I was at the Jersey Zoo (now called just "Durrell") on Sunday, looking at some of the reptiles, and happened to notice the Mexican Beaded Lizard.
What struck me, and I can't imagine how I haven't seen it before, is the comic nomenclature. Usually the Latin names for any species and variety are informative and descriptive, but relatively dull. But whoever named the Mexican Beaded Lizard.
The first variety was called Heloderma horridum horridum which translates as Horrible Horrible Studded (or Beaded) Lizard and was named by the German Zoologist Arend Friedrich August Wiegmann in 1829.
The second was named Heloderma horridum alvarezi by Bogert & Martên del Campo in 1956, named after the famous Mexican naturalist Miguel Carlos Francisco Alvarez del Toro, who like Gerald Durrell, had no formal education but who was an important and prolific naturalist "By the time of his death, on 2 August 1996, at age 79, he had accumulated more than 50 years of intense and fruitful work as one of the most devoted naturalists in Mexico, most of it in a region of intense and difficult social, political, and biological problems, the state of Chiapas".
But the same year, in Rio Fuerte, Mexico, they discovered another variety. Another variety, another name. It was enough to make a naturalist exasperated about nomenclature! Which is perhaps why they named it, tongue in cheek, as:
Heloderma horridum exasperatum!
This is the variety in the Jersey zoo.
Stephen J Angeli (who breeds these lizards) comments on it:
Heloderma horrendum exasperatum described by Bogart & Del Campo 1956 also called the Rio Fuerte Beaded Lizard. Is the Northern most race of Heloderma horridum inhabiting the drainage basins of the Rio Fuerte & the Rio Mayo areas of southern Sonora & Northern Sinaloa Mexico
It is an important species, and Wikipedia has this to say:
It and its close relative, the Gila monster (Heloderma suspectum), are the only venomous lizards in the world. It is larger than the Gila monster but has duller coloration. Beaded lizards are black with yellowish bands of differing width, depending on the subspecies. A specialized predator that feeds primarily upon eggs, the primary use of its venom is still a source of debate among scientists. However, this venom has been found to contain several enzymes useful for manufacturing drugs in the treatment of diabetes, and further research on the pharmacological use of its venom is still ongoing.
Lastly one final note on Miguel Miguel Carlos Francisco Alvarez del Toro (Don Miguel) after whom one Beaded lizard is named, and who strikes me as a Mexican Gerald Durrell:
Don Miguel had no formal education. Nevertheless, his fascination and expertise with wildlife made him a great teacher, scientist, and conservationist. He taught at the Colegio de Ciencias y Artes de Chiapas, as well as at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. His devotion to science was honored by the Universidad de Chiapas and the Universidad de Chapingo with the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa. He obtained multiple honors in his life, including the "Chiapas Prize" (1952), the "Alfonso L. Herrera Medal for Merit on Ecology and Conservation" (1985), the "Paul Getty Prize for Conservation of Nature" of the World Wildlife Fund (1989), membership in the "Roll of Honour for Environmental Achievement" of the United Nations Environmental Program (1993), as well as recognitions by the American Society of Zoological Parks and Aquaria, the Ministries of Agriculture and Environment of the Mexican Government, and the Chicago Zoological Society. He was a member of numerous scientific societies and also of several specialist groups of the IUCN. His role in conservation in Chiapas was critical, being the principal force behind the creation of 6 of the 11 protected areas in the State. Also, a nonprofit foundation, the "Fundacion Chiapaneca Miguel Alvarez del Toro para la Proteccion de la Naturaleza A.C." (FUNDAMAT), was created to continue efforts for the preservation of the natural resources of Chiapas.
Another major contribution of Don Miguel was the creation and design of the zoological park at Tuxtla Gutierrez-the ZOOMAT, or "Zoologico Regional Miguel Alvarez del Toro," named to honor him. This zoo was revolutionary in that he wanted the animals to be free in their environment, and humans ("the most destructive and dangerous species in the world" as a sign in a mirror at the Zoo depicts) to be "caged" in the aisles to observe the animals.
http://www.helodermahorridum.com/index.php
Stephen J Angeli's site - all about beaded lizards (all varieties) which he breads
http://www.educationplanet.com/directory/Art_and_Music/Arts_and_Crafts/Beading
Educational site on Beading on Lizards
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3793/is_199901/ai_n8840368
Article on Miguel Carlos Francisco Alvarez del Toro
What struck me, and I can't imagine how I haven't seen it before, is the comic nomenclature. Usually the Latin names for any species and variety are informative and descriptive, but relatively dull. But whoever named the Mexican Beaded Lizard.
