Pub Date : 2017-08-01DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00013
J. Ennen, Wilfredo A. Matamoros, M. Agha, J. Lovich, S. C. Sweat, C. Hoagstrom
Abstract: Our study represents the first attempt to describe biogeographic provinces for North American (México, United States, and Canada) turtles. We analyzed three nested data sets separately: (1) all turtles, (2) freshwater turtles, and (3) aquatic turtles. We georeferenced North American turtle distributions, then we created presence–absence matrices for each of the three data sets. We used watershed unit as biogeographic units. We conducted an unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic mean clustering analysis on each Jaccard index distance matrix from our watershed species matrices to delineate biogeographic provinces. Provinces were then tested for significant differences in species compositions in a global model with the use of a one-way analysis of similarity. We conducted a best subset of environmental variables with maximum (rank) correlation with community dissimilarities that determined the best model of abiotic variables explaining province delineation (i.e., climate, topography, and stream channel). To identify which species contributed the most to province delineations, we conducted an indicator species analysis and a similarity-percentage analysis. There were 16 all-turtle provinces, 15 freshwater provinces, and 13 aquatic provinces. Species compositions delineating the provinces were explained by abiotic variables, including mean annual precipitation, mean precipitation seasonality, and diversity of streams. Province delineations correspond closely with geographical boundaries, many of which have Pleistocene origins. For example, rivers with a history of carrying glacial runoff (e.g., Arkansas, Mississippi) sometimes dissect upland provinces, especially for aquatic and semiaquatic turtles. Compared with freshwater fishes, turtles show greater sensitivity to decreased temperature with restriction of most taxa south of the last permafrost maximum. Turtles also exhibit higher sensitivity to climatic, geomorphic, and tectonic instability, with richness and endemism concentrated along the more stable Gulf of México and Atlantic (south of the last permafrost maximum) coasts. Although distribution data indicate two aquatic turtles are most cold tolerant (i.e., Chrysemys picta, Chelydra serpentina), aquatic turtles overall show the most restriction to warmer, wetter climates. Sequential addition of semiaquatic and terrestrial turtles into analyses shows, as expected, that these taxa flesh out turtle faunas in climatically harsh (e.g., grasslands) or remote (e.g., California, Sonoran Desert) regions. The turtle assemblages of southwestern versus southeastern North America are distinct. But there is a transition zone across the semiarid plains of the Texas Gulf Coast, High Plains, and Chihuahuan Desert, including a strong boundary congruent with the Cochise Filter-Barrier. This is not a simple subdivision of Neotropical versus Nearctic taxa, as some lineages from both realms span the transition zone.
{"title":"Hierarchical, Quantitative Biogeographic Provinces for All North American Turtles and Their Contribution to the Biogeography of Turtles and the Continent","authors":"J. Ennen, Wilfredo A. Matamoros, M. Agha, J. Lovich, S. C. Sweat, C. Hoagstrom","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00013","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00013","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: Our study represents the first attempt to describe biogeographic provinces for North American (México, United States, and Canada) turtles. We analyzed three nested data sets separately: (1) all turtles, (2) freshwater turtles, and (3) aquatic turtles. We georeferenced North American turtle distributions, then we created presence–absence matrices for each of the three data sets. We used watershed unit as biogeographic units. We conducted an unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic mean clustering analysis on each Jaccard index distance matrix from our watershed species matrices to delineate biogeographic provinces. Provinces were then tested for significant differences in species compositions in a global model with the use of a one-way analysis of similarity. We conducted a best subset of environmental variables with maximum (rank) correlation with community dissimilarities that determined the best model of abiotic variables explaining province delineation (i.e., climate, topography, and stream channel). To identify which species contributed the most to province delineations, we conducted an indicator species analysis and a similarity-percentage analysis. There were 16 all-turtle provinces, 15 freshwater provinces, and 13 aquatic provinces. Species compositions delineating the provinces were explained by abiotic variables, including mean annual precipitation, mean precipitation seasonality, and diversity of streams. Province delineations correspond closely with geographical boundaries, many of which have Pleistocene origins. For example, rivers with a history of carrying glacial runoff (e.g., Arkansas, Mississippi) sometimes dissect upland provinces, especially for aquatic and semiaquatic turtles. Compared with freshwater fishes, turtles show greater sensitivity to decreased temperature with restriction of most taxa south of the last permafrost maximum. Turtles also exhibit higher sensitivity to climatic, geomorphic, and tectonic instability, with richness and endemism concentrated along the more stable Gulf of México and Atlantic (south of the last permafrost maximum) coasts. Although distribution data indicate two aquatic turtles are most cold tolerant (i.e., Chrysemys picta, Chelydra serpentina), aquatic turtles overall show the most restriction to warmer, wetter climates. Sequential addition of semiaquatic and terrestrial turtles into analyses shows, as expected, that these taxa flesh out turtle faunas in climatically harsh (e.g., grasslands) or remote (e.g., California, Sonoran Desert) regions. The turtle assemblages of southwestern versus southeastern North America are distinct. But there is a transition zone across the semiarid plains of the Texas Gulf Coast, High Plains, and Chihuahuan Desert, including a strong boundary congruent with the Cochise Filter-Barrier. This is not a simple subdivision of Neotropical versus Nearctic taxa, as some lineages from both realms span the transition zone.