Herpetological Species Research Articles

Amphibian and reptile diversity along a ridge-to-reef elevational gradient on a small isolated oceanic island of the central Philippines

Despite multiple recent field studies, herpetological species diversity of the Romblon Island Group in the central Philippines—particularly Sibuyan Island—has remained underestimated. Recently, we investigated the diversity of the herpetofauna of Mount Guiting-Guiting Natural Park, based on an elevational transect (10–1557 m a.s.l.). Our surveys resulted in a total of 47 species of amphibians and reptiles, including 14 new island records and one atypical occurrence of a snake species recorded for the first time from a high elevation (939 m a.s.l). These new records constitute a notable increase (21%) in Sibuyan’s herpetological species diversity as compared to surveys from a decade ago. We also provide updates of the taxonomy and identification of species endemic to this island (e.g., members of the genera Platymantis Günther, 1858, Brachymeles Duméril & Gibron, 1839, and Pseudogekko Taylor, 1922), and discuss the importance of continued surveys and field-derived data to inform conservation status assessments of Sibuyan’s unique assemblage of amphibians and reptiles.

Very similar, but not identical: morphological taxonomic identification to improve the resolution of fine-scale distribution of Zootoca (vivipara) carniolica

Improving the knowledge about the distribution of threatened species is a fundamental step forward for implementing effective measures for species conservation. Distribution maps of herpetological species are often inferred from morphological identification but, in some cases, morphology alone is not reliable for assessing the distribution of look-alike species. The common lizard Zootoca vivipara includes several lineages which, to date, cannot be distinguished by any conventional morphological traits. Therefore, a reliable taxonomic identification for the main Zootoca lineages is only feasible with genetic data. In this study, we identify a morphological trait that can be used to distinguish individuals of the parapatric Z. v. vivipara and Z. carniolica, without the support of molecular analyses. This method may provide a cost-effective tool to better depict the distribution of the threatened Z. carniolica and therefore prioritize the conservation of the locations where the oviparous Alpine lineage is found.

The amphibians and reptiles of Mindanao Island, southern Philippines, II: the herpetofauna of northeast Mindanao and adjacent islands

We summarize all available amphibian and reptile species distribution data from the northeast Mindanao faunal region, including small islands associated with this subcenter of endemic vertebrate biodiversity. Together with all publicly available historical information from biodiversity repositories, we present new data from several major herpetological surveys, including recently conducted inventories on four major mountains of northeast Mindanao, and adjacent islands of Camiguin Sur, Dinagat, and Siargao. We present species accounts for all taxa, comment on unresolved taxonomic problems, and provide revisions to outdated IUCN conservation status assessments in cases where our new data significantly alter earlier classification status summaries. Together, our comprehensive analysis of this fauna suggests that the greater Mindanao faunal region possesses distinct subcenters of amphibian and reptile species diversity, and that until this area is revisited and its fauna and actually studied, with on-the-ground field work including targeted surveys of species distributions coupled to the study their natural history, our understanding of the diversity and conservation status of southern Philippine herpetological fauna will remain incomplete. Nevertheless, the northeast Mindanao geographical area (Caraga Region) appears to have the highest herpetological species diversity (at least 126 species) of any comparably-sized Philippine faunal subregion.

Improving herpetological surveys in eastern North America using the environmental DNA method.

Among vertebrates, herpetofauna has the highest proportion of declining species. Detection of environmental DNA (eDNA) is a promising method towards significantly increasing large-scale herpetological conservation efforts. However, the integration of eDNA results within a management framework requires an evaluation of the efficiency of the method in large natural environments and the calibration of eDNA surveys with the quantitative monitoring tools currently used by conservation biologists. Towards this end, we first developed species-specific primers to detect the wood turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) a species at risk in Canada, by quantitative PCR (qPCR). The rate of eDNA detection obtained by qPCR was also compared to the relative abundance of this species in nine rivers obtained by standardized visual surveys in the Province of Québec (Canada). Second, we developed multi-species primers to detect North American amphibian and reptile species using eDNA metabarcoding analysis. An occurrence index based on the distribution range and habitat type was compared with the eDNA metabarcoding dataset from samples collected in seven lakes and five rivers. Our results empirically support the effectiveness of eDNA metabarcoding to characterize herpetological species distributions. Moreover, detection rates provided similar results to standardized visual surveys currently used to develop conservation strategies for the wood turtle. We conclude that eDNA detection rates may provide an effective semiquantitative survey tool, provided that assay calibration and standardization is performed.

