Number Of Species Research Articles

Tracking Minority Species in Redox Reactions: A Quantitative Combined XAS and Modulation Excitation Study.

Understanding nature of intermediates/active species in reactions is a major challenge in chemistry. This is because spectator species typically dominate the experimentally derived data and consequently active phase contributions are masked. Transient methods offer a means to bypass this difficulty. In particular, modulation excitation with phase-sensitive detection (ME-PSD) provides a mechanism to distinguish between spectator and reacting species. Herein, modulation excitation (ME) time-resolved (energy dispersive) X-ray absorption spectroscopy, assisted by phase sensitive detection (PSD) analysis, has been applied to the study of a liquid phase process; in this case the classic ferrocyanide/ferricyanide redox couple. Periodic switches of the electrical potential (anodic/cathodic) enabled the use of the ME approach. Structural changes at fractions as low as 2% of the total number of electroactive species were detected within the X-ray beam probe volume containing ~30 pmol of Fe(II)/Fe(III).

Macrobial airborne environmental DNA analysis: A review of progress, challenges, and recommendations for an emerging application.

In the context of looming global biodiversity loss, effective species detection represents a critical concern for ecological research and management. Environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis, which refers to the collection and taxonomic identification of genetic fragments that are shed from an organism into its surroundings, emerged approximately 15 years ago as a sensitive tool for species detection. Today, one of the frontiers of eDNA research concerns the collection and analysis of genetic material in dust and other airborne materials, termed airborne eDNA analysis. As the study of airborne eDNA matures, it is an appropriate time to review the foundational and emerging studies that make up the current literature, and use the reviewed literature to summarize, synthesize, and forecast the major challenges and opportunities for this advancing research front. Specifically, we use the "ecology of eDNA" framework to organize our findings across the origin, state, transport, and fate of airborne genetic materials in the environment, and summarize what is so far known of their interactions with surrounding abiotic and biotic factors, including population and community ecologies and ecosystem processes. Within this work we identify key challenges, opportunities, and future directions associated with the application of airborne eDNA development. Lastly, we discuss the development of applications, partnerships, and messaging that promote development and growth of the field. Together, the broad potential of eDNA analysis and the rate at which research is accelerating in this field suggest that the sky's the limit for airborne eDNA science.

A new genus and two new species of brooding chitons (Mollusca: Polyplacophora) from the North-Western Pacific

Kaasichiton n. gen. from the northwestern part of the Pacific Ocean is described here. The genus includes four species, all of them are brooding. Two of them, K. lukini and K. incubatus, are transferred from the genus Leptochiton to the new genus, two more, K. ionensis n. sp. and K. kamchatkensis n. sp., are described as new. The new species increase the number of brooding chiton species to 44. Species of the new genus display a considerable variability regarding radular features. This has implications for the significance of these features within other genera, for which a similar variability has been observed.

Scarification under the canopy of Japanese oak: should pre-harvest treatment coincide with the masting year of acorns?

ABSTRACT The regeneration of Japanese oak (Quercus crispula Blume) has turned even more pressing in recent years. The pre-harvest treatment, which accumulates advanced seedlings, is essential for its natural regeneration in stands with a dense dwarf bamboo cover. Such pre-harvest treatment is considered particularly effective when done in conjunction with a mast year of acorns, but it is difficult to adjust the operation to specific timing. If there is no mast year for several years after the pre-harvest treatment, there is concern that the “priority effect” from other plant species may inhibit Japanese oak regeneration. The objective of this study was to determine whether scarification under the canopy of Japanese oaks, treated several years before the masting of acorns, is effective for its regeneration. Seedlings and vegetation were surveyed at sites scarified four years before (PRE) and just before masting (MAST) to compare the effects of treatments, i.e. differences in scarification years on the number and/or size of tall trees and other plant species. PRE could limit the predominance of dwarf bamboos and birches, and sufficient number of seedlings (>10 stems m−2) for future development was observed in the fifth year after masting. Since Japanese oak generally has a masting cycle of less than 5 years at most, we can conclude that the timing of pre-harvest treatment is not constrained by the masting year. Further studies are required to determine the details of priority effects of competitive plants on oak seedlings to establish a natural forest management for Japanese oak.

