What is "tupinambis"

Tupinambis is a lizard genus which belongs to the family Teiidae, and contains seven described species. These large lizards are commonly referred to as tegus (teiús in Portuguese); T. merianae (Argentine black and white tegu), T. rufescens (red tegu), and T. teguixin (gold tegu) are popular in the pet trade. They are primarily found in South America, although T. teguixin also occurs in Panama. Tegus that have escaped or have been illegally released have adapted and are increasing in several Florida Counties including rural and suburban (especially south Miami-Dade and Hillsborough) counties, agricultural areas (especially Homestead and unincorporated Miami-Dade County, FL) and publicly owned conservation areas (especially Southern Glades Environmental and Wildlife Area and southeast margin of Everglades National Park) of South Florida See invasive species website (www.IVE-GOT-1.org) for details with specific locations of credible observations and voucher specimens.

In 2012 a number of tegu species were reclassified from Tupinambis to the previously used genus Salvator. The newly proposed classification comes from a restructuring of the Teiidae family based upon the study of 137 morphological characteristics. The new classification is as follows: Salvator duseni (yellow tegu), Salvator rufescens (red tegu), Salvator merianae (black and white tegu), Tupinambis teguixin (gold tegu), Tupinambis longilineus (Rhondonia tegu), Tupinambis palustris (swamp tegu), Tupinambis quadrilineatus (four-lined tegu).