Herpetological Highlights

Latest Episodes:

018 Big Trouble in Little Chameleons Jan 09, 2018

Show notes

There is no denying that chameleons are fascinating lizards, but why should the tree-dwelling ones get all the credit? In this episode we unearth some recent discoveries concerning Brookesia and friends, as well as taking a look at the world's shortest lived tetrapod, Labord's chameleon. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT: www.herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Miller, C. 2017. “Morphological and Roosting Variation in the Dwarf Chameleon Brookesia Stumpffi Between Primary, Secondary, and Degraded Habitats in Nosy Be, Madagascar.” Herpetological Conservation and Biology 12 (3): 599–605.

Eckhardt, F, PM Kappeler, and C Kraus. 2017. “Highly Variable Lifespan in an Annual Reptile, Labord’s Chameleon (Furcifer Labordi).” Scientific Reports 7 (1): 11397.

Species of the Bi-Week:

Branch, WR, J Bayliss, and KA Tolley. 2014. “Pygmy Chameleons of the Rhampholeon Platyceps Compex (Squamata: Chamaeleonidae): Description of Four New Species from Isolated ‘sky Islands’ of Northern Mozambique.” Zootaxa 3814 (1): 1–36.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Andrews, R. M., & Donoghue, S. (2004). Effects of temperature and moisture on embryonic diapause of the veiled chameleon (Chamaeleo calyptratus). Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological Genetics and Physiology, 301(8), 629-635.

Aubret, F, R Shine, and X Bonnet. 2004. “Adaptive Developmental Plasticity in Snakes.” Nature 431 (7006): 261–62.

Glaw, F., Köhler, J., Townsend, T. M., & Vences, M. (2012). Rivaling the world's smallest reptiles: discovery of miniaturized and microendemic new species of leaf chameleons (Brookesia) from northern Madagascar. PLoS One, 7(2), e31314.

Karsten, K. B., Andriamandimbiarisoa, L. N., Fox, S. F., & Raxworthy, C. J. (2008). A unique life history among tetrapods: an annual chameleon living mostly as an egg. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(26), 8980-8984.

Losos, JB, KI Warheitt, and TW Schoener. 1997. “Adaptive Differentiation Following Experimental Island Colonization in Anolis Lizards.” Nature. 387.

Lucas, J, E Gora, and A Alonso. 2017. “A View of the Global Conservation Job Market and How to Succeed in It.” Conservation Biology 31 (6): 1223–31.

Raxworthy, CJ, MRJ Forstner, and RA Nussbaum. 2002. “Chameleon Radiation by Oceanic Dispersal.” Nature 415 (6873): 784–87.

Riedel, J., Boehme, W., Bleckmann, H., & Spinner, M. (2015). Microornamentation of leaf chameleons (Chamaeleonidae: Brookesia, Rhampholeon, and Rieppeleon)—with comments on the evolution of microstructures in the chamaeleonidae. Journal of morphology, 276(2), 167-184.

Tessa, G., Glaw, F., & Andreone, F. (2017). Longevity in Calumma parsonii, the World's largest chameleon. Experimental gerontology, 89, 41-44.

Music – Treehouse by Ed Nelson

017 ANACONDAS Dec 26, 2017

Show notes

This week’s episode is all about the bulkiest snake beast of them all – the ANACONDA. First we look into what neonate anacondas get up to. Then move onto a paper that investigates the human-anaconda conflict across South America (spoiler: people don’t like monster snakes). In lieu of a newly discovered anaconda we discuss a snake with a strange tail in Species of Bi-week. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT: herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Rivas, Jesús A., Cesar R. Molina, Sarah J. Corey, and G. M. Burghardt. 2016. “Natural History of Neonatal Green Anacondas (Eunectes Murinus): A Chip Off the Old Block.” Copeia 104 (2): 402–10.

Miranda, Everton B P, Raimundo P Ribeiro-, and Christine Strüssmann. 2016. “The Ecology of Human-Anaconda Conflict: A Study Using Internet Videos.” Tropical Conservation Science 9 (1): 43–77.

Species of the Bi-Week:

Aengals, R., and S. R. Ganesh. 2013. "Rhinophis goweri-a new species of Shieldtail snake from the southern Eastern Ghats, India." Russian Journal of Herpetology 20 (1): 61-65.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

De la Quintana, Paola, Jesús A. Rivas, Federico Valdivia, and Luis F. Pacheco. 2017. "Home range and habitat use of Beni anacondas (Eunectes beniensis) in Bolivia." Amphibia-Reptilia 38 (4): 547-553.

