Gastropholis echinata (Cope, 1862)

Figure 14C

Lacerta (Zootoca) echinata Cope, 1862: 189 . Type locality: “West Africa”. Very likely Liberia according to Loveridge (1941).

Lacerta hirticauda Vaillant, 1884: 344 . Type locality: “Kinjabo” Kinjaho, Assini, Ghana.

Lacerta langi Schmidt, 1919: 492 . Type locality: “Medje”, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Centromastix echinatus (Cope, 1862): Laurent 1958: 118.

Gastropholis echinata (Cope, 1862): Arnold 1989: 543.

Distribution. West and Central Africa, from Liberia to the Northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In Equatorial Guinea it has been recorded in Río Muni at Benito River (Boulenger 1921) and Bioko (Pérez del Val 2001) (but see comments) (Map 17A).

Comments. Mertens (1964) did not include this species among the reptiles of Bioko. Later, Pérez del Val (2001) recorded a single specimen from the island (MNCN 6231). However, the collection locality of this specimen is tentative, and there are no recent confirmed records of this species in Bioko. In this sense, following Mertens (1964), we do not consider the presence of this species in Bioko. As this species inhabits the forest canopy, it is rarely observed and collected (Arnold 1989). Future prospections should be made to detect the presence (and confirm the Biokoan record) of this elusive species in Equatorial Guinea.

Specimens examined. One specimen. Equatorial Guinea, without specific locality (Bioko?) (MNCN 6231).