Pub Date : 2020-10-26DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-17-00111.1
Caio Carneiro Leão Pompeu, Fábio P. de Sá, C. Haddad
Abstract. Social structure in anurans is directly related to reproductive traits such as chorus organization, male territoriality, pair formation, breeding site choice, and temporal breeding pattern. The Neotropical treefrog Dendropsophus sanborni is an excellent model for studies on reproductive dynamics because it is a prolonged-breeder and usually occurs in high densities. Here, our goals were to better understand the factors that lead to social organization and influence seasonal reproductive dynamics of males of the species. We addressed the hypotheses that (1) the seasonal dynamics of D. sanborni is locally delimited by climatic conditions throughout its breeding season and (2) territorial males are structured spatially and temporally based on body size. We carried out monthly field sampling between October 2015 and September 2016 in an ecotone region of Brazil that originally comprised Semideciduous Seasonal Forest and Cerrado (savannah vegetation). We specifically analyzed environmental conditions, population abundance, size of calling males, and microhabitat use. Our results showed that environmental conditions drive the seasonal reproductive pattern and social structure of calling males is not organized by size. We did not find significant variation in male size among months of the breeding season or among perch heights and types. Our findings suggest a prolonged seasonal reproductive pattern associated with climatic factors without a social structure based on body size.
{"title":"Seasonal Reproductive Dynamics of a Lek-Breeding Neotropical Treefrog is not Organized by Male Size (Anura, Hylidae)","authors":"Caio Carneiro Leão Pompeu, Fábio P. de Sá, C. Haddad","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-17-00111.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-17-00111.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Social structure in anurans is directly related to reproductive traits such as chorus organization, male territoriality, pair formation, breeding site choice, and temporal breeding pattern. The Neotropical treefrog Dendropsophus sanborni is an excellent model for studies on reproductive dynamics because it is a prolonged-breeder and usually occurs in high densities. Here, our goals were to better understand the factors that lead to social organization and influence seasonal reproductive dynamics of males of the species. We addressed the hypotheses that (1) the seasonal dynamics of D. sanborni is locally delimited by climatic conditions throughout its breeding season and (2) territorial males are structured spatially and temporally based on body size. We carried out monthly field sampling between October 2015 and September 2016 in an ecotone region of Brazil that originally comprised Semideciduous Seasonal Forest and Cerrado (savannah vegetation). We specifically analyzed environmental conditions, population abundance, size of calling males, and microhabitat use. Our results showed that environmental conditions drive the seasonal reproductive pattern and social structure of calling males is not organized by size. We did not find significant variation in male size among months of the breeding season or among perch heights and types. Our findings suggest a prolonged seasonal reproductive pattern associated with climatic factors without a social structure based on body size.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"18 1","pages":"33 - 41"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-10-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41592267","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-09-15DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00069.1
Omar Torres‐Carvajal, P. Venegas, Pedro M. Sales Nunes
Abstract. We describe a new species of Macropholidus lizard from the Andean highlands of southern Ecuador and northern Peru based on recent collections. Among other characters, the new species differs from other species of Macropholidus in having a paired series of enlarged middorsal scale rows restricted to the nape, striated dorsal scales, as well as ocelli on tail, flanks, scapular region and neck. We also present a molecular phylogeny of Cercosaurinae and genetic distances as additional evidence supporting delimitation of the new species, which is sister to M. annectens from southern Ecuador. Data on Andean orogeny and age estimates of cercosaurine lizards suggest that the Huancabamba Depression, long recognized for its dual role as a biogeographic barrier and a migration corridor, has also served as a center of origin and diversification of Macropholidus lizards.