A Checklist and Distributional Synthesis of Amphibian and Reptile Species in Columbia County, Pennsylvania

ABSTRACT Species inventories and distributional analyses at fine resolutions, such as at the county level, can provide a wealth of data to inform biological research and management as well as provide important baseline data for long-term biological monitoring. This work represents the first herpetological species and distributional inventory for Columbia County in northeastern Pennsylvania. A review of literature, museum records, and vouchered submissions on the Pennsylvania Amphibian and Reptile Survey (PARS) database confirmed the occurrence of 39 species of amphibians and reptiles within the county. The Eastern Musk Turtle (Sternotherus odoratus) is reported herein as a new county record. Eleven species confirmed within Columbia County are of conservation concern. Known township occurrence data, compiled from museum records, published literature, and field observations are presented for 28 non-imperiled species and (with township names omitted) for seven imperiled species. This work contributes to the understanding of Pennsylvania's herpetofauna and provides important baseline data for long-term monitoring and future research on amphibian and reptile species within Columbia County.

Incorporating evolutionary processes into conservation planning using species distribution data: a case study with the western Mediterranean herpetofauna

AbstractAim To incorporate evolutionary processes into conservation planning using species distribution patterns and environmental gradients as surrogates for genetic diversity.Location Western Mediterranean Basin.Methods Distributions of 154 herpetological species were predicted using maximum entropy models, and groups of significantly co‐occurring species (biotic elements) were identified. Environmental gradients were characterized for the complete area and for the area covered by each biotic element, by performing a principal component analysis on the data matrix composed of nine environmental variables. The first two principal component analysis axes were classified into four categories each, and those categories were combined with each other resulting in an environmental classification with 16 categories. To identify priority conservation areas, biotic elements and environmental categories were used as surrogates for the neutral and adaptive components of genetic diversity, respectively. Priority areas for conservation were identified under three scenarios: (1) setting targets for species only; (2) setting targets for species and for each environmental category of the overall area; and (3) setting targets for each species and for each environmental category within each biotic element.Results Nine biotic elements were identified – four for the amphibians and five for the reptiles. Priority areas identified in the three scenarios were similar in terms of amount of area selected, but exhibited low spatial agreement.Main conclusions Prioritization exercises that integrate surrogates for evolutionary processes can deliver spatial priorities that are fairly different to those where only species representation is considered. While new methods are emerging to incorporate molecular data in conservation prioritization, it is unlikely to be enough data for enough taxa for this to be feasible in many regions. We develop an approach using surrogates for both the neutral and adaptive components of genetic diversity that may enhance biodiversity persistence and representation when molecular data are not available or geographically comprehensive.

Nuevos registros y ampliación de la distribución de anfibios y reptiles en el Estado de Morelos, México.

During new herpetological explorations we found three herpetological species previously unknown in the state of Morelos, and three other species extending their range in the Balsas River Basin. The herpetofauna of Morelos is currently represented by 123 species.

A New Species of Ingerophrynus (Anura: Bufonidae) from a Lowland Rain Forest in Southern Peninsular Malaysia

A new, lowland species of the Ingerophrynus biporcatus group is described from the Endau-Rompin National Park in southern, peninsular Malaysia, Johor. It is unique in various aspects of morphology and color and is the third, new herpetological species discovered and described from this region of the Malay Peninsula since 2005. This suggests that the biodiversity of this part of southern Malaysia may be significantly underestimated and underscores the importance of continued field research in these lowland forests which are currently being logged and converted to oil palm plantations.

Herpetological paleodiversity: General considerations about the Italian fossil record of modern species

The number of species that inhabit Italy at present was compared with the number of those potentially identifiable on the basis of their skeleton as well as with the number of those that have been so far identified in the fossil record. Although 85 herpetological species inhabit political Italy at present (excluding the non nesting or introduced ones), from an osteological‐paleontological point of view only 54 taxa are identifiable (64% of the living ones), 35 of which (42% of 85; 67% of 54) have been identified so far. Thus, the present knowledge of the Italian herpetofauna osteology causes a theoretical loss of paleobiodiversity of nearly one third, whereas the real loss is of nearly 60% of the number of modern taxa and of about 33% of the number of those that are potentially identifiable. Therefore, a major bottleneck affecting the contribution that paleoherpetology can offer to the evolutionary history of the modern herpetofauna is related to the poor knowledge of the skeletal anatomy of several modern taxa.