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2017-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00013","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48987533","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-06-15DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00012
M. B. Harvey, Kyle J Shaney, Irvan Sidik, N. Kurniawan, Eric N Smith
Abstract: We discovered new populations of Dendragama at the northern and southern ends of Sumatra. High genetic distances and concordance of multiple, apparently independent diagnostic characters support our descriptions of these two populations as new species. We define new characters of the sublabial, tympanic, dorsal crest, and dorsolateral crest scales. The three species of Dendragama undergo remarkable color change in response to time of day and stress. Females lay 2–4 ovoid eggs, reach sexual maturity at about 60 mm snout–vent length, and likely produce multiple clutches each year. We remove Salea rosaceum Thominot from the synonymy of Dendragama boulengeri and argue that the unique holotype of S. rosaceum is a specimen of Pseudocalotes tympanistriga with incorrect locality information.
{"title":"Endemic Dragons of Sumatra's Volcanoes: New Species of Dendragama (Squamata: Agamidae) and Status of Salea rosaceum Thominot","authors":"M. B. Harvey, Kyle J Shaney, Irvan Sidik, N. Kurniawan, Eric N Smith","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00012","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: We discovered new populations of Dendragama at the northern and southern ends of Sumatra. High genetic distances and concordance of multiple, apparently independent diagnostic characters support our descriptions of these two populations as new species. We define new characters of the sublabial, tympanic, dorsal crest, and dorsolateral crest scales. The three species of Dendragama undergo remarkable color change in response to time of day and stress. Females lay 2–4 ovoid eggs, reach sexual maturity at about 60 mm snout–vent length, and likely produce multiple clutches each year. We remove Salea rosaceum Thominot from the synonymy of Dendragama boulengeri and argue that the unique holotype of S. rosaceum is a specimen of Pseudocalotes tympanistriga with incorrect locality information.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2017-06-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00012","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48518684","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-05-23DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00006.1
J. Godley, B. Halstead, R. Mcdiarmid
Abstract: Eastern Kingsnakes (Lampropeltis getula) are an important component and predator in herpetofaunal communities, but many Eastern Kingsnake populations have declined precipitously in the last few decades, particularly in the southeastern United States. Here, we describe an intensive capture–mark–recapture study of L. getula conducted during 1974–1978 in a canal bank–Water Hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) community at Rainey Slough in southern Florida, where annual capture probabilities of adults ranged from 0.662–0.787. Population size and structure, seasonal activity, movements, microhabitat use, behavior, thermal ecology, and predator–prey relationships are described. At this site kingsnakes were susceptible to capture mostly in winter and spring, were diurnal, used rodent (Sigmodon hispidus) burrows on canal banks as nocturnal retreats, and emerged from burrows on 13–26% of the sampling days. Overlap of burrow use by both sexes was extensive with no evidence of territoriality. Kingsnakes readily entered the Water Hyacinths to bask, pursue mates, and forage. At Rainey Slough only snakes were detected in the diet of kingsnakes. Concurrent sampling of potential snake prey in the hyacinths and on canal banks revealed 10 species that varied in use of the two sampled habitats and in body size. A range-wide analysis confirmed that in descending order snakes, reptile eggs, and lizards dominate the diet of L. getula in Florida (94.8%) and remain important prey types elsewhere (80.2%). At Rainey Slough the density of six species of semiaquatic snakes in Water Hyacinths averaged 3534 individuals/ha with a mean annual biomass of 135.8 kg/ha, and kingsnake biomass was only 2.2–3.9% of prey snake biomass. We estimated that the kingsnake population consumed 36.82–63.58 kg/yr, or about 10.0–17.2% of the standing crop of snakes in the Water Hyacinth community. Adult male L. getula lost on average 39.3% of their body mass associated with the spring reproductive season, whereas females lost only 3.4% in the same period. Body condition indices for both sexes improved substantially thereafter. In follow-up surveys at Rainey Slough during 2006–2010 no kingsnakes were found. Semiaquatic snake densities in the Water Hyacinths were 77.2% lower (807.4/ha) than in the 1970s and consisted of only three species. Compared to the enigmatic declines and extirpation of L. getula populations elsewhere, at Rainey Slough the primary cause likely was unsustainable mortality from road reconstruction and paving in the winter–spring of 1979 and subsequent roadkill. Other potentially causative agents of extirpation of L. getula in this system are discussed.