{"title":"Description and Phylogeny of a New Species of Andean Lizard (Gymnophthalmidae: Cercosaurinae) from the Huancabamba Depression","authors":"Omar Torres‐Carvajal, P. Venegas, Pedro M. Sales Nunes","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00069.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00069.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. We describe a new species of Macropholidus lizard from the Andean highlands of southern Ecuador and northern Peru based on recent collections. Among other characters, the new species differs from other species of Macropholidus in having a paired series of enlarged middorsal scale rows restricted to the nape, striated dorsal scales, as well as ocelli on tail, flanks, scapular region and neck. We also present a molecular phylogeny of Cercosaurinae and genetic distances as additional evidence supporting delimitation of the new species, which is sister to M. annectens from southern Ecuador. Data on Andean orogeny and age estimates of cercosaurine lizards suggest that the Huancabamba Depression, long recognized for its dual role as a biogeographic barrier and a migration corridor, has also served as a center of origin and diversification of Macropholidus lizards.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"18 1","pages":"13 - 23"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46004434","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-09-01DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-17-00058.1
A. D. Abegg, C. Gomes, O. M. Entiauspe-Neto, Paulo Passos
Abstract. Pseudoautotomy is presumably a derived character within Lepidosauria and occurs in taxa that have lost the ability to perform autotomy. In general, species capable of employing pseudoautotomy as a defensive strategy against predators present a high frequency of damaged tails in series deposited in herpetological collections. We assessed data from three largely sympatric Echinanthera species in the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest (E. cephalostriata, E. cyanopleura, and E. undulata) to test previous assumptions that species of Echinanthera use their tails defensively. This hypothesis derives from anecdotal observations during fieldwork and is reinforced by the number of specimens presenting tail breakage in scientific collections. In general, the frequency of damaged tails in these species resembles that of others in which pseudoautotomy has been demonstrated. Statistical analyses revealed no differences in tail breakage frequencies between sexes for the analyzed species or between the two geographical groups defined for E. cyanopleura. In contrast, we detected a significant difference between snout–vent length and sex regarding pseudoautotomy probability for E. cyanopleura, with a positive relationship between tail breakage frequency and snout–vent length.
摘要假自切可能是鳞翅目的衍生特征，发生在失去自切能力的分类群中。一般来说，能够采用假自切作为防御捕食者的防御策略的物种在一系列的爬行动物收藏中呈现出高频率的损伤尾巴。我们评估了巴西大西洋雨林中三种主要同域的棘球菊物种(E. cephalostriata, E. cyanopleura和E. undulata)的数据，以验证先前的假设，即棘球菊物种使用它们的尾巴进行防御。这一假设来自实地考察期间的轶事观察，并被科学收藏中出现尾巴断裂的标本数量所加强。一般来说，在这些物种中，受损尾巴的频率与其他假自切已被证明的物种相似。统计分析显示，在被分析的物种中，尾巴断裂频率在两性之间没有差异，在为cyanopleura定义的两个地理类群之间也没有差异。与此相反，我们发现青胸膜胸鼠的假自切概率在鼻口长度和性别之间存在显著差异，尾巴断裂频率与鼻口长度呈正相关。
{"title":"Does a Defensive Pseudoautotomy Mechanism Exist in the Subfamily Xenodontinae? A Study of the Genus Echinanthera","authors":"A. D. Abegg, C. Gomes, O. M. Entiauspe-Neto, Paulo Passos","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-17-00058.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-17-00058.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Pseudoautotomy is presumably a derived character within Lepidosauria and occurs in taxa that have lost the ability to perform autotomy. In general, species capable of employing pseudoautotomy as a defensive strategy against predators present a high frequency of damaged tails in series deposited in herpetological collections. We assessed data from three largely sympatric Echinanthera species in the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest (E. cephalostriata, E. cyanopleura, and E. undulata) to test previous assumptions that species of Echinanthera use their tails defensively. This hypothesis derives from anecdotal observations during fieldwork and is reinforced by the number of specimens presenting tail breakage in scientific collections. In general, the frequency of damaged tails in these species resembles that of others in which pseudoautotomy has been demonstrated. Statistical analyses revealed no differences in tail breakage frequencies between sexes for the analyzed species or between the two geographical groups defined for E. cyanopleura. In contrast, we detected a significant difference between snout–vent length and sex regarding pseudoautotomy probability for E. cyanopleura, with a positive relationship between tail breakage frequency and snout–vent length.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"18 1","pages":"24 - 32"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47271041","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-08-31DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00080.1