Denny, MW, BL Lockwood, and GN Somero. 2009. “Can the Giant Snake Predict Palaeoclimate?” Nature 460 (7255): E3–4.

Gans, Carl, Herbert C. Dessauer, and Dusan Baic. 1978. "Axial differences in the musculature of uropeltid snakes: the freight-train approach to burrowing." Science 199 (4325): 189-192.

Head, JJ, JI Bloch, AK Hastings, JR Bourque, EA Cadena, FA Herrera, PD Polly, and CA Jaramillo. 2009. “Head et Al. Reply.” Nature 460 (7255): E4–5.

Head, JJ, JI Bloch, AK Hastings, JR Bourque, EA Cadena, FA Herrera, PD Polly, and CA Jaramillo. 2009. “Giant Boid Snake from the Palaeocene Neotropics Reveals Hotter Past Equatorial Temperatures.” Nature 457 (7230). Nature Publishing Group: 715–17.

Headland, TN, and HW Greene. 2011. “Hunter-Gatherers and Other Primates as Prey, Predators, and Competitors of Snakes.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 108 (52): 1470–74.

Makarieva, AM, VG Gorshkov, and B-L Li. 2009. “Re-Calibrating the Snake Palaeothermometer.” Nature 460 (7255): E2–3.

Maritz, B, J Penner, M Martins, J Crnobrnja-Isailović, S Spear, LRV Alencar, J Sigala-Rodriguez, et al. 2016. “Identifying Global Priorities for the Conservation of Vipers.” Biological Conservation 204: 94–102.

Milanesi, P, FT Breiner, F Puopolo, and R Holderegger. 2017. “European Human-Dominated Landscapes Provide Ample Space for the Recolonization of Large Carnivore Populations under Future Land Change Scenarios.” Ecography 40: 1359–68.

Moleón, M, JA Sánchez-Zapata, JM Gil-Sánchez, JM Barea-Azcón, E Ballesteros-Duperón, and E Virgós. 2011. “Laying the Foundations for a Human-Predator Conflict Solution: Assessing the Impact of Bonelli’s Eagle on Rabbits and Partridges.” PLoS ONE 6 (7).

Natusch, D. J., and J. A. Lyons. 2012. "Relationships between ontogenetic changes in prey selection, head shape, sexual maturity, and colour in an Australasian python (Morelia viridis)." Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 107 (2): 269-276.

O'Shea, Mark, Steve Slater, Rebecca Scott, Sarah A. Smith, Katie McDonald, Bob Lawrence and Marie Kubiak. 2016. “Eunectes murinus (Green Anaconda) Reproduction / Facultative parthenogenesis.” Herpetological Review 47 (1): 73

Pike, DA, L Pizzatto, BA Pike, and R Shine. 2008. “Estimating Survival Rates of Uncatchable Animals: The Myth of High Juvenile Mortality in Reptiles.” Ecology 89 (3): 607–11.

Potts, JM, ST Buckland, L Thomas, and A Savage. 2012. “Estimating Abundance of Cryptic but Trappable Animals Using Trapping Point Transects: A Case Study for Key Largo Woodrats.” Methods in Ecology and Evolution 3 (4): 695–703.

Sniderman, JMK. 2009. “Biased Reptilian Palaeothermometer?” Nature 460 (7255): E1–2.

Strimple, P. D. 1993. “Overview of the natural history of the green anaconda (Eunectes murinus).” Herpetological Natural History, 1(1): 25-35.

Waller T., Micucci P., Alvarenga E. 2007. Conservation biology of the yellow anaconda (Eunectes notaeus) in northeastern Argentina. In: Biology of the boas and pythons. Henderson R.W. and Powell R. (Eds). Eagle Mountain Publishing, Utah

Other Links/Mentions:

Uropeltidae blog - http://snakesarelong.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/shield-tailed-snakes-uropeltidae.html

Harry Greene. Primates And Snakes, 75 Million Years Of Deadly Dialogue? - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/primates-and-snakes-75-million-years-of-deadly-dialogue-video/

Sami Asad’s. Frogs and deforestation, Science Slam Talk - https://youtu.be/7pvwtaZPicI

Music – Treehouse by Ed Nelson

016 Slimy Salamander Sociality Dec 12, 2017

Show notes

Salamanders feature in episode 16, especially North American ones. We chat about the unusual inheritance strategies of Ambystoma, and territorial behaviour and polymorphism (multiple colour patterns) of red-backed salamanders. There will of course be a slippery surprise in our Species of the Bi-week. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Bogart, James P., Jessica E. Linton, and Al Sandilands. 2017. “A Population in Limbo: Unisexual Salamanders (Genus Ambystoma) Decline without Sperm-Donating Species.” Herpetological Conservation and Biology 12 (1): 41–55.