{"title":"Ecology of the Eastern Kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula) at Rainey Slough, Florida: A Vanished Eden","authors":"J. Godley, B. Halstead, R. Mcdiarmid","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00006.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00006.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: Eastern Kingsnakes (Lampropeltis getula) are an important component and predator in herpetofaunal communities, but many Eastern Kingsnake populations have declined precipitously in the last few decades, particularly in the southeastern United States. Here, we describe an intensive capture–mark–recapture study of L. getula conducted during 1974–1978 in a canal bank–Water Hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) community at Rainey Slough in southern Florida, where annual capture probabilities of adults ranged from 0.662–0.787. Population size and structure, seasonal activity, movements, microhabitat use, behavior, thermal ecology, and predator–prey relationships are described. At this site kingsnakes were susceptible to capture mostly in winter and spring, were diurnal, used rodent (Sigmodon hispidus) burrows on canal banks as nocturnal retreats, and emerged from burrows on 13–26% of the sampling days. Overlap of burrow use by both sexes was extensive with no evidence of territoriality. Kingsnakes readily entered the Water Hyacinths to bask, pursue mates, and forage. At Rainey Slough only snakes were detected in the diet of kingsnakes. Concurrent sampling of potential snake prey in the hyacinths and on canal banks revealed 10 species that varied in use of the two sampled habitats and in body size. A range-wide analysis confirmed that in descending order snakes, reptile eggs, and lizards dominate the diet of L. getula in Florida (94.8%) and remain important prey types elsewhere (80.2%). At Rainey Slough the density of six species of semiaquatic snakes in Water Hyacinths averaged 3534 individuals/ha with a mean annual biomass of 135.8 kg/ha, and kingsnake biomass was only 2.2–3.9% of prey snake biomass. We estimated that the kingsnake population consumed 36.82–63.58 kg/yr, or about 10.0–17.2% of the standing crop of snakes in the Water Hyacinth community. Adult male L. getula lost on average 39.3% of their body mass associated with the spring reproductive season, whereas females lost only 3.4% in the same period. Body condition indices for both sexes improved substantially thereafter. In follow-up surveys at Rainey Slough during 2006–2010 no kingsnakes were found. Semiaquatic snake densities in the Water Hyacinths were 77.2% lower (807.4/ha) than in the 1970s and consisted of only three species. Compared to the enigmatic declines and extirpation of L. getula populations elsewhere, at Rainey Slough the primary cause likely was unsustainable mortality from road reconstruction and paving in the winter–spring of 1979 and subsequent roadkill. Other potentially causative agents of extirpation of L. getula in this system are discussed.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2017-05-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00006.1","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46897502","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-03-23DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00011
Kenneth P Wray, D. B. Means, Scott J. Steppan
Abstract: The Eurycea quadridigitata complex is currently composed of the nominate species and E. chamberlaini, with no other species recognized. However, recent molecular studies have revealed at least five genetic lineages within this species complex, with one lineage more closely related to the neotenic Eurycea species of central Texas and E. chamberlaini nested within E. quadridigitata sensu lato. We use large-scale geographic sampling in combination with a multilocus species delineation method and morphology to test whether these genetic lineages represent distinct species under the general lineage concept of species. We describe two new species of salamander from this complex, resurrect and elevate a former subspecies to full species status, add to the diagnosis of E. chamberlaini, and redefine E. quadridigitata in the context of this revision. All five species are diagnosable from one another through a number of meristic, morphometric, molecular, and ecological criteria.
