & Breda, R.V. van & Verbrugt, L. (2025) - Systematics of African rough-scaled lizards, with description of two new species from eastern Angola (Squamata: Lacertidae: Ichnotropis PETERS, 1854). - Vertebrate Zoology, 75: 627–672. × Ichnotropis is a genus of medium-sized lacertids endemic to sub-Saharan Africa, characterised by rough head shields. The genus
currently comprises six nominal species distributed across much of southern, central, and eastern Africa. Some species are apparently
active at only certain times of the year, resulting in limited specimen collections and severely hampering research. This scarcity of
material has historically made comprehensive systematic reviews of the genus difficult and has led to the description of numerous
regional morphological variants as distinct species or subspecies. Material collected in recent years has enabled us to provide a new
phylogenetic hypothesis of Ichnotropis using two mitochondrial genes (16S and ND4) and two nuclear genes (c-mos and RAG-1).
Our phylogenetic dataset includes 56 individuals representing five of the six currently recognised species (excluding I. chapini).
Additionally, the broad geographical sampling of the widespread I. capensis group has allowed us to explore the taxonomic status of
several species and subspecies within the group. As a result, we demonstrate the monophyly of Ichnotropis in relation to other African lacertids and present the most comprehensive phylogeny of the genus to date. We also provide the first phylogenetic placements
for I. tanganicana and I. grandiceps, which allows us to validate their taxonomic statuses. Furthermore, we recovered a new cryptic
species closely related to I. grandiceps, and identified several well-supported clades within the I. capensis group, all corroborated by
multi-locus species delimitation analyses. One of these clades is described herein as a new species, while the remaining taxa of interest are discussed and highlighted for future investigation. Based on our findings, we recommend the following taxonomic revisions:
Ichnotropis longipes and I. macrolepidota should remain synonyms of I. capensis; I. bivittata pallida and I. capensis nigrescens are
treated as a junior synonyms of I. bivittata; and I. overlaeti is considered a junior synonym of I. tanganicana. Although we could not
determine the phylogenetic placement of I. chapini due to the lack of genetic material, its head morphology and scalation support its
reassignment to the I. bivittata group. Thus, it is retained as a valid species pending the availability of new material for further taxonomic actions. In conclusion, this study resolves several long-standing taxonomic issues within one of Africa’s most understudied
lacertid genera and lays a solid foundation for future research on the genus Ichnotropis.
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