Reiter, M. K., Anthony, C. D., & Hickerson, C. A. M. (2014). Territorial behavior and ecological divergence in a polymorphic salamander. Copeia, 2014(3), 481-488.

Species of the Bi-week:

Mccranie, J. R., & Rovito, S. M. (2014). New species of salamander (Caudata: Plethodontidae: Cryptotriton) from Quebrada Cataguana, Francisco Morazán, Honduras, with comments on the taxonomic status of Cryptotriton wakei. Zootaxa, 3795(1), 61-70.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Bi, K, and JP Bogart. 2010. “Time and Time Again: Unisexual Salamanders (Genus Ambystoma) Are the Oldest Unisexual Vertebrates.” BMC Evolutionary Biology 10: 238. doi:10.1186/1471-2148-10-238.

Cleveland, WS, and R McGill. 1984. “Graphical Perceptions: Theory, Experimentation, and Application to the Development of Graphical Methods.” Journal of the American Statistical Association 79 (387): 531–54.

Petruzzi, EE, PH Niewiarowski, and FB-G Moore. 2006. “The Role of Thermal Niche Selection in Maintenance of a Colour Polymorphism in Redback Salamanders (Plethodon Cinereus).” Frontiers in Zoology 3: 10. doi:10.1186/1742-9994-3-10.

Verrell, P. A., & Krenz, J. D. (1998). Competition for mates in the mole salamander, Ambystoma talpoideum: tactics that may maximize male mating success. Behaviour, 135(2), 121-138.

Music: Treehouse by Ed Nelson

The Interviews 002 - Steve Allain Dec 05, 2017

Show notes

Tom caught up with renowned amphibian man and Imperial College master's student Steve Allain at Venom Day 2017 at Bangor University. Steve's midwife toad project features heavily, along with his upcoming master's research and general amphibian happenings.

Steve's twitter: https://twitter.com/stevoallain

Steve's blog: http://bioweb.ie/author/steven/

015 Serpents of the Sea Nov 28, 2017

Show notes

Snakes of the sea. Yellow, striped, you name it. We look into some factors changing their colours, and how has the yellow-bellied sea snake become so widespread? Another Species of the Bi-week that’s entirely yellow but not entirely a species. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT: herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Brischoux, François, Cédric Cotté, Harvey B. Lillywhite, Frédéric Bailleul, Maxime Lalire, and Philippe Gaspar. 2016. “Oceanic Circulation Models Help to Predict Global Biogeography of Pelagic Yellow- Bellied Sea Snake.” Biology Letters 12: 6–9.

Goiran, Claire, Paco Bustamante, and Richard Shine. 2017. “Industrial Melanism in the Seasnake Emydocephalus Annulatus.” Current Biology. 1–4.

Species of the Bi-Week:

Bessesen, Brooke L., and Gary J. Galbreath. 2017. “A New Subspecies of Sea Snake, Hydrophis Platurus Xanthos, from Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica.” ZooKeys 686: 109–23.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Bonnet, Xavier, Marine J. Briand, François Brischoux, Yves Letourneur, Thomas Fauvel, and Paco Bustamante. 2014. “Anguilliform Fish Reveal Large Scale Contamination by Mine Trace Elements in the Coral Reefs of New Caledonia.” Science of the Total Environment 470–471. Elsevier B.V.: 876–82.

Chatelain, M., J. Gasparini, L. Jacquin, and A. Frantz. 2014. “The Adaptive Function of Melanin-Based Plumage Coloration to Trace Metals.” Biology Letters 10 (3): 20140164.

Cook, Timothée R., Xavier Bonnet, T. Fauvel, Richard Shine, and François Brischoux. 2016. "Foraging behaviour and energy budgets of sea snakes: insights from implanted data loggers." Journal of Zoology 298(2): 82-93.

Lillywhite, Harvey B., Coleman M. Sheehy Iii, François Brischoux, and Joseph B. Pfaller. 2015 "On the abundance of a pelagic sea snake." Journal of Herpetology 49(2): 184-189.

Pickwell, George V. 1971. "Knotting and coiling behavior in the pelagic sea snake Pelamis platurus (L.)." Copeia 1971(2): 348-350.

Reading, C. J., L. M. Luiselli, G. C. Akani, X. Bonnet, G. Amori, J. M. Ballouard, E. Filippi, G. Naulleau, D. Pearson, and L. Rugiero. 2010. “Are Snake Populations in Widespread Decline?” Biology Letters 6: 777–80.