摘要/ Abstract摘要:Eurycea quadridigitata复合体目前由指定种和张伯伦(E. chamberlaini)组成，未发现其他种。然而，最近的分子研究揭示了该物种复合体中至少有五个遗传谱系，其中一个谱系与德克萨斯州中部的新世Eurycea物种和E. chamberlaini在E. quadridigitata sensu lato中筑巢关系更密切。我们使用大规模的地理采样，结合多位点物种描述方法和形态学来测试这些遗传谱系是否在物种的一般谱系概念下代表不同的物种。我们从这个复合体中描述了两个新的蝾螈物种，复活并提升了一个前亚种到完整种的地位，增加了E. chamberlaini的诊断，并在此修订的背景下重新定义了E. quadridigitata。所有五个物种都可以通过一些分生，形态，分子和生态标准相互诊断。
{"title":"Revision of the Eurycea quadridigitata (Holbrook 1842) Complex of Dwarf Salamanders (Caudata: Plethodontidae: Hemidactyliinae) with a Description of Two New Species","authors":"Kenneth P Wray, D. B. Means, Scott J. Steppan","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00011","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00011","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: The Eurycea quadridigitata complex is currently composed of the nominate species and E. chamberlaini, with no other species recognized. However, recent molecular studies have revealed at least five genetic lineages within this species complex, with one lineage more closely related to the neotenic Eurycea species of central Texas and E. chamberlaini nested within E. quadridigitata sensu lato. We use large-scale geographic sampling in combination with a multilocus species delineation method and morphology to test whether these genetic lineages represent distinct species under the general lineage concept of species. We describe two new species of salamander from this complex, resurrect and elevate a former subspecies to full species status, add to the diagnosis of E. chamberlaini, and redefine E. quadridigitata in the context of this revision. All five species are diagnosable from one another through a number of meristic, morphometric, molecular, and ecological criteria.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2017-03-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00011","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41991582","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2017-03-14DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00003
H. Heatwole, A. Grech, H. Marsh
Abstract: The geographic range of sea kraits encompasses one of the geologically most-complex regions of the world. At its center lies Wallacea (the transition between the terrestrial biotas of the Asian and Australian tectonic plates) and the Indonesian Throughflow (nexus of the equatorial marine biotas of the Indian and Pacific oceans). The aim of this study was to elucidate the role of paleogeography, paleoclimatology, and oceanic currents in the evolution and distribution of sea kraits across these major biogeographic crossroads and beyond. A recent assessment of times of taxonomic divergence was projected against paleogeographic reconstructions to produce a parsimonious, hypothetical model of events critical for the origin, dispersal, and differentiation of this taxon. Times and degree of divergence of taxa suggested by recent morphological and molecular studies are in accord with various climatological and geologic events. The model postulates that the distribution of sea kraits was neither greatly affected by tectonics, other than the approach of the Australian Plate to the Asian one, nor dominated by the historic barriers to dispersal of terrestrial fauna across Wallacea, or by the Indonesian Throughflow. Rather, the model suggests that two major factors—paleogeographic alteration of the configuration of land and sea, and the directions of sea currents, past and present—provide an explanation of how these amphibious snakes (1) originated from a terrestrial Asian elapid ancestor, (2) subsequently generated the venomous Australian land snakes and their derivatives the true sea snakes, and (3) differentiated into the species complexes, species, and infraspecific entities of the genus Laticauda.