Land use effect on dominance of native and exotic earthworm species in two contrasting rural landscapes

Lumbricids and several species of the genus Amynthas have spread over all continents and seem to be better competitors than natives in disturbed ecosystems and agricultural fields. More than half of Uruguay's 19 earthworm species recorded by 2014 are exotic. Aiming to contribute to the scarce information on earthworm ecology in the region, the objectives of this work were 1) to characterize the earthworm communities in agriculture and natural ecosystems, and 2) to assess the relationship between land use and richness of native and exotic earthworm species. Related to the latter objective, we hypothesized that the difference in the number of exotic and native species depended on the degree of disturbance, and predicted that exotic species would dominate in more disturbed soils. We sampled organic and nonorganic agricultural fields including wheat in the rotations in the South and the North-West of Uruguay. Undisturbed sites, i.e. with no recent agriculture activity, close to each sampling plot served as controls. Analyses were conducted to elucidate whether other variables, besides disturbance and location, could be influencing earthworm community structure and composition. In both locations, exotic species dominated in control plots, i.e. less or non-disturbed land, and were associated to higher N, C and soil porosity. Moreover, in the North-West, natives would dominate in terms of richness in most agriculture plots. The mean body weight was larger in the South, where there were more exotic species, than in the North-West, where there were more native species. Thirteen of the collected species had been reported for Uruguay, the four other species found, were reported for the first time in this paper: Microscolex phosphoreus and Glossodrilus parecis (natives); and Aporrectodea tuberculata and Murchieona minuscula (exotics). Finding four unrecorded species evidences the poor coverage of earthworm sampling in anthropic and natural landscapes of the country.

Social acceptance in coastal and marine protected areas: Port-cros national park (France)

The effectiveness of marine protected areas is a timely issue, as the fight against biodiversity loss depends significantly on how effective these areas are. This article explores a key condition for meeting the challenge of improving conservation policies, as part of the global targets for biodiversity conservation, following the 2022 Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. The paper explores the determinants of social acceptance of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) by local communities impacted directly by MPAs designation. We focus on the Port-Cros National Park (France), which was established in 1963. The park has seen its governance, perimeter and internal zoning evolve over time, generating local opposition and underlining the importance of acceptance by local communities. This article highlights the factors that play a role in the social acceptance of this National Park based on the results of a questionnaire survey including 569 residents of the municipalities in and around the protected area. The approach we followed is part of a European research project that has developed a methodological protocol to identify interactions between social parameters that characterise the level of support and has been applied in 20 national parks. Our results reveal a high level of social acceptance for the National Park, with four main factors influencing acceptance: perceptions of the social impacts of the park, trust in management authorities, sociodemographic characteristics and conditions for citizen participation. Spatial disparities are also demonstrated. Our analysis also enables us to explain the components of constrained acceptance: this opens possibilities to explore the conditions under which local communities can feel more empowered and participate in the governance of the protected area.

Redescription of two species of Naineris (Annelida, Orbiniidae) with multiple dorsal organs and description of a new species from the NE Pacific

Naineris bicornis Hartman, 1951 and N. australis Hartman, 1957 are redescribed and compared with specimens from the Northeastern Pacific Ocean. A new species, Naineris elegans sp. nov., is described and illustrated based on collections from the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, USA. All three species are similar in terms of the chaetal arrangement and having multiple dorsal organs, but they differ in other characters. Naineris elegans sp. nov. is distinguished by a combination of the following characters: spatulate prostomium, multiple dorsal sensory organs oval to rounded, voluminous, seven per side in most chaetigers, with a brown pigmented base; arranged in two distinct groups in the most anterior segments, then forming two subtriangular groups with apex displaced medially in the following ones, touching each other; thoracic notopodial lobes pear-shaped with blunt tips; thoracic neuropodial lobe with an upper rounded papilla; thoracic neurochaetae with 5–6 transverse, posterior rows of numerous subuluncini; a transverse, anterior row of about 20 crenulate capillaries; an inferior, anterior, oblique row of about 20 hooded uncini and an inferior, posterior, oblique row of capillaries. The new species described here increases the number of known species of Naineris to 22. An updated key of species of Naineris from the Northeastern Pacific Ocean is provided.