Sanders, Kate L., Michael SY Lee, Terry Bertozzi, and Arne R. Rasmussen. 2013. "Multilocus phylogeny and recent rapid radiation of the viviparous sea snakes (Elapidae: Hydrophiinae)." Molecular phylogenetics and evolution 66(3): 575-591.

Shine, R., R. Reed, S. Shetty, and H. Cogger. 2002. "Relationships between sexual dimorphism and niche partitioning within a clade of sea-snakes (Laticaudinae)." Oecologia 133(1): 45-53.

Shine, Richard, Terri Shine, James M. Shine, and Benjamin G. Shine. 2005. “Synchrony in Capture Dates Suggests Cryptic Social Organization in Sea Snakes (Emydocephalus Annulatus, Hydrophiidae).” Austral Ecology 30 (7): 805–11.

Other Links/Mentions:

Yellow bellied sea snakes ‘knotting’ and feeding: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meGFcJ03bg0

iHerp Magazine Issue 3: https://view.joomag.com/iherp-australia-issue-3/0682664001501470952

Music – Treehouse by Ed Nelson

014 Crocs Nov 19, 2017

Show notes

Crocodylians have been around for a while and they know what they’re doing. In this episode we discuss what they do when they’re ticked off, and how the massive, fascinating, and largely unknown Tomistoma is getting on in SE Asia. As always, we end on a new species, and this time it’s a fractious new species of something crocodile-like. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT: herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Brien, Matthew L., Jeffrey W. Lang, Grahame J. Webb, Colin Stevenson, and Keith A. Christian. 2013. “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Agonistic Behaviour in Juvenile Crocodilians.” PLoS ONE 8 (12).

Stuebing, R., R. Sommerlad, and A. Staniewicz. 2015. “Conservation of the Sunda Gharial Tomistoma Schlegelii in Lake Mesangat, Indonesia.” International Zoo Yearbook 49 (1): 137–49.

Species of the Bi-Week:

Foffa, Davide, Mark T. Young, Stephen L. Brusatte, Mark R. Graham, and Lorna Steel. 2017. “A New Metriorhynchid Crocodylomorph from the Oxford Clay Formation (Middle Jurassic) of England, with Implications for the Origin and Diversification of Geosaurini.” Journal of Systematic Palaeontology: 1–21.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Brochu, Christopher A. 2001. “Crocodylian Snouts in Space and Time: Phylogenetic Approaches Toward Adaptive Radiation.” American Zoologist 41 (November): 564–85.

Brown, Gregory, Richard Shine, Ruchira Somaweera, and Jonathan Webb. 2011. “Hatchling Australian Freshwater Crocodiles Rapidly Learn to Avoid Toxic Invasive Cane Toads.” Behaviour 148: 501–17.

Courchamp, Franck, and Corey J A Bradshaw. 2017. “100 Articles Every Ecologist Should Read.” Nature Ecology & Evolution.

Galdikas, B. M. 1985. "Crocodile predation on a proboscis monkey in Borneo." Primates, 26(4), 495-496.

Letnic, Mike, Jonathan K. Webb, and Richard Shine. 2008. “Invasive Cane Toads (Bufo Marinus) Cause Mass Mortality of Freshwater Crocodiles (Crocodylus Johnstoni) in Tropical Australia.” Biological Conservation 141 (7): 1773–82.

Milinkovitch, M. C., L. Manukyan, A. Debry, N. Di-Poi, S. Martin, D. Singh, D. Lambert, and M. Zwicker. 2013. “Crocodile Head Scales Are Not Developmental Units But Emerge from Physical Cracking.” Science 339 (6115): 78–81.

Smith, James G., and Ben L. Phillips. 2006. “Toxic Tucker: The Potential Impact of Cane Toads on Australian Reptiles.” Pacific Conservation Biology 12 (1): 40–49.

Yeager, C. P. 1991. "Possible antipredator behavior associated with river crossings by proboscis monkeys (Nasalis larvatus)." American Journal of Primatology, 24(1), 61-66.

Other Links/Mentions:

Tomistoma captive breeding success https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDkpwV2vRyM

Music – Treehouse by Ed Nelson

013 Frog Fungus Oct 31, 2017

Show notes

Everyone's favourite fungus is the topic of this week’s episode – Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, otherwise known as Bd or Chytrid. We discuss some of the ways it spreads and a little about the frogs it affects. Species of the Bi-week is back and this time coming out of Amazonia. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT: herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Kolby, Jonathan E., Sara D. Ramirez, Lee Berger, Kathryn L. Richards-Hrdlicka, Merlijn Jocque, and Lee F. Skerratt. 2015. “Terrestrial Dispersal and Potential Environmental Transmission of the Amphibian Chytrid Fungus (Batrachochytrium Dendrobatidis).” PLoS ONE 10 (4): 1–13.