{"title":"Paleoclimatology, Paleogeography, and the Evolution and Distribution of Sea Kraits (Serpentes; Elapidae; Laticauda)","authors":"H. Heatwole, A. Grech, H. Marsh","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00003","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: The geographic range of sea kraits encompasses one of the geologically most-complex regions of the world. At its center lies Wallacea (the transition between the terrestrial biotas of the Asian and Australian tectonic plates) and the Indonesian Throughflow (nexus of the equatorial marine biotas of the Indian and Pacific oceans). The aim of this study was to elucidate the role of paleogeography, paleoclimatology, and oceanic currents in the evolution and distribution of sea kraits across these major biogeographic crossroads and beyond. A recent assessment of times of taxonomic divergence was projected against paleogeographic reconstructions to produce a parsimonious, hypothetical model of events critical for the origin, dispersal, and differentiation of this taxon. Times and degree of divergence of taxa suggested by recent morphological and molecular studies are in accord with various climatological and geologic events. The model postulates that the distribution of sea kraits was neither greatly affected by tectonics, other than the approach of the Australian Plate to the Asian one, nor dominated by the historic barriers to dispersal of terrestrial fauna across Wallacea, or by the Indonesian Throughflow. Rather, the model suggests that two major factors—paleogeographic alteration of the configuration of land and sea, and the directions of sea currents, past and present—provide an explanation of how these amphibious snakes (1) originated from a terrestrial Asian elapid ancestor, (2) subsequently generated the venomous Australian land snakes and their derivatives the true sea snakes, and (3) differentiated into the species complexes, species, and infraspecific entities of the genus Laticauda.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2017-03-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00003","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43229947","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2016-12-06DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-15-00005.1
T. Ikeda, H. Otsuka, H. Ota
Abstract A number of fossil snake vertebrae were collected from Early Pleistocene deposits exposed on a hill surface at Gogayama, Nakijin village, Okinawajima Island, along with many other vertebrate fossils. These represent the oldest fossil records of snakes for the whole Ryukyu Archipelago. We identified each of these fossil snake vertebrae to the lowest taxonomic category possible based on diagnostic features elucidated in our previous study of extant snakes from Japan and adjacent regions. As a result, the vertebrae of at least four genera—Cyclophiops and Dinodon of the family Colubridae, Protobothrops (formerly Trimeresurus) of the family Viperidae, and Sinomicrurus of the family Elapidae—were recognized. Of these, vertebrae identified as belonging to the genus Dinodon were further divided into two distinct forms, although both resembled D. rufozonatum, an extant species that does not presently occur in Okinawajima or any of the surrounding islets in the central Ryukyus. Vertebrae identified as belonging to the other three genera were largely similar to those of the three extant species currently occurring in Okinawajima but with slight differences.
{"title":"Early Pleistocene Fossil Snakes (Reptilia: Squamata) from Okinawajima Island in the Ryukyu Archipelago, Southwestern Japan","authors":"T. Ikeda, H. Otsuka, H. Ota","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-15-00005.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-15-00005.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract A number of fossil snake vertebrae were collected from Early Pleistocene deposits exposed on a hill surface at Gogayama, Nakijin village, Okinawajima Island, along with many other vertebrate fossils. These represent the oldest fossil records of snakes for the whole Ryukyu Archipelago. We identified each of these fossil snake vertebrae to the lowest taxonomic category possible based on diagnostic features elucidated in our previous study of extant snakes from Japan and adjacent regions. As a result, the vertebrae of at least four genera—Cyclophiops and Dinodon of the family Colubridae, Protobothrops (formerly Trimeresurus) of the family Viperidae, and Sinomicrurus of the family Elapidae—were recognized. Of these, vertebrae identified as belonging to the genus Dinodon were further divided into two distinct forms, although both resembled D. rufozonatum, an extant species that does not presently occur in Okinawajima or any of the surrounding islets in the central Ryukyus. Vertebrae identified as belonging to the other three genera were largely similar to those of the three extant species currently occurring in Okinawajima but with slight differences.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2016-12-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-15-00005.1","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67432131","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2016-12-06DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00002
A. P. Motta, J. C. Chaparro, José P. Pombal Jr., Juan M. Guayasamin, I. J. De la Riva, J. Padial
Abstract We infer species relationships within Lynchius, a frog genus with four species distributed along the paramos and cloud forests of the Andes of northern Peru and southern Ecuador, and assess species diversity in light of comparative analyses of anatomical traits and inferred relationships. Phylogenetic analyses rely on ~7000 base pairs of mtDNA and nuDNA sequences aligned using similarity-alignment and tree-alignment and optimized under maximum likelihood and parsimony criteria. Inferred relationships place Lynchius as the sister group of the widespread genus Oreobates and this clade as the sister group of the high Andean genus Phrynopus. Our analyses corroborate the dissimilar species Lynchius simmonsi as part of this clade and place it as the sister group of the remaining species of Lynchius. Parsimony and maximum likelihood analyses differ in the internal relationships of Lynchius with respect to the placement of L. flavomaculatus, L. nebulanastes, and L. parkeri, but support the existence of two unnamed species. External morphological comparisons provide diagnostic characters for the two new species, which are named and described herein. Lynchius tabaconas is sister to L. flavomaculatus and occurs at ~2800 m in the cloud forests of Santuario Nacional Tabaconas-Namballe, Cajamarca, Peru. Lynchius oblitus occurs in the same area but at a higher elevation (~3300 m) and is sister to a clade formed by L. flavomaculatus and L. tabaconas in parsimony analyses and to L. nebulanastes in maximum likelihood analyses. We provide a new diagnosis for each of the six species and for the genus, as well as some natural history notes.
