A new species of night-lizard of the genus Lepidophyma (Squamata: Xantusiidae) from the Cuicatlan Valley, Oaxaca, Mexico

A new species of Lepidophyma from the Biosphere Reserve area of Tehuacan-Cuicatlan, Oaxaca, Mexico, is described. This new species, Lepidophyma cuicateca sp. nov., is known from two areas in the Cuicatlan Valley. Lepidophyma cuicateca sp. nov. is a member of the Lepidophyma gaigeae species Group and is characterized by its small body size, small size of tubercular body scales, poorly differentiated caudal whorls and interwhorls, and relatively large dorsal, ventral and gular scales. It lives in shady places, below rocks along the Apoala River, and is commonly found in plantain, sapodilla, cherimoya, mango and coffee plantations, as well as tropical deciduous forest. The description of L. cuicateca sp. nov. increases the number of species in the L. gaigeae Group to five.