Pleistocene amphibians and reptiles in Britain and Europe

The Pleistocene epoch or Ice Age, an extended period of advancing and retreating ice sheets, is characterized by striking climatic oscillations and sea level fluctuations. This age saw the rise and spread of humans and a great extinction of large mammals by the end of the epoch; in fact, the world today is essentially the product of dramatic changes that took place in the Pleistocene. This book, a companion to the author's Pleistocene Amphibians and Reptiles in North America, discusses the Pleistocene amphibians and reptiles in Britain and the European continent eastward through present-day Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, the Yugoslavian republics, and Greece. The book begins with a general discussion of the Pleistocene in Britain and Europe with an emphasis on regional terms used to define Pleistocene chronological events. Next, a look at the pre-Pleistocene herpetofauna of the study area sets the stage for a discussion of Pleistocene herpetofauna. A significant section of the book consists of a "bestiary," a series of annotated taxonomic accounts of Pleistocene herpetological taxa from the region. Following this is the interpretive section, beginning with a discussion of herpetological species as paleoenvironmental indicators and continuing with an analysis of herpetological population adjustments to Pleistocene events in Britain and Europe, and then with a discussion of extinction patterns in the region. Finally, the author compares Pleistocene herpetological events in Europe with those in North America. This volume and its companion together provide an up-to-date and comprehensive review of Pleistocene herpetofaunas across a significant portion of the Northern Hemisphere.

Pleistocene herpetofaunal remains from the East Milford mastodon site (ca. 70 000–80 000 BP), Halifax County, Nova Scotia

The remains of a frog (Rana pipiens) and two turtles (Chrysemys picta and Clemmys insculpta) were recovered from an organically rich clay matrix in association with mastodon remains in Halifax County near East Milford, Nova Scotia. Preliminary stratigraphic studies and radiometric dating indicate an Early Wisconsinan age between 70 000 and 80 000 BP for the site. All of the herpetological species are cold-tolerant forms that inhabit Nova Scotia today. The turtles are important paleoclimatically, in that they suggest that the summers had a sufficient number of warm days for the successful incubation of their eggs. Together, the herpetological species indicate a quiet, well-vegetated pond or small lake, with peripheral meadows, and the presence of a meandering stream with sand or gravel banks.

The Boxgrove, England, middle Pleistocene herpetofauna: Paleogeographic, evolutionary, stratigraphic, and paleoecological relationships

Triturus vulgaris (smooth newt), Triturus helveticus or T. vulgaris (palmate or smooth newt), Triturus sp. (newt), Pelobates fuscus (common spadefoot), Bufo bufo (common toad), Bufo calamita (natte...

Late Quaternary herpetofauna of the Central Great Lakes region, U.S.A.: Zoogeographical and paleoecological implications

Late Quaternary herpetological records from the Central Great Lakes States of Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio allow for reflections on reinvasion of herpetological species into previously uninhabitable areas, as well as some comments on paleoclimate. Advances of the Wisconsinan Laurentide ice sheet obliterated herpetological habitat in all of Michigan as well as much of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio; it also restricted herpetological habitat in the southern parts of the three latter states. By about 15-14 ka BP a rich herpetofauna, similar to the one that occurs in the area today, and suggesting a moderate climate, occurred in southwestern Indiana. Turtle faunas in central Indiana (13-12 ka BP) and west-central Ohio (11-10 ka BP) suggest that warm summer climates existed in those areas at the time. On the other hand authentic reptile records are unknown from the Pleistocene of Michigan, and considering the pollen record, that state probably had a much colder climate during postglacial Late Wisconsinan times. A well-developed turtle fauna associated with temperate deciduous forest occurred in southern Michigan about 6 ka BP, and a rich herpetofauna, similar to the one that occurs in the area today, occurred in southwestern Indiana about 4 ka BP. This evidence suggests the possibility that the herpetological reinvasion of the Central Great Lakes region might have been nearly complete by Mid-Holocene times.

The status of some rare and endangered endemic reptiles and amphibians of the southwestern Cape Province, South Africa

At least 14 herpetological species are endemic to the southwestern Cape Province, RSA. Five, the geometric tortoise Psammobates geometricus, the Cape platanna Xenopus gilli, the micro frog Microbatrachella capensis, the Table Mountain ghost frog Heleophryne rosei an d McLachlan's girdled lizard Cordylus mclachlani, are in immediate need of conservation measures to ensure their continued long-term survival. The first four species mentioned are listed as endangered. Habitat destruction and degradation, genetic hybridization and restricted distribution ranges are the four most important factors responsible for the critical conservation status of these species. Nature reserves, declared nature areas, careful managing of remaining habitat and an increased human awareness are of vital importance to their survival. Only the future establishment of new and additional reserved areas will ensure the protection of viable populations of these five species.