TABLE 1.--COMPOSITION OF THE HERPETOFAUNA IN SOUTHERN EL PETÉN, GUATEMALA. =============+============+============+============ Group | Families | Genera | Species -------------+------------+------------+------------ Gymnophiona | (1)[A] | (1) | (1) Caudata | 1 | 1 | 2 Salientia | 6 | 10 (1) | 19 (1) Crocodilia | 1 | 1 | 1 Testudines | 4 | 7 | 8 Sauria | 6 | 13 (1) | 19 (1) Serpentes | 4 | 21 (7) | 29 (10) +------------+------------+------------ Total | 22 (1) | 53 (10) | 78 (13) -------------+------------+------------+------------ [Footnote A: Numbers in parenthesis indicate the number of additional taxa that probably occur.] A total of 78 species of amphibians and reptiles has been found in the rainforests in southern El Petén; a break down into families and genera is given in table 1. Another 13 species probably occur in southern El Petén (see Hypothetical List of Species). The fauna primarily is composed of typical humid lowland forest inhabitants, such as: _Hyla ebraccata_ _Hyla loquax_ _Phyllomedusa callidryas taylori_ _Smilisca phaeota cyanosticta_ _Anolis biporcatus_ _Anolis capito_ _Anolis humilis uniformis_ _Eumeces sumichrasti_ _Ameiva festiva edwardsi_ _Imantodes cenchoa leucomelas_ _Leptophis ahaetulla praestans_ _Xenodon rabdocephalus mexicanus_ _Bothrops nasutus_ _Bothrops schlegeli schlegeli_ Nevertheless, the region also provides at least a limited amount of habitat suitable for some species that are more frequently found in open forest of a drier nature; such species include: _Hyla microcephala martini_ _Hyla staufferi_ _Hypopachus cuneus nigroreticulatus_ _Anolis sericeus sericeus_ _Eumeces schwartzei_ _Oxybelis aeneus aeneus_ Because of the absence of sufficiently open habitat or owing to the presence of competitors, some conspicuous members of sub-humid forests are not present in southern El Petén. Conspicuous absentees are the following: _Rhinophrynus dorsalis_ _Phrynohyas spilomma_ _Triprion petasatus_ _Anolis tropidonotus_ _Ctenosaura similis_ _Ameiva undulata_ _Cnemidophorus angusticeps_ _Conophis lineatus_ _Masticophis mentovarius mentovarius_ PLATE 7 [Illustration: FIG. 1. Edge of rainforest along airstrip at Chinajá, El Petén, Guatemala.] [Illustration: FIG. 2. Rainforest at edge of savanna at Toocog, El Petén, Guatemala.] PLATE 8 [Illustration: Interior of rainforest at Chinajá. Notice size of buttresses on large tree (_Ceiba pentandra_).] PLATE 9 [Illustration: Interior of rainforest at Toocog. Notice less dense vegetation as compared with Pl. 8.] PLATE 10 [Illustration: FIG. 1. Rainforest along Río San Román, 16 kilometers north-northwest of Chinajá.]