Cristina Mora-Rivera, Fernando Suarez-Páez, G. Pacheco-Sierra, Laura Vargas-Cuevas, Mónica Padilla-Barreto
Abstract. The main goal of this research was to identify the hard ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) found in 10 individuals of spectacled caiman (Caiman crocodilus fuscus) from 349 individuals captured at the Hidroprado hydroelectric dam in the Department of Tolima, Colombia. Parasite prevalence was 2.9%. A total of 40 ticks were collected and two species identified: Amblyomma dissimile (n = 39) and Rhipicephalus sanguineus (n = 1). This is the second record of A. dissimile in C. crocodilus in Colombia and the first record of R. sanguineus in crocodilians. The natural infection of C. c. fuscus by A. dissimile establishes this species as a host in the life cycle of this tick. Similarly, parasitism by R. sanguineus indicates C. c. fuscus as a potential host for this tick, which is important since it is associated with domestic animals and has a high potential for transmission of zoonotic diseases. Our results highlight the parasitic relationship between ticks and one of the most resistant wild vertebrates: caimans. The prevalence, although not high, establishes the potential of ticks to parasitize different species and to be a vector of diseases for new groups of hosts.
{"title":"Tick Infection of Caiman crocodilus fuscus at the Hidroprado Hydroelectric Dam in Colombia: New Records, Parasite Prevalence, and Blood Loss Rate","authors":"Cristina Mora-Rivera, Fernando Suarez-Páez, G. Pacheco-Sierra, Laura Vargas-Cuevas, Mónica Padilla-Barreto","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00080.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00080.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. The main goal of this research was to identify the hard ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) found in 10 individuals of spectacled caiman (Caiman crocodilus fuscus) from 349 individuals captured at the Hidroprado hydroelectric dam in the Department of Tolima, Colombia. Parasite prevalence was 2.9%. A total of 40 ticks were collected and two species identified: Amblyomma dissimile (n = 39) and Rhipicephalus sanguineus (n = 1). This is the second record of A. dissimile in C. crocodilus in Colombia and the first record of R. sanguineus in crocodilians. The natural infection of C. c. fuscus by A. dissimile establishes this species as a host in the life cycle of this tick. Similarly, parasitism by R. sanguineus indicates C. c. fuscus as a potential host for this tick, which is important since it is associated with domestic animals and has a high potential for transmission of zoonotic diseases. Our results highlight the parasitic relationship between ticks and one of the most resistant wild vertebrates: caimans. The prevalence, although not high, establishes the potential of ticks to parasitize different species and to be a vector of diseases for new groups of hosts.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"16 1","pages":"42 - 49"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48344111","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-08-31DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00051.1
M. R. Ruiz-Monachesi, S. Valdecantos, F. Lobo, F. B. Cruz, Antonieta Labra
Abstract. Some lizard species modulate the use of a retreat site based on the presence of scents from other individuals, behavior that requires scent recognition. Here, we investigated if two congeneric and syntopic lizards (adults of Liolaemus coeruleus and juveniles of L. ceii, which can be found sharing retreat sites in the wild) discriminate scents from each other during the pre-hibernation period. If the presence of heterospecific scents modulates sharing retreat sites, species would discriminate each other's scents. Lizards were individually exposed to four treatments, which were enclosures with scents of (1) from the focal individual (own); (2) a conspecific of the same sex as the focal lizard; (3) a heterospecific of the same sex as the focal lizard; and (4) a control (i.e., enclosure with a clean substrate). Our results suggest that there is no heterospecific recognition. This finding was not due to an inability to chemo-assess scents, since both species exhibited self-recognition (recognition of their own scents) and juveniles of L. ceii also showed conspecific recognition. Although it might be advantageous for species to share retreat sites, chemical recognition of heterospecific scents does not modulate this behavior in these syntopic species.
