African Journal of Herpetology最新文献

{"title":"Advertisement call description of the exceedingly rare <i>Phrynomantis affinis</i> (Anura: Microhylidae), with comparisons to <i>P. bifasciatus</i> and range extensions for both species","authors":"Francois S Becker, Alan Channing","doi":"10.1080/21564574.2023.2258888","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2023.2258888","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACTDespite a relatively broad distribution in Africa, the Spotted Rubber Frog, Phrynomantis affinis, is extremely rarely encountered. Only 18 specimens from 12 localities have been collected with a few additional observations recorded. Virtually nothing of the species’ natural history is known. We report or summarise new localities and range extensions of P. affinis in Namibia and Zambia and describe the call for the first time. We also compare its call to that of the sister species, P. bifasciatus, describing this call for the first time and noting a considerable range extension. The calls show several key differences, with P. affinis calls generally having a lower dominant frequency, pulse repetition rate, and number of pulses than P. bifasciatus. The calls of Namibian and Zambian P. affinis also show marked differences. These descriptions add valuable natural history information for both species and will considerably improve the field detection of the enigmatic P. affinis.KEYWORDS: advertisement callbioacousticsPhrynomantis affinisrange extensionrare species AcknowledgementsThis work was conducted under the Namibian Commission on Research, Science and Technology permit number AN20191118. We thank Schalk W. van der Merwe for access to farm Marne. We acknowledge the late Alex Duff-Mackay for recordings from Kenya. We also thank Frank Willems and Derek Solomon for their valuable recordings from Zambia, including the video-confirmed range extension for P. affinis by F. Willems.Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).","PeriodicalId":55550,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Herpetology","volume":"50 3","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135414396","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}

{"title":"Testing the thermal melanism hypothesis for Cape Cobras ( <i>Naja nivea</i> ) using community science photographic data","authors":"Jody M Barends, Kim J Scholtz","doi":"10.1080/21564574.2023.2263464","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2023.2263464","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACTAnimal colour is a highly adaptive phenotypic trait that can respond to several selection pressures, including those facilitated by variations in climate. The thermal melanism hypothesis predicts that for ectotherms, selection for darker phenotypes should be highest in cooler areas because darker pigmentation should provide thermoregulatory advantages. We tested whether intraspecific variation in colour distribution of Cape Cobras (Naja nivea) conforms to this hypothesis using a dataset of ∼800 georeferenced photographs of cobras available from community science platforms. We scored the dorsal colouration of snakes in each photograph and tested for associations between snake colours and climate variables at those locations. Our results provide strong evidence to suggest that temperature and solar radiation are important predictors of N. nivea colour occurrence, whereas elevation and precipitation are not. Overall, darker snakes have a significantly higher probability of occurrence in colder areas with low solar radiation than lighter snakes, which are more likely to occur in hotter areas with more solar radiation. Our study is the first to provide evidence for thermal melanism in a sub-Saharan African snake species, which was made possible by the availability of community science data.KEYWORDS: Cape Cobraclimatecolour variationsnakesthermal melanism AcknowledgementsWe thank Darren Pietersen and Rene Navarro for facilitating availability of reptileMAP data. We thank Tyrone Ping and Johan Marais for allowing us to use their photographs. Lastly, we thank the various contributors who uploaded their observations of cape cobras on community science platforms.Data availabilityData and code to perform analyses are available on Figshare (https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.23774586).","PeriodicalId":55550,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Herpetology","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135463075","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}

