Liolaemus arambarensis Verrastro, Veronese, Bujes & Dias Filho, 2003 (Iguania: Liolaemidae) is a small sand lizard that inhabits restingas in the Patos Lagoon, Southern Brazil. The description of the skeleton in this species could give some insights about the phylogenetic relationships with other species of the genus. With the main goal of describing the pre-sacral and sacral regions of the axial skeleton of L. arambarensis, a total of seven individuals were analyzed. It was observed that the largest axial structure is the vertebral column that is divided into four regions: cervical, dorsal, sacral and caudal. The cervical region presents eight vertebra and the ribs could be observed after the fourth vertebrae. The dorsal region is divided in: thoracic with five vertebra carrying five ribs joined to stern, and post-thoracic with 11 vertebra and free ribs. The sacral region has two fused vertebra that present transversal processes highly expanded laterally. The stern of L. arambarensis is composed by a calcified cartilaginous plate that communicates with the thoracic region of the vertebral column, and with the scapular waist. Regarding the described previously, L. arambarensis presents the patterns of axial skeleton described for the species in its family and genus.
Backbone; interclavicle; ribs; stern; vertebra