{"title":"Retreat Sites Shared by Two Liolaemus Lizard Species: Exploring the Potential Role of Scents","authors":"M. R. Ruiz-Monachesi, S. Valdecantos, F. Lobo, F. B. Cruz, Antonieta Labra","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00051.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00051.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Some lizard species modulate the use of a retreat site based on the presence of scents from other individuals, behavior that requires scent recognition. Here, we investigated if two congeneric and syntopic lizards (adults of Liolaemus coeruleus and juveniles of L. ceii, which can be found sharing retreat sites in the wild) discriminate scents from each other during the pre-hibernation period. If the presence of heterospecific scents modulates sharing retreat sites, species would discriminate each other's scents. Lizards were individually exposed to four treatments, which were enclosures with scents of (1) from the focal individual (own); (2) a conspecific of the same sex as the focal lizard; (3) a heterospecific of the same sex as the focal lizard; and (4) a control (i.e., enclosure with a clean substrate). Our results suggest that there is no heterospecific recognition. This finding was not due to an inability to chemo-assess scents, since both species exhibited self-recognition (recognition of their own scents) and juveniles of L. ceii also showed conspecific recognition. Although it might be advantageous for species to share retreat sites, chemical recognition of heterospecific scents does not modulate this behavior in these syntopic species.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"17 1","pages":"79 - 86"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"69931787","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-08-31DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00040.1
Ricardo Cossio, Eduardo Medina-Barcenas
Abstract. Acoustic communication is essential for reproductive success in frogs. Males produce different types of calls to attract females, advertise territoriality or location in a chorus, or communicate with heterospecifics. Quantitative descriptions of amphibian calls provide basic information for taxonomic, ecological, evolutionary, and conservation studies. Here, we describe the acoustic repertoire of Agalychnis spurrelli and discuss this species' reproductive behavior on the basis of observations made over the course of a breeding season in May–December 2007. Males produced one type of advertisement call and two types of aggressive calls (calls A and B) that differed in temporal and spectral frequency. The advertisement call was a single note. Aggressive call A was a long-pulsed single note, and call B was composed of more than two notes per call. Calling behavior was influenced by chorus size and male-to-male proximity, with males altering their advertisement calls with the increase of chorus size and eventually producing aggressive calls. These results suggest that A. spurrelli might exhibit graded aggressive signaling, helping males to delimit their calling site and reducing the number of agonistic encounters.
{"title":"Acoustic Repertoire and Calling Behavior of the Gliding Treefrog, Agalychnis spurrelli (Anura: Hylidae)","authors":"Ricardo Cossio, Eduardo Medina-Barcenas","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00040.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00040.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Acoustic communication is essential for reproductive success in frogs. Males produce different types of calls to attract females, advertise territoriality or location in a chorus, or communicate with heterospecifics. Quantitative descriptions of amphibian calls provide basic information for taxonomic, ecological, evolutionary, and conservation studies. Here, we describe the acoustic repertoire of Agalychnis spurrelli and discuss this species' reproductive behavior on the basis of observations made over the course of a breeding season in May–December 2007. Males produced one type of advertisement call and two types of aggressive calls (calls A and B) that differed in temporal and spectral frequency. The advertisement call was a single note. Aggressive call A was a long-pulsed single note, and call B was composed of more than two notes per call. Calling behavior was influenced by chorus size and male-to-male proximity, with males altering their advertisement calls with the increase of chorus size and eventually producing aggressive calls. These results suggest that A. spurrelli might exhibit graded aggressive signaling, helping males to delimit their calling site and reducing the number of agonistic encounters.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"17 1","pages":"71 - 78"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43533218","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-08-31DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00075.1
Hernán Ciocan, P. M. Leiva, M. Simoncini