Rickettsia Species: Genetic Variability, Vectors, and Rickettsiosis—A Review

Rickettsiae are an interesting group of bacteria comprising a large number of obligate intracellular species. The circulation of these bacteria in the environment depends on the presence of vectors (blood-sucking invertebrates) and their hosts. On the basis of phylogenetic analyses in 2022, a division into five groups of Rickettsia has been proposed: I belli group, II canadensis group, III typhus group, and IV and V spotted group fever (respectively II, phylogenetically older, and I). The genus Rickettsia includes species that are both pathogenic and nonpathogenic to humans and domestic and wild animals. Some Rickettsia species are invertebrate symbionts. Currently, rickettsiae, which are transmitted mainly by ticks, are spreading worldwide. This has been promoted by climate change, environmental changes caused by humans, and the synanthropisation of plants and animals. Therefore, it is extremely important to monitor the natural and urban environments. The study of potential vectors and reservoirs of bacteria in the genus Rickettsia should be a permanent part of the analysis of the modern human environment.

Initial Alterations of Fish Community Structure and Diversity Following Fishing Cessation in Qilu Lake, China

The Qilu Lake is an eutrophic shallow lake located in Yunnan Province, China. An ecological fishery project was initiated in the lake from 2011 to 2021 to introduce filter-feeding fish species that feed on algae, with the aim of improving water quality. In January 2022, when the ecological fishery project expired, all fisheries-related activities (including fish stocking and fishing activities) ceased in the lake. To comprehensively evaluate the initial alterations in fish community structure and diversity resulting from the fishing cessation in the Qilu Lake, the present study conducted field surveys within the one year before the fishing cessation (referred to as BFC) and the one year after the fishing cessation (referred to as AFC). A total of twenty-one fish species were collected, including four native species. Four species were recorded in the lake for the first time, including Pelteobagrus fulvidraco, Pelteobagrus vachelli, Paramisgurnus dabryanus, and Hyporhamphus intermedius. The number of fish species decreased from 21 to 13 following the fishing cessation. The fishes collected in both BFC and AFC are mainly omnivorous-feeding and of bottom-dwelling habits. The mean size of the fishes in the AFC sample shows a significant decrease compared to those in BFC. After the fishing cessation, the Shannon–Wiener diversity index and Margalef richness index of the fish slightly declined. The fish community structure of the Qilu Lake exhibits a high degree of similarity to adjacent lakes in central Yunnan. Our study demonstrates a significant shift in the fish community of the Qilu Lake following the fishing cessation, one which may adversely impact the stability of the lake ecosystem. To enhance fish species diversity in the Qilu Lake, it is recommended that policies be implemented to promote the ecological fishery project and improve habitat restoration for native fish species, while also regulating fish community structure.

Diversity of Ladybird Beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) in Tenerife and La Gomera (Canary Islands): The Role of Size and Other Island Characteristics

This paper provides new data on the ladybird beetles (Coccinellidae) from two islands in the Canary archipelago: Tenerife, the largest island, and La Gomera, the second smallest. As they clearly differ in size but are similar in location and geological age, they are a suitable model for testing the species–area relationship. Our study shows that, in line with this main assumption of the theory of island biogeography, clearly more species occur on a large island (Tenerife) than on a small one (La Gomera). The field surveys documented the occurrence of 35 ladybird species on Tenerife (including 5 not previously reported from this island) and of 20 species on La Gomera (2 species new to the island). Coelopterus sp. collected on Tenerife (a single female that could not be identified to species) is the first record of this genus for the whole Canary Islands. Taking our data and previously published records into account, 47 species of Coccinellidae are known to occur on Tenerife and 26 species on La Gomera. Tenerife has by far the richest ladybird fauna of all the Canary Islands (the next in line, Gran Canaria, has 41 recorded species), but it also has the highest number of non-native ladybird species. All of the ten non-native species recorded in the Canary Islands are found on Tenerife, and for most of them, Tenerife was the island of their first appearance in the archipelago. This island, much more distant from the mainland than the other relatively large islands (Fuerteventura, Lanzarote), appears to be the main recipient of ladybirds immigrating to the Canary Islands. Tenerife can play this role probably because of its great habitat diversity and altitude variation, as well as intensive tourism and trade-related transport.

Strategies for advancing inclusive biodiversity research through equitable practices and collective responsibility.