{"title":"Molecular Phylogenetics and Taxonomy of the Andean Genus Lynchius Hedges, Duellman, and Heinicke 2008 (Anura: Craugastoridae)","authors":"A. P. Motta, J. C. Chaparro, José P. Pombal Jr., Juan M. Guayasamin, I. J. De la Riva, J. Padial","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00002","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract We infer species relationships within Lynchius, a frog genus with four species distributed along the paramos and cloud forests of the Andes of northern Peru and southern Ecuador, and assess species diversity in light of comparative analyses of anatomical traits and inferred relationships. Phylogenetic analyses rely on ~7000 base pairs of mtDNA and nuDNA sequences aligned using similarity-alignment and tree-alignment and optimized under maximum likelihood and parsimony criteria. Inferred relationships place Lynchius as the sister group of the widespread genus Oreobates and this clade as the sister group of the high Andean genus Phrynopus. Our analyses corroborate the dissimilar species Lynchius simmonsi as part of this clade and place it as the sister group of the remaining species of Lynchius. Parsimony and maximum likelihood analyses differ in the internal relationships of Lynchius with respect to the placement of L. flavomaculatus, L. nebulanastes, and L. parkeri, but support the existence of two unnamed species. External morphological comparisons provide diagnostic characters for the two new species, which are named and described herein. Lynchius tabaconas is sister to L. flavomaculatus and occurs at ~2800 m in the cloud forests of Santuario Nacional Tabaconas-Namballe, Cajamarca, Peru. Lynchius oblitus occurs in the same area but at a higher elevation (~3300 m) and is sister to a clade formed by L. flavomaculatus and L. tabaconas in parsimony analyses and to L. nebulanastes in maximum likelihood analyses. We provide a new diagnosis for each of the six species and for the genus, as well as some natural history notes.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2016-12-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00002","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67432176","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2016-11-16DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00004.1
F. V. Candioti, Jimena Grosso, Belén Haad, M. Pereyra, M. Bornschein, C. Borteiro, P. Costa, F. Kolenc, M. Pie, Belén Proaño, S. Ron, F. Stănescu, D. Baldo
Abstract: In recent decades, a renewed interest in comparative studies of embryonic ontogeny in anurans is taking place. Toad embryos are often employed as model organisms, and scarce attention has been put on interspecific variations. In this work we analyze the development of transient embryonic and larval structures in 21 species in five genera of Bufonidae. These species vary in their ovipositional mode and the type of environments where the embryos and tadpoles develop, including ponds, streams, and axils of leaves of terrestrial or epiphytic plants. Comparative anatomical studies and sequence heterochrony analyses show that primary morphological variations occur in the morphology at the tail-bud stage, the arrangement and development of the external gills, adhesive gland type and division timing, growth of the dorsal hatching gland on the head, configuration of the oral disc, emergence and development of the hind limbs, and presence of the abdominal sucker. Some of these transformations are best explained by phylogeny (e.g., early divergent taxa of bufonids have embryos with kyphotic body curvature, Type C adhesive glands, and a very small third pair of gills). Other traits might be correlated with reproductive modes (e.g., phytotelmata embryos hatch comparatively late and show an accelerated development of hind limbs). Because these actual variations are not well studied (e.g., less than the 10% of the known diversity of bufonids has been studied from this perspective), comprehensive analyses are required to interpret character evolution and the relationship with reproductive modes within the family.