Abstract. Sexual identification of crocodilians is important in population studies and provides useful information for conservation and management plans and monitoring populations over time. It is possible to distinguish between male and female Caiman latirostris by cloacal palpation or eversion of the penis in individuals larger than 75 cm total length, but smaller animals possess a barely differentiable cliteropenis. In hatchlings, sex determination methods involve surgical examination, necropsy, or analysis of cranial dimorphism, which cannot be applied in the field. We classified hatchlings of C. latirostris by observing the color and shape of their genitals. The penis is a milky white organ with a rounded shape at the tip and a purple hue at the end, whereas the clitoris is shorter, whitish, and has a pointed end. The procedure was tested on hatchlings from three nests at the “Proyecto Yacaré” study area (Santa Fe province); half of the eggs of each nest were incubated at a constant temperature of 31°C (producing females) and the other half at 33°C (producing males). To observe the sexual organs by cloacal inspection, we used a modified instrument whose function during palpation is like that of a finger applied in large animals to evert the penis or clitoris. In the first days after hatching we correctly scored the sex of 80% of the individuals. The number of correct identifications was slightly lower for males than for females. This technique might be a useful tool for field studies, as it allows the sex of small caimans to be estimated in situ.
{"title":"Sexual Identification of Caiman latirostris Hatchlings by Cloacal Inspection","authors":"Hernán Ciocan, P. M. Leiva, M. Simoncini","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00075.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00075.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Sexual identification of crocodilians is important in population studies and provides useful information for conservation and management plans and monitoring populations over time. It is possible to distinguish between male and female Caiman latirostris by cloacal palpation or eversion of the penis in individuals larger than 75 cm total length, but smaller animals possess a barely differentiable cliteropenis. In hatchlings, sex determination methods involve surgical examination, necropsy, or analysis of cranial dimorphism, which cannot be applied in the field. We classified hatchlings of C. latirostris by observing the color and shape of their genitals. The penis is a milky white organ with a rounded shape at the tip and a purple hue at the end, whereas the clitoris is shorter, whitish, and has a pointed end. The procedure was tested on hatchlings from three nests at the “Proyecto Yacaré” study area (Santa Fe province); half of the eggs of each nest were incubated at a constant temperature of 31°C (producing females) and the other half at 33°C (producing males). To observe the sexual organs by cloacal inspection, we used a modified instrument whose function during palpation is like that of a finger applied in large animals to evert the penis or clitoris. In the first days after hatching we correctly scored the sex of 80% of the individuals. The number of correct identifications was slightly lower for males than for females. This technique might be a useful tool for field studies, as it allows the sex of small caimans to be estimated in situ.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"16 1","pages":"50 - 55"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41957794","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-08-27DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00076.1
Laura Patricia Porras Murillo, Erick Mata Cambronero
Abstract. The habitat of crocodiles (Crocodylus acutus) and caimans (Caiman crocodilus) has been subjected to pressure due to human expansion. Habitat reduction, coupled with the simultaneous growth of the crocodile population, increases the number of interactions between crocodiles and humans. There is currently no official and systematized interactions database, but it is necessary to know the magnitude and nature of the interactions and establish management measures. The objective of the work was to systematize and evaluate the interactions between crocodiles and humans in Costa Rica. Historical information was collected from several sources. A total of 99 records, dated between 1990–2017, were found from press reports and the Integrated System for Processing Environmental Complaints of the Ministry of Environment and Energy (SITADA). The Fire Department recorded 123 events in 2017. All Fire Department records corresponded to encounters or sightings. Of the SITADA incident records, 35.4% were non-fatal, 27.3% were fatal, 21.2% were encounters and sightings, and the remaining 16.1% were miscellaneous situations. Most interactions occurred during the day, a fact potentially explained by human behavior of being in bodies of water or on adjacent shoreline while the sun is out. Most interactions occurred in the Central Pacific, followed by the Caribbean and then the South Pacific. The information available is brief but allows to establish management measures. The country needs to create a national database of interactions and to encourage individuals to report their interactions. Further research should continue to analyze the data for trends with the goal of building recommendations to prevent an increase in negative interactions.