Biodiversity research is essential for addressing the global biodiversity crisis, necessitating diverse participation and perspectives of researchers from a wide range of backgrounds. However, conservation faces a significant inclusivity problem because local expertise from biodiversity-rich but economically disadvantaged regions is often underrepresented. This underrepresentation is driven by linguistic bias, undervalued contributions, parachute science practices, and capacity constraints. Although fragmented solutions exist, a unified multistakeholder approach is needed to address the interconnected and systemic conservation issues. We devised a holistic framework of collective responsibility across all research participants and tailored strategies that embrace diversity and dismantle systemic barriers to equitable collaboration. This framework delineates the diverse actors and practices required for promoting inclusivity in biodiversity research, assigning clear responsibilities to researchers, publishers, institutions, and funding bodies. Strategies for researchers include cultivating self-awareness, expanding literature searches, fostering partnerships with local experts, and promoting knowledge exchange. For institutions, we recommend establishing specialized liaison roles, implementing equitable policies, allocating resources for diversity initiatives, and enhancing support for international researchers. Publishers can facilitate multilingual dissemination, remove financial barriers, establish inclusivity standards, and ensure equitable representation in peer review. Funders must remove systemic barriers, strengthen research networks, and prioritize equitable resource allocation. Implementing these stakeholder-specific strategies can help dismantle deep-rooted biases and structural inequities in biodiversity research, catalyzing a shift toward a more inclusive and representative model that amplifies diverse perspectives and maximizes collective knowledge for effective global conservation.

Role of national regime ideology for predicting biodiversity outcomes.

The rapid decline of global biodiversity has engendered renewed debate about the social, economic, and political factors contributing to it. Specifically, there is little understanding of the role that political ideology within a country (e.g., nationalism, conservatism, socialism) plays in determining biodiversity outcomes. We used negative binomial generalized linear models to investigate the importance of national regime ideology in predicting threatened animal species and protected area establishment compared with other factors that affect biodiversity outcomes, such as gross domestic product, inequality, and democracy. For threatened animals, the model with the highest Akaike weight suggested adverse biodiversity outcomes arose from larger gross domestic product (β=0.120, p<0.001). However, nationalism (β=0.371, p<0.01) and socialism (β=0.293, p<0.05) were also significantly associated with increased proportions of threatened species. For protected areas, the model with the highest Akaike weight suggested increases in democracy (β=0.880, p<0.001) led to a rise in relative protected area estate. Conservative regime ideology was also associated with greater protected area estate, although this did not increase the weight of evidence in support of the best models. These findings highlight the relevance of political ideology for predicting biodiversity outcomes at a national scale and illustrate opportunities to tailor policies and advocacy to promote biodiversity conservation more effectively. By targeting appropriate messaging and political advocacy, conservationists can improve the likelihood that politicians and their nations will participate in positive biodiversity actions.

Plant species richness in intensively managed temperate wet grasslands: current state and the importance of edge habitats

AbstractThis study investigates within-site variation in the diversity and composition of aboveground vegetation and seed bank in intensively managed wet grasslands of north-western Germany, comparing field edges, field margins and field interiors. We tested the hypothesis that unfertilized buffer strips at field edges function as refugia of characteristic species even in grasslands that are managed intensively for silage production. In 55 grassland sites on each marsh and moor soils, respectively, we conducted vegetation surveys, seed bank analyses and soil chemical measurements in field edge, margin and interior plots, and searched for the factors causing within-site variation in vegetation composition. The total species pool was small at the 110 sites, i.e. 148 species in the aboveground vegetation and 107 species in the seed bank, demonstrating severe impoverishment. The α-diversity decreased from 23 species (median) per 200 m2 at the edge to 15 species in the interior, with 38 species occurring only at field edges. The number of species with conservation value was very low in aboveground vegetation and seed bank and was only slightly higher at the edge than in the interior. Soil P availability was ca. 30% lower at the unfertilized edges than in the interior. We conclude that unfertilized buffer strips at grassland edges may help reducing nutrient leaching from high-input grassland systems, but they have mostly lost their refugial function for phytodiversity after decades of intensive management. Restoration efforts with seed or green hay transfer from richer source habitats are needed to promote biodiversity in field-edge buffer strips.

Open-source, high-throughput targeted in-situ transcriptomics for developmental and tissue biology.

Multiplexed spatial profiling of mRNAs has recently gained traction as a tool to explore the cellular diversity and the architecture of tissues. We propose a sensitive, open-source, simple and flexible method for the generation of in-situ expression maps of hundreds of genes. We exploit direct ligation of padlock probes on mRNAs, coupled with rolling circle amplification and hybridization-based in situ combinatorial barcoding, to achieve high detection efficiency, high throughput and large multiplexing. We validate the method across a number of species, and show its use in combination with orthogonal methods such as antibody staining, highlighting its potential value for developmental and tissue biology studies. Finally, we provide an end-to-end computational workflow that covers the steps of probe design, image processing, data extraction, cell segmentation, clustering and annotation of cell types. By enabling easier access to high-throughput spatially resolved transcriptomics, we hope to encourage a diversity of applications and the exploration of a wide range of biological questions.