{"title":"Structural and Heterochronic Variations During the Early Ontogeny in Toads (Anura: Bufonidae)","authors":"F. V. Candioti, Jimena Grosso, Belén Haad, M. Pereyra, M. Bornschein, C. Borteiro, P. Costa, F. Kolenc, M. Pie, Belén Proaño, S. Ron, F. Stănescu, D. Baldo","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00004.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00004.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: In recent decades, a renewed interest in comparative studies of embryonic ontogeny in anurans is taking place. Toad embryos are often employed as model organisms, and scarce attention has been put on interspecific variations. In this work we analyze the development of transient embryonic and larval structures in 21 species in five genera of Bufonidae. These species vary in their ovipositional mode and the type of environments where the embryos and tadpoles develop, including ponds, streams, and axils of leaves of terrestrial or epiphytic plants. Comparative anatomical studies and sequence heterochrony analyses show that primary morphological variations occur in the morphology at the tail-bud stage, the arrangement and development of the external gills, adhesive gland type and division timing, growth of the dorsal hatching gland on the head, configuration of the oral disc, emergence and development of the hind limbs, and presence of the abdominal sucker. Some of these transformations are best explained by phylogeny (e.g., early divergent taxa of bufonids have embryos with kyphotic body curvature, Type C adhesive glands, and a very small third pair of gills). Other traits might be correlated with reproductive modes (e.g., phytotelmata embryos hatch comparatively late and show an accelerated development of hind limbs). Because these actual variations are not well studied (e.g., less than the 10% of the known diversity of bufonids has been studied from this perspective), comprehensive analyses are required to interpret character evolution and the relationship with reproductive modes within the family.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2016-11-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-16-00004.1","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67432190","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2016-11-16DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-15-00009.1
Délio Baêta, L. O. M. Giasson, J. Pombal, C. Haddad
Abstract: We present the first taxonomic review of the genus Phrynomedusa since its description with diagnoses of the genus and species. We present a broad literature review of the genus and provide updates and remarks about the type series, tadpoles, calls, geographic distribution, and natural history of the species of Phrynomedusa. Additionally we describe a new species from município de São Luiz do Paraitinga, state of São Paulo, Brazil. Phrynomedusa dryade was initially identified as Phrynomedusa marginata; however, an integrated analysis of morphological and molecular characters enabled its recognition as a separate new species. For the first time, the advertisement call for one species of Phrynomedusa is described in detail. We describe the tadpole and present some field notes about the activity and biology of this new species.
摘要/ Abstract摘要:本文对该属植物自描述以来首次进行了分类综述，并对其属和种进行了诊断。本文对该属进行了广泛的文献综述，并对该属的类型系列、蝌蚪、鸣叫、地理分布和自然历史进行了更新和评述。此外，我们还描述了一个来自巴西圣保罗州município de s o Luiz do Paraitinga的新种。芦苇草最初鉴定为边缘芦苇草;然而，形态学和分子特征的综合分析使其成为一个独立的新种。本文首次详细地介绍了一种芦苇属植物的招聘广告。我们描述了蝌蚪，并提出了一些关于这个新物种的活动和生物学的野外笔记。
{"title":"Review of the Rare Genus Phrynomedusa Miranda-Ribeiro, 1923 (Anura: Phyllomedusidae) With Description of a New Species","authors":"Délio Baêta, L. O. M. Giasson, J. Pombal, C. Haddad","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-15-00009.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-15-00009.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: We present the first taxonomic review of the genus Phrynomedusa since its description with diagnoses of the genus and species. We present a broad literature review of the genus and provide updates and remarks about the type series, tadpoles, calls, geographic distribution, and natural history of the species of Phrynomedusa. Additionally we describe a new species from município de São Luiz do Paraitinga, state of São Paulo, Brazil. Phrynomedusa dryade was initially identified as Phrynomedusa marginata; however, an integrated analysis of morphological and molecular characters enabled its recognition as a separate new species. For the first time, the advertisement call for one species of Phrynomedusa is described in detail. We describe the tadpole and present some field notes about the activity and biology of this new species.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2016-11-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-15-00009.1","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67432142","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2016-07-12DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-14-00008.1
Zhi-Gao Zeng, J. Bi, Shu-Ran Li, Yang Wang, T. Robbins, Shao-yong Chen, W. Du