{"title":"Analysis of the Interactions Between Humans and Crocodiles in Costa Rica","authors":"Laura Patricia Porras Murillo, Erick Mata Cambronero","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00076.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00076.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. The habitat of crocodiles (Crocodylus acutus) and caimans (Caiman crocodilus) has been subjected to pressure due to human expansion. Habitat reduction, coupled with the simultaneous growth of the crocodile population, increases the number of interactions between crocodiles and humans. There is currently no official and systematized interactions database, but it is necessary to know the magnitude and nature of the interactions and establish management measures. The objective of the work was to systematize and evaluate the interactions between crocodiles and humans in Costa Rica. Historical information was collected from several sources. A total of 99 records, dated between 1990–2017, were found from press reports and the Integrated System for Processing Environmental Complaints of the Ministry of Environment and Energy (SITADA). The Fire Department recorded 123 events in 2017. All Fire Department records corresponded to encounters or sightings. Of the SITADA incident records, 35.4% were non-fatal, 27.3% were fatal, 21.2% were encounters and sightings, and the remaining 16.1% were miscellaneous situations. Most interactions occurred during the day, a fact potentially explained by human behavior of being in bodies of water or on adjacent shoreline while the sun is out. Most interactions occurred in the Central Pacific, followed by the Caribbean and then the South Pacific. The information available is brief but allows to establish management measures. The country needs to create a national database of interactions and to encourage individuals to report their interactions. Further research should continue to analyze the data for trends with the goal of building recommendations to prevent an increase in negative interactions.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"16 1","pages":"26 - 33"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48849782","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-08-27DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00077.1
Evangelina V. Viotto, J. L. Navarro, C. Piña
Abstract. We describe body growth functions of broad-snouted caimans (Caiman latirostris) for wild and reintroduced individuals. Snout–vent length (SVL, cm) and age of young individuals and adult females were recorded for two different groups: (Py) animals born in the Proyecto Yacaré ranching program, from eggs collected in the wild; and (Wy) wild caimans Class I (< 25 cm SVL) whose age was determined by Size Frequency Analysis, plus females reintroduced by the Proyecto Yacaré and subsequently recaptured at reproductive age. To describe body growth, we adjusted five models through non-linear regression: Logistic, 4-Parameter Logistic (4-PL), Gompertz, 4-Parameter Gompertz (4-G), and von Bertalanffy. Each group was analyzed separately (Py and Wy), and we selected the most parsimonious model based on the Akaike criterion. We also analyzed the possible linear growth difference using ANCOVA. For Py, the Logistic model was best, whereas for Wy the most suitable was 4-PL, in which wild animals would arrive at the inflexion point 1.4 years later on average than in Py. Analyzing the stage at which their development was linear in shape, we detected that the wild animals had a similar growth rate to reintroduced individuals. As a result, although Py animals had experienced accelerated development whilst in captivity, it did not modify their subsequent growth in the wild. The likelihood of survival in this species increases with body size, thus it is important to emphasize that reintroduced animals are larger than wild animals of the same age and that previous farming conditions seem not to affect their growth in the wild. Therefore, we expect that reintroduced caimans will exhibit greater survivorship than natural animals of the same age. Consequently, an adjustment of the current ranching program should be considered, in the sense that population viability could be achieved by reintroducing a lower number of caimans each season.
