Platysaurus

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Superclassis: Sarcopterygii
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Lepidosauromorpha
Superordo: Lepidosauria
Ordo: Squamata
Subordo: Scincomorpha
Superfamilia: Scincoidea

Familia: Cordylidae
Subfamilia: Platysaurinae
Genus: Platysaurus
Species (16): P. attenboroughi – P. broadleyi - P. capensis - P. guttatus - P. imperator - P. intermedius - P. lebomboensis - P. maculatus - P. minor - P. mitchelli - P. monotropis - P. ocellatus - P. orientalis – P. pungweensis – P. relictus – P. torquatus

Name

Platysaurus Smith, 1844: unpaginated

Type species: Platysaurus capensis Smith 1844, by monotypy.
References
Primary references

Smith, A. 1838–1849. Illustrations of the Zoology of South Africa; Consisting Chiefly of Figures and Descriptions of the Objects of Natural History Collected During an Expedition Into the Interior of South Africa, in the Years 1834, 1835, and 1836; Fitted Out by “The Cape of Good Hope Association for Exploring Central Africa.” Published Under the Authority of the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty’s Treasury. Reptilia. Vol. 2. Smith, Elder and Co.: London. [100] + 28 pp., pls. 1–78. BHL Reference page.

Additional references

Broadley, D.G. 1978. A revision of the genus Platysaurus A. Smith. Occasional papers of the National Museums and Monuments of Rhodesia. Series B, Natural sciences 6(4): 129–185. Reference page.
Whiting, M.J., Branch, W.R., Pepper, M. & Keogh, J.S. 2015. A new species of spectacularly coloured flat lizard Platysaurus (Squamata: Cordylidae: Platysaurinae) from southern Africa. Zootaxa 3986(2): 173–192. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3986.2.2. Preview (PDF) Reference page.

Links

Uetz, P. & Hallermann, J. 2022. Platysaurus . The Reptile Database. Accessed on 9 September 2017.

Vernacular names
English: Flat Lizards

Platysaurus is a genus of lizards, commonly known as flat lizards for their flat backs, in the family Cordylidae.

Geographic range

All species in the genus Platysaurus live in isolated populations in southern Africa. They are found in Mozambique, Zimbabwe, eastern Botswana, southern Namibia and northern and western South Africa.[1]
Description
P. capensis, views of head and hind limb

The species of Platysaurus exhibit sexual dimorphism. Females and juveniles often have black or brown backs with white stripes, while males are much more colored. Also, males are somewhat larger than females.
Species

The described species are:[2]

Platysaurus attenboroughi Whiting, Branch, Pepper & Keogh, 2015 – Attenborough's flat lizard
Platysaurus broadleyi Branch & Whiting, 1997 – Broadley's flat lizard or Augrabies flat lizard
Platysaurus capensis A. Smith, 1844 – Cape flat lizard
Platysaurus guttatus A. Smith, 1849 – dwarf flat lizard
Platysaurus imperator Broadley, 1962 – emperor flat lizard
Platysaurus intermedius Matschie, 1891 – common flat lizard
Platysaurus lebomboensis Jacobsen, 1994 – Lebombo flat lizard
Platysaurus maculatus Broadley, 1965 – spotted flat lizard
Platysaurus minor V. FitzSimons, 1930 – Waterberg flat lizard
Platysaurus mitchelli Loveridge, 1953 – Mitchell's flat lizard
Platysaurus monotropis Jacobsen, 1994 – orange-throated flat lizard
Platysaurus ocellatus Broadley, 1962 – ocellated flat lizard
Platysaurus orientalis V. FitzSimons, 1941 – Sekukune flat lizard
Platysaurus pungweensis Broadley, 1959 – Pungwe flat lizard
Platysaurus relictus Broadley, 1976 – Soutpansberg flat lizard
Platysaurus torquatus W. Peters, 1879 – striped flat lizard