A brightly coloured, semi-aquatic mountain dwelling lizard has been discovered in Peru, Potamites montanicola. The article describing this new species was published in Zookeys this year, an open access journal. A popular account of this exciting discovery can be found in Science Daily. This new species challenges previously known characteristics of the genus Potamites by living at such high altitudes in a harsh cold environment, as well as their seemingly nocturnal behaviour. Swimming in streams, as this species has been recorded doing, is also unusual behaviour for this genus. This study outlines the ongoing need for research into little known reptile species just to fully understand their basic biology and population structure.