{"title":"Frog and reptile conservation through the lens of South Africa’s nature-based cultural practices","authors":"Fortunate M Phaka, Jean Hugé, Maarten PM Vanhove, Louis H du Preez","doi":"10.1080/21564574.2023.2261021","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2023.2261021","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Ethnoherpetology improves our understanding of the conservation implications of nature-based cultural practices through investigations of the influence of traditional culture on frog and reptile species (herptiles). Improved understanding of the implications of human activities on these taxa is especially important as herptiles are experiencing global population declines. Furthermore, improved understanding of nature-based cultural practices can better inform conservation planning that includes cultural practices as defined by South African legislation. The herptile-based cultural practices recorded from a sample of 275 online questionnaire respondents and 68 publications show some cultural practices to compel or inspire protection of herptiles. Conversely, other practices were found to pose a conservation risk as they either involve killing herptile species or they perpetuate negative perceptions towards them. Leveraging protective cultural practices as a conservation tool and mitigating culture-motivated threats requires integrating cultural aspects into modern law. Such an integrative approach is possible under South African legislation’s provisions for socially inclusive conservation planning and recognition of customary law. Integrative conservation approaches are also in line with international policy such as the Kunming-Montreal global biodiversity framework. In addition to an inventory of herptile-based cultural practices, the study also assesses their feasibility as conservation tools. Furthermore, this study highlights a need for quantification of their conservation implications (both positive and negative) and aligning protective traditional cultural practices with modern means of law enforcement.","PeriodicalId":55550,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Herpetology","volume":"22 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135512385","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}

{"title":"A targeted survey for the Durban Dwarf Burrowing Skink <i>Scelotes inornatus</i> (Smith 1849) at Bluff Nature Reserve and Treasure Beach in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, with notes on sympatric herpetofauna","authors":"AJ Armstrong, PR Jordaan","doi":"10.1080/21564574.2023.2263765","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2023.2263765","url":null,"abstract":"A survey for the Critically Endangered Durban Dwarf Burrowing Skink Scelotes inornatus (Smith 1849) was conducted in two protected areas in Durban, South Africa, in August and September 2021. Twelve sites, each encompassing a combination of vegetation type, elevation, slope and aspect, were sampled for S. inornatus using dug quadrats, pitfall-and funnel-trap arrays, and coverboard arrays. Seven S. inornatus were recorded, at least one by each sampling method. Individuals were captured at the forest edge and in the grassland part of the forest-grassland ecotone and none were captured in the interior of the forest. None of the sampling methods were suitable for the long-term monitoring of S. inornatus, although a modification of the coverboard array using terracotta tiles instead of corru-board tiles should be tested. Five S. inornatus captured were introduced to the Johannesburg Zoo’s ex-situ insurance and captive-breeding population. Nine other sympatric species of herpetofauna were recorded during the survey, with the Bush Squeaker Arthroleptis wahlbergii Smith, 1849 the most caught and S. inornatus ranking fifth. This study provides information that is useful for addressing some of the conservation actions and research needed for S. inornatus, but more research on the biology of this skink (particularly on its life history and population size) and habitat management interventions (restoration and rehabilitation of its habitat) are required to assist with improving its conservation status.","PeriodicalId":55550,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Herpetology","volume":"159 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135617303","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}

{"title":"A new anuran family from the fossil sites of Langebaanweg and Cooper’s Cave, South Africa","authors":"Thalassa Matthews, Christine Steininger","doi":"10.1080/21564574.2023.2251502","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2023.2251502","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACTEnigmatic frog ilia were recovered from two geographically and temporally disparate fossil sites in South Africa, namely the Early Pliocene (5.1 Ma) fossil site of Langebaanweg (south-western Cape), and Cooper’s Cave D (Northern province), which dates to around 1.38 Ma. The fossil ilia appear to represent an extinct anuran genus that subsisted in southern Africa over several million years, had a previously undocumented mode of locomotion, and possibly exceptional jumping ability. Relative to extant anurans, the fossil ilia show a unique suite of characteristics pertaining to the acetabulum, dorsal protuberance, ventral ridge of the shaft, and dorsal crest; features which would have facilitated and stabilised jumping.KEYWORDS: LangebaanwegCooper’s Caveiliummicrofaunaanuran AcknowledgementsThe support of the GENUS DSI-NRF Centre of Excellence in Palaeosciences Grant 86073 towards this research is gratefully acknowledged. TM received financial support from the National Research Foundation of South Africa. Many thanks to Muofhe Tshibalanganda at the CAF CT scan facility (Stellenbosch University) for much assistance and support.Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).","PeriodicalId":55550,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Herpetology","volume":"5 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136060772","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}