{"title":"Growth Curves of Wild and Reintroduced Broad-Snouted Caimans (Caiman latirostris) and Their Management Implications","authors":"Evangelina V. Viotto, J. L. Navarro, C. Piña","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00077.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-18-00077.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. We describe body growth functions of broad-snouted caimans (Caiman latirostris) for wild and reintroduced individuals. Snout–vent length (SVL, cm) and age of young individuals and adult females were recorded for two different groups: (Py) animals born in the Proyecto Yacaré ranching program, from eggs collected in the wild; and (Wy) wild caimans Class I (< 25 cm SVL) whose age was determined by Size Frequency Analysis, plus females reintroduced by the Proyecto Yacaré and subsequently recaptured at reproductive age. To describe body growth, we adjusted five models through non-linear regression: Logistic, 4-Parameter Logistic (4-PL), Gompertz, 4-Parameter Gompertz (4-G), and von Bertalanffy. Each group was analyzed separately (Py and Wy), and we selected the most parsimonious model based on the Akaike criterion. We also analyzed the possible linear growth difference using ANCOVA. For Py, the Logistic model was best, whereas for Wy the most suitable was 4-PL, in which wild animals would arrive at the inflexion point 1.4 years later on average than in Py. Analyzing the stage at which their development was linear in shape, we detected that the wild animals had a similar growth rate to reintroduced individuals. As a result, although Py animals had experienced accelerated development whilst in captivity, it did not modify their subsequent growth in the wild. The likelihood of survival in this species increases with body size, thus it is important to emphasize that reintroduced animals are larger than wild animals of the same age and that previous farming conditions seem not to affect their growth in the wild. Therefore, we expect that reintroduced caimans will exhibit greater survivorship than natural animals of the same age. Consequently, an adjustment of the current ranching program should be considered, in the sense that population viability could be achieved by reintroducing a lower number of caimans each season.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"16 1","pages":"34 - 41"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42886974","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-08-25DOI: 10.2994/SAJH-D-17-00100.1
P. Gambale, Marlene Rodrigues da Silva, F. H. Oda, R. Bastos
Abstract. Given the increasing use of sympatric species to investigate niche differentiation and resource partition in biological communities, our study analyzes diet composition differences and trophic niche overlap between the sympatric species Physalaemus cuvieri and P. atim in the municipalities of Silvânia and Leopoldo Bulhões, Brazil. We used stomach flushing to obtain stomach contents from each individual and identified 11 prey categories for P. cuvieri and 17 for P. atim. Isoptera had the highest proportional volume in both species. No difference was found in the mean prey volume per stomach. Detrended correspondence analysis distribution scores indicated a greater diet breadth for P. atim than P. cuvieri, which is consistent with a higher trophic niche breadth in P. atim than P. cuvieri. According to a multi-response permutation procedure analysis, P. cuvieri and P. atim have different diet compositions. Our findings suggest that these congeneric species occupy sufficiently different dietary niches to enable them to persist in sympatry.
{"title":"Diet and Trophic Niche of Two Sympatric Physalaemus Species in Central Brazil","authors":"P. Gambale, Marlene Rodrigues da Silva, F. H. Oda, R. Bastos","doi":"10.2994/SAJH-D-17-00100.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2994/SAJH-D-17-00100.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Given the increasing use of sympatric species to investigate niche differentiation and resource partition in biological communities, our study analyzes diet composition differences and trophic niche overlap between the sympatric species Physalaemus cuvieri and P. atim in the municipalities of Silvânia and Leopoldo Bulhões, Brazil. We used stomach flushing to obtain stomach contents from each individual and identified 11 prey categories for P. cuvieri and 17 for P. atim. Isoptera had the highest proportional volume in both species. No difference was found in the mean prey volume per stomach. Detrended correspondence analysis distribution scores indicated a greater diet breadth for P. atim than P. cuvieri, which is consistent with a higher trophic niche breadth in P. atim than P. cuvieri. According to a multi-response permutation procedure analysis, P. cuvieri and P. atim have different diet compositions. Our findings suggest that these congeneric species occupy sufficiently different dietary niches to enable them to persist in sympatry.","PeriodicalId":48691,"journal":{"name":"South American Journal of Herpetology","volume":"17 1","pages":"63 - 70"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44390366","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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