Abstract: Understanding community assembly is a fundamental goal of ecology and evolutionary biology, because it provides insight into how a given landscape changes in a synergistic fashion. With the current background of global environmental change, studies of how habitat alteration affects local communities often focus on species' responses to community-level changes instead of responses to specific ecological factors that elucidate the roles each factor plays in the final synergistic response. Here, we focus on the specific ecological mechanisms that drive changes in community structure. We investigated compositional patterns of lizard communities among natural and altered habitats (vegetatively sparse, natural, and dense) in the desert steppe ecosystem of Inner Mongolia, China. Habitat alteration induced significant changes in community composition of lizards and was associated with significant changes in both biotic and abiotic niches. Our preference (soil, thermal, and prey) and performance (locomotor, antipredator, and competitive) experiments identified many of the biotic and abiotic factors shaping lizard community responses to habitat change. In the natural habitat, where Phrynocephalus frontalis and Eremias multiocellata codominate, P. frontalis experienced low overlap (across lizard species) in preferred prey. Eremias multiocellata preferred the thermal environment of the natural habitat (and dense habitat), but this one factor did not fully explain its codominance. Phrynocephalus frontalis dominated in the sparse habitat, where this lizard species experienced its preferred tight soil and warm thermal environment and experienced low overlap of preferred prey. In the dense habitat, where E. argus dominates, P. frontalis and E. multiocellata exhibited impeded locomotor performance, whereas E. argus was not impeded by vegetation density. Eremias argus also preferred the thermal environment of the dense habitat (and natural habitat). Our results suggest, furthermore, that adult predation risk was not a major determinant of community divergence among habitats and that competition likely plays a more important role. Interspecific competition for microhabitat use may explain the low abundance of E. argus in the natural habitat and the low abundance of P. frontalis in the dense habitat. Overall, our assessment of lizard preferences and performances explained community composition across habitats. Our focus on ecological mechanisms associated with habitat alteration highlights the importance of vegetation conservation in lizard community management.
{"title":"Habitat Alteration Influences a Desert Steppe Lizard Community: Implications of Species-Specific Preferences and Performance","authors":"Zhi-Gao Zeng, J. Bi, Shu-Ran Li, Yang Wang, T. Robbins, Shao-yong Chen, W. Du","doi":"10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-14-00008.1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-14-00008.1","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: Understanding community assembly is a fundamental goal of ecology and evolutionary biology, because it provides insight into how a given landscape changes in a synergistic fashion. With the current background of global environmental change, studies of how habitat alteration affects local communities often focus on species' responses to community-level changes instead of responses to specific ecological factors that elucidate the roles each factor plays in the final synergistic response. Here, we focus on the specific ecological mechanisms that drive changes in community structure. We investigated compositional patterns of lizard communities among natural and altered habitats (vegetatively sparse, natural, and dense) in the desert steppe ecosystem of Inner Mongolia, China. Habitat alteration induced significant changes in community composition of lizards and was associated with significant changes in both biotic and abiotic niches. Our preference (soil, thermal, and prey) and performance (locomotor, antipredator, and competitive) experiments identified many of the biotic and abiotic factors shaping lizard community responses to habitat change. In the natural habitat, where Phrynocephalus frontalis and Eremias multiocellata codominate, P. frontalis experienced low overlap (across lizard species) in preferred prey. Eremias multiocellata preferred the thermal environment of the natural habitat (and dense habitat), but this one factor did not fully explain its codominance. Phrynocephalus frontalis dominated in the sparse habitat, where this lizard species experienced its preferred tight soil and warm thermal environment and experienced low overlap of preferred prey. In the dense habitat, where E. argus dominates, P. frontalis and E. multiocellata exhibited impeded locomotor performance, whereas E. argus was not impeded by vegetation density. Eremias argus also preferred the thermal environment of the dense habitat (and natural habitat). Our results suggest, furthermore, that adult predation risk was not a major determinant of community divergence among habitats and that competition likely plays a more important role. Interspecific competition for microhabitat use may explain the low abundance of E. argus in the natural habitat and the low abundance of P. frontalis in the dense habitat. Overall, our assessment of lizard preferences and performances explained community composition across habitats. Our focus on ecological mechanisms associated with habitat alteration highlights the importance of vegetation conservation in lizard community management.","PeriodicalId":56309,"journal":{"name":"Herpetological Monographs","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2016-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-14-00008.1","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"67432052","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"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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