The first variety was called Heloderma horridum horridum which translates as Horrible Horrible Studded (or Beaded) Lizard and was named by the German Zoologist Arend Friedrich August Wiegmann in 1829.
The second was named Heloderma horridum alvarezi by Bogert & Martên del Campo in 1956, named after the famous Mexican naturalist Miguel Carlos Francisco Alvarez del Toro, who like Gerald Durrell, had no formal education but who was an important and prolific naturalist "By the time of his death, on 2 August 1996, at age 79, he had accumulated more than 50 years of intense and fruitful work as one of the most devoted naturalists in Mexico, most of it in a region of intense and difficult social, political, and biological problems, the state of Chiapas".
But the same year, in Rio Fuerte, Mexico, they discovered another variety. Another variety, another name. It was enough to make a naturalist exasperated about nomenclature! Which is perhaps why they named it, tongue in cheek, as:
Heloderma horridum exasperatum!
This is the variety in the Jersey zoo.
Stephen J Angeli (who breeds these lizards) comments on it:
Heloderma horrendum exasperatum described by Bogart & Del Campo 1956 also called the Rio Fuerte Beaded Lizard. Is the Northern most race of Heloderma horridum inhabiting the drainage basins of the Rio Fuerte & the Rio Mayo areas of southern Sonora & Northern Sinaloa Mexico
It is an important species, and Wikipedia has this to say:
It and its close relative, the Gila monster (Heloderma suspectum), are the only venomous lizards in the world. It is larger than the Gila monster but has duller coloration. Beaded lizards are black with yellowish bands of differing width, depending on the subspecies. A specialized predator that feeds primarily upon eggs, the primary use of its venom is still a source of debate among scientists. However, this venom has been found to contain several enzymes useful for manufacturing drugs in the treatment of diabetes, and further research on the pharmacological use of its venom is still ongoing.
Lastly one final note on Miguel Miguel Carlos Francisco Alvarez del Toro (Don Miguel) after whom one Beaded lizard is named, and who strikes me as a Mexican Gerald Durrell:
Don Miguel had no formal education. Nevertheless, his fascination and expertise with wildlife made him a great teacher, scientist, and conservationist. He taught at the Colegio de Ciencias y Artes de Chiapas, as well as at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. His devotion to science was honored by the Universidad de Chiapas and the Universidad de Chapingo with the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa. He obtained multiple honors in his life, including the "Chiapas Prize" (1952), the "Alfonso L. Herrera Medal for Merit on Ecology and Conservation" (1985), the "Paul Getty Prize for Conservation of Nature" of the World Wildlife Fund (1989), membership in the "Roll of Honour for Environmental Achievement" of the United Nations Environmental Program (1993), as well as recognitions by the American Society of Zoological Parks and Aquaria, the Ministries of Agriculture and Environment of the Mexican Government, and the Chicago Zoological Society. He was a member of numerous scientific societies and also of several specialist groups of the IUCN. His role in conservation in Chiapas was critical, being the principal force behind the creation of 6 of the 11 protected areas in the State. Also, a nonprofit foundation, the "Fundacion Chiapaneca Miguel Alvarez del Toro para la Proteccion de la Naturaleza A.C." (FUNDAMAT), was created to continue efforts for the preservation of the natural resources of Chiapas.
Another major contribution of Don Miguel was the creation and design of the zoological park at Tuxtla Gutierrez-the ZOOMAT, or "Zoologico Regional Miguel Alvarez del Toro," named to honor him. This zoo was revolutionary in that he wanted the animals to be free in their environment, and humans ("the most destructive and dangerous species in the world" as a sign in a mirror at the Zoo depicts) to be "caged" in the aisles to observe the animals.
http://www.helodermahorridum.com/index.php
Stephen J Angeli's site - all about beaded lizards (all varieties) which he breads
http://www.educationplanet.com/directory/Art_and_Music/Arts_and_Crafts/Beading
Educational site on Beading on Lizards
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3793/is_199901/ai_n8840368
Article on Miguel Carlos Francisco Alvarez del Toro
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