Species composition of phytophages on ornamental plants

Goal. Monitoring the phytosanitary status and determining the species composition of phytophages on decorative coniferous and deciduous plants. Methods. Field — determination of the species composition of pests and the dynamics of the number of main species; laboratory — determination of pests selected on experimental plots. Research was conducted in accordance with generally accepted methods in entomology and plant protection. Results. In the industrial plant nursery of open soil «Megaplant» located in the Kyiv region, Fastiv district, village The monitoring of the phytosanitary state of ornamental plant plantations was carried out in Trilys. The natural saturation of harmful organisms and the level of their harmfulness were studied. Conclusions. It has been established that plants in industrial nurseries in open ground are damaged by a large number of insects and mites. The most dangerous and widespread on conifer ornamental plants were 8 pests from the following families coccids (Coccidae), bark beetles (Scolytidae), adelgids (Adelgidae), snout beetles (Curculionidae) and spider mites (Tetranychidae); 9 most harmful species from the following families were noted on decorative leafy plants: crambid Snout Moths (Crambidae), mealybugs (Pseudococcidae) and аrmored scales or diaspidids (Diaspididae), eriophyidae mites (Eriophyidae), aphids (Aphididae), snout beetles (Curculionidae), scarab beetles (Scarabaeidae).

Ten new species and notes on the genus Psoralea L. (Psoraleeae, Fabaceae) from South Africa

Background and aims – Following detailed phylogenetic and biogeographic studies of the tribe Psoraleeae, the genus Psoralea L. was shown to have been derived out of Otholobium C.H.Stirt. As Psoralea has nomenclatural priority, Otholobium has been subsumed into Psoralea, whereby two broad subgeneric groups are aligned with the previous descriptions of the separate genera, but some problems of placement of a few species remain unresolved. Work is ongoing to study and describe the nearly 20 undescribed species that will have to be considered before sectional groups can be established. In this paper we describe ten new species, including several putative taxa already recognized in regional floras, based on historic specimens and more recent field collections. Material and methods – Standard practices of herbarium and field taxonomy have been applied to study herbarium material available at B, BLFU, BM, BOL, BR, E, GRA, J, JRAU, K, KEI, L, LE, LINN, M, MO, NBG, NH, NU, NY, OXF, P, PRA, PRC, PRE, PRU, S, SAM, SCHG, SRGH, TCD, Z, ZT, and US. Additional material was provided from fieldwork by the authors and collaborators. Key results – Ten new species of Psoralea from southern Africa are described: Psoralea crista C.H.Stirt. &amp; Muasya, P. fulva C.H.Stirt. &amp; Muasya, P. luteovirens C.H.Stirt. &amp; Muasya, P. nubicola C.H.Stirt. &amp; Muasya, P. oreopola C.H.Stirt., P. pallescens C.H.Stirt. &amp; Muasya, P. papillosa C.H.Stirt. &amp; Muasya, P. prompta C.H.Stirt. &amp; Muasya, P. schutteae C.H.Stirt. &amp; Muasya, and P. vlokii C.H.Stirt. &amp; Muasya. Conclusion – The newly described species, all restricted to South Africa, increases the number of Psoralea species to 129. These species arise from expanded fieldwork into previously under-collected areas, as well as from better refinement in species delimitations in the leafless ‘aphylla’ and pinnately-leaved species complexes.

Taxonomy of Leodice Lamarck, 1818 (Annelida, Eunicidae) from Northeast Brazil (Tropical Southwest Atlantic Ocean) with description of a new species

Currently, Leodice has 34 species recorded worldwide. Among these, seven species are known along the Brazilian coast. This study is based on material collected during the Marine Algae project conducted in 1981 along the Continental Shelf of the State of Paraíba, at depths of 10–35 m. In this study, we present three new records: L. pellucida comb. nov. for South America, L. marcusi for northeastern Brazil, and L. unifrons for the State of Paraiba. A new species of Leodice is described from the State of Paraiba, Northeast Brazil, Leodice ivanildae sp. nov. This taxonomic study increases the number of known species of Leodice to 37, with nine occurring in Brazil. Additionally, it expands the species of Leodice known from the State of Paraiba, Brazil, from two to six.