{"title":"A new species of African legless skink, genus <i>Acontias</i> Cuvier, 1816 “1817” (Squamata: Scincidae) from Serra da Neve inselberg, south-western Angola","authors":"Mariana P. Marques, Diogo Parrinha, Arthur Tiutenko, Manuel Lopes-Lima, Aaron M. Bauer, Luis M. P. Ceríaco","doi":"10.1080/21564574.2023.2246487","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2023.2246487","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACTDuring a recent survey of the Serra da Neve inselberg in south-western Angola, a population of legless skinks of the genus Acontias was found. Only three species of this genus have been recorded for the country so far – A. occidentalis, A. kgalagadi and A. jappi. Using an integrative approach and combining molecular and morphological data we found that the Serra da Neve population represents a new species, closely related to species such as A. percivali and some members of the A. occidentalis species complex. In this paper, we describe this population as a new species, Acontias mukwando sp. nov. and provide brief comments on its conservation and biogeography.RESUMONo decorrer de um levantamento herpetológico da ilha-montanha da Serra da Neve no sudoeste de Angola, descobriu-se uma população de escincos-lança do género Acontias. Apenas três espécies deste género foram até agora registadas para Angola - A. occidentalis, A. kgalagadi and A. jappi. Adotando uma abordagem integrativa e combinando dados morfológicos e moleculares, os nossos resultados indicam que a população da Serra da Neve representa uma nova espécie, com relações próximas a outras espécies rupícolas tais como A. percivali e membros do complexo de espécies A. occidentalis. Neste artigo descrevemos esta população como uma nova espécie, Acontias mukwando sp. nov. e apresentamos breves comentários sobre a sua conservação e biogeografia.KEYWORDS: Acontinaetaxonomyendemismspeciationsystematics AcknowledgementsThe present work is a result of the ongoing collaboration between the Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidade e Áreas de Conservação (INBAC) from the Ministry of Environment of Angola and its international partners. Angolan specimens were collected and exported under permits issued by INBAC (65/INBAC.MINAMB/2022). We also thank the provincial and local authorities for their support and cooperation during our fieldwork. We thank Adam Ferguson, Ben Marks and Daryl Coldren for their support during fieldwork. Special thanks to Álvaro (Varito) Baptista and his team from Omahua Lodge, for all the assistance, great support, and friendship during the fieldwork. Luis Querido and João Serôdio de Almeida provided critical support for the success of this expedition. Werner Conradie, Harith Farooq and an anonymous reviewer are thanked for their important suggestions on the improvement of the manuscript.Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationFundingThis work was funded by the National Geographic Society Explorer Grant (NGS-73084R-20) to LMPC. DP is supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) grant (2021.05238.BD). MPM was supported by FCT grants (SFRH/BD/129924/2017, COVID/BD/152155/2022). Work co-funded by the project NORTE-01-0246-FEDER-000063, supported by Norte Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF","PeriodicalId":55550,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Herpetology","volume":"28 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135010670","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}

