The Teiid Lizards of Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire (Dutch Caribbean), and the Península de Paraguaná (Venezuela)

Herein I discuss the larger teiid lizards of the genera Ameiva and Cnemidophorus on the Dutch L eeward Islands (Aruba, Curacao, and Bonaire) and those on the nearby P en.nsula de P araguan. in Venezuela. Lizards in the genus Cnemidophorus are generally called “Whiptail L izards” or “Racerunners,” whereas those in the genus Ameiva are called “JungleRunners.” The genera differ in the number of rows of ventral scales and in the structure of the bones in the tongue. However, in some DNA analyses, Ameiva and Cnemidophorus do not separate clearly. S ome members of the N eotropical ‘‘C.’’ lemniscatus species group appear to be more closely related to some species of Ameiva and Kentropyx than to many species of Cnemidophorus (Reeder et al. 2002).