A new species of the newt genus Hypselotriton (Amphibia, Urodela, Salamandridae) from Jiangxi Province, southeastern China

A new newt species, Hypselotriton huanggangensissp. nov., is described based on nine specimens collected from Huanggangshan Mountains, Yanshan County, Jiangxi, China. Morphologically, the new species is characterized by the combination of nine external characters: (1) obvious black patches with clear boundaries on the whole body; (2) ground color of the dorsal body tan; (3) ground color of venter bright orange; (4) skin rough; (5) vertebral ridge weak; (6) fingers and toes overlapping when forelimb and hindlimb adpressed towards each other along body; (7) postocular orange spot absent; (8) small white warty glands around the eye; (9) two discontinuous longitudinal lines formed by white warty glands from neck to lateral parts of tail. Molecularly, the new species forms an independent clade with strong support in the phylogenetic trees of the genus based on the mitochondrial locus of NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 (ND2) gene fragments. The new species distinctly differs from H. fudingensis by differences in its body measurements, vertebral ridge, dorsal black patches, and ventral black patches. Furthermore, the new species and H. fudingensis are geographically isolated by a series of high mountain ranges, including the Wuyishan and Jiufengshan Mountains. The number of Hypselotriton species is now 11.

The rarest of rarities in the flora of Mexico

Background: Endemism can originate from multiple biogeographic and evolutionary processes that promote the formation or persistence of species with restricted distributions (rare species). Understanding rare species’ distributions is a central question in biogeography and is crucial for biodiversity conservation. Questions: What are the rarest plant species in Mexico? How are they distributed? Under what risk categories should they be classified? Studied species: Vascular species considered rare in the flora of Mexico. Study site: Mexico. Methods: “Rare species” were defined as species endemic to Mexico whose distribution is restricted to a single 1 × 1° cell. We analyzed rare species’ distributions and proposed the risk category for each according to IUCN criteria. For some of the species distributed in the cell with the highest number of rare species, we compared the proposed category with published evaluations. Results: We identified 2,705 rare species. The richest cells in terms of rare species are in southern Mexico. Only 302 species had been previously evaluated under IUCN criteria. The remaining 2,403 qualify for the Near Threatened (NT) category or higher. The cell with the highest rare species richness, located in the Sierra Norte of Oaxaca, contained only 10 species with an existing IUCN risk category; for another 81 species, the categories of Vulnerable (VU), Endangered (EN) or Critically Endangered (CR) are indicated. Conclusions: Recognizing the rarity of these 2,705 species will increase attention on them, allowing more precise appraisal of their extinction risk and possible strategies for their conservation.

Analysis of patterns related to wildlife roadkill in the Humid Chaco of Paraguay

Paved roads are a solution for communication between human societies, but at the same time, their expansion is detrimental to wildlife. In this work, vertebrate mortality events due to traffic collisions on National Route N° 5, in a 50 km stretch from the town of Pozo Colorado to the east, are evaluated. Vehicle journeys were carried out at a constant speed of 40 km/h every two months, from November 2020 to May 2022. All findings of roadkill were recorded by photograph. To analyse spatial patterns, the Kernel density was estimated, assessing the randomness of Ripley's K collisions and standardised roadkill rates were assessed for each species. A total of 272 individuals were recorded, corresponding to 87 amphibians, 38 birds and 35 mammals. In terms of the number of species, the composition was as follows: reptiles with 20 species, birds with 13 species, mammals with 11 and amphibians with at least 12 species. The species with the highest number of dead individuals was the common toad (Rhinella diptycha), followed by snakes. According to the standardised roadkill rates, the most affected animals are Cerdocyon thous, Rhinella diptycha, Caiman yacare and Dryophylax hypoconia with more than 200 individuals per kilometre per year. A bat, Lasiurus ega, was identified for the first time for Paraguay. Climatic conditions seems to have no strong effect on the occurrence pattern of the different taxa, with the exception of birds that decrease with stronger winds. The greatest coincidences occurred in three sections: km 5–5.5, km 33.5–34.5 and km 40–43. There was a correlation with crossroads areas, watercourses and forest islands. In view of the road development policy in the region, it is necessary to carry out studies of its impacts in the longer term.