{"title":"Systematics of the Thirteen-scaled Green Snake <i>Philothamnus carinatus</i> (Squamata: Colubridae), with the description of a cryptic new species from Central and East Africa","authors":"Eli Greenbaum, Olivier S. G. Pauwels, Václav Gvoždík, Eugene R. Vaughan, Teslin Chaney, Michael Buontempo, Mwenebatu M. Aristote, Wandege M. Muninga, Hanlie M. Engelbrecht","doi":"10.1080/21564574.2023.2245840","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2023.2245840","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACTRecent molecular phylogenies of African green snakes suggested the geographically widespread species Philothamnus carinatus includes at least two distinct lineages. We utilised an integrative taxonomic approach with morphological and genetic data to reconcile the taxonomic status of these cryptic lineages, including the recently described taxon P. brunneus from West Africa. We sequenced three mitochondrial (16S, cyt b and ND4) and two nuclear (c-mos and RAG1) genes from several Central African populations of P. carinatus and combined our data with other closely related species to infer a maximum likelihood phylogenetic tree with IQ-TREE. Our results are consistent with previous studies that showed P. cf. carinatus populations from Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) represent a cryptic lineage that is distinct from P. carinatus sensu stricto in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea (including Bioko Island), Gabon, eastern Nigeria, Republic of the Congo, and extreme western DRC. In our preferred tree, P. brunneus (limited to 16S molecular data) was recovered as a relatively long branch in a moderately supported clade with P. carinatus sensu stricto, whereas P. cf. carinatus populations from northern Angola, most of DRC, and East Africa (Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda) were described as a new species. A possible hybrid population between south-eastern Cameroon and north-western DRC is consistent with an increasing body of evidence suggesting the Ubangi River might represent a hybrid zone area.KEYWORDS: Congo RiverUbangi RiverCongo Basinendemism ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSWe thank Jonathan Brecko and Garin Cael for facilitating access to RMCA specimens; Bo Delling and Andrea Hennyey for NRM type specimens; Mark-O. Rödel and Franck Tillack for the ZMB type; Jennifer Sheridan and Stevie Kennedy-Gold for CM specimens; Kevin de Queiroz, Robert Wilson and Addison Wynn for USNM specimens; and Nicolas Vidal for MNHN specimens. Marius Burger, Kate Jackson, and J. Maximilian Dehling contributed photos of Philothamnus carinatus. Everett Madsen provided some photos of type specimens. Fieldwork by EG in DRC was funded by the Percy Sladen Memorial Fund, an IUCN/SSC Amphibian Specialist Group Seed Grant, K. Reed, M.D., research funds from the Department of Biology at Villanova University, two National Geographic Research and Exploration Grants (8556-08 and WW-R018-17), UTEP, and the US National Science Foundation (DEB-1145459). We are grateful to the Centre de Recherche en Sciences Naturelles for project support and permits (CRSN—LW1/28/BB/MM/BIR/050/07, an unnumbered permit from 2008, LWI/27/BBa/MUH.M/BBY/141/09, LWI/27/BBa/MUH.M/BBY/023/10, LWI/27/BBa/MUH.M/BBY/001/011, LWI/27/BBa/CIEL/BBY/003/012, LW1/27/BB/KB/BBY/60/2014, LWI/27/BBa/BBY/146/014), Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature for permits (ICCN—unnumbered permit by Provincial Director of ICCN, Équateur Province in Mbandaka in August 2013, 004/ICCN/PNKB/2013, ","PeriodicalId":55550,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Herpetology","volume":"22 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135155317","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}

{"title":"Systematics of the poorly known treefrog <i>Leptopelis fiziensis</i> (Anura: Arthroleptidae), with a description of its call.","authors":"Eli Greenbaum,&nbsp;Frank Portillo,&nbsp;Chifundera Kusamba","doi":"10.1080/21564574.2012.716083","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/21564574.2012.716083","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p><i>Leptopelis fiziensis</i> was described as a subspecies of <i>L. modestus</i> from specimens that were collected in 1956 in the region in and around Fizi, in present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo. We recently discovered <i>L. fiziensis</i> in transitional and montane forest near the type locality and the southeastern Itombwe Plateau, respectively. A phylogenetic analysis (16S mitochondrial sequence data) of these samples and other <i>Leptopelis</i> species recovered <i>L. fiziensis</i> as sister to <i>L. karissimbensis</i> with strong support, and rejected a close relationship between <i>L. fiziensis</i> and both topotypic <i>L. modestus</i> from Cameroon and <i>L. mackayi</i> from Kenya. Herein, we provide a detailed description of the morphometrics, colour pattern, male advertisement call and natural history of this poorly known species. At least one literature record of <i>L. fiziensis</i> from Tanzania has notable differences from our data, and requires further study to ascertain its taxonomic status.</p>","PeriodicalId":55550,"journal":{"name":"African Journal of Herpetology","volume":"61 2","pages":"113-127"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2012-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/21564574.2012.716083","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"31342741","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}