Barrio-Amorós, César L., Christoph I. Grünwald, Héctor Franz-Chávez, Ángela María Mendoza, and Brandon Thomas La Forest. 2016. “Notes on Natural History and Call Description of the Critically Endangered Plectrohyla Avia (Anura: Hylidae) from Chiapas , Mexico.” Amphibian and Reptile Conservation 10 (2): 11–17.

Species of the Bi-Week:

Peloso, Pedro L.V., Victor G.D. Orrico, Célio F.B. Haddad, Geraldo R. Lima-Filho, and Marcelo J. Sturaro. 2016. “A New Species of Clown Tree Frog, Dendropsophus Leucophyllatus Species Group, from Amazonia (Anura, Hylidae).” South American Journal of Herpetology 11 (1): 66–80.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Arnold, S.J., 1976. "Sexual behavior, sexual interference and sexual defense in the salamanders Ambystoma maculatum, Ambystoma tigrinum and Plethodon jordani." Ethology, 42(3): 247-300.

Blooi, Mark, An Martel, Francis Vercammen, and Frank Pasmans. 2013. “Combining Ethidium Monoazide Treatment with Real-Time PCR Selectively Quantifies Viable Batrachochytrium Dendrobatidis Cells.” Fungal Biology 117 (2): 156–62.

Gower, D.J., Doherty-Bone, T., Loader, S.P., Wilkinson, M., Kouete, M.T., Tapley, B., Orton, F., Daniel, O.Z., Wynne, F., Flach, E. and Müller, H., 2013. "Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis infection and lethal chytridiomycosis in caecilian amphibians (Gymnophiona)." EcoHealth, 10(2):173-183.

Iwai, N., 2013. "Morphology, function and evolution of the pseudothumb in the Otton frog." Journal of Zoology, 289(2): 127-133.

Kolby, Jonathan E., Sara D. Ramirez, Lee Berger, Dale W. Griffin, Merlijn Jocque, and Lee F. Skerratt. 2015. “Presence of Amphibian Chytrid Fungus (Batrachochytrium Dendrobatidis) in Rainwater Suggests Aerial Dispersal Is Possible.” Aerobiologia 31 (3): 411–19. doi:10.1007/s10453-015-9374-6.

Liew, Nicole, Maria J. Mazon Moya, Claudia J. Wierzbicki, Michael Hollinshead, Michael J. Dillon, Christopher R. Thornton, Amy Ellison, Jo Cable, Matthew C. Fisher, and Serge Mostowy. 2017. “Chytrid Fungus Infection in Zebrafish Demonstrates That the Pathogen Can Parasitize Non-Amphibian Vertebrate Hosts.” Nature Communications 8 (April). Nature Publishing Group: 15048.

Lips, Karen R. 2016. “Overview of Chytrid Emergence and Impacts on Amphibians.” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 371 (1709): 20150465.

Longcore, J.E., Pessier, A.P. and Nichols, D.K., 1999. "Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis gen. et sp. nov., a chytrid pathogenic to amphibians." Mycologia: 219-227.

Olson, Deanna H., David M. Aanensen, Kathryn L. Ronnenberg, Christopher I. Powell, Susan F. Walker, Jon Bielby, Trenton W.J. Garner, George Weaver, and Matthew C. Fisher. 2013. “Mapping the Global Emergence of Batrachochytrium Dendrobatidis, the Amphibian Chytrid Fungus.” PLoS ONE 8 (2).

Van Rooij, Pascale, Frank Pasmans, Yanaika Coen, and An Martel. 2017. “Efficacy of Chemical Disinfectants for the Containment of the Salamander Chytrid Fungus Batrachochytrium Salamandrivorans.” PloS One 12 (10): e0186269.

Other Links/Mentions:

Video of Plectrohyla Avia from Barrio-Amorós et al. (2016) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aa2O-BguqOY&feature=youtu.be

Salamander courtship with pheromone transmission - http://plethodon.science.oregonstate.edu/video/shermani%20slapping.avi

HARCC are mid fundraiser - go to frogrescue.com

Music – Treehouse by Ed Nelson

012 Geckos Down Under Oct 17, 2017

Show notes

Following on from our interview with John McGrath, Australian geckos are our focus for episode 12. We talk about the influences on starred knob tail gecko habitat and why velvet geckos are important food for an elapid snake. Of course there is an Australian gecko for the Species of the Bi-Week. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT: herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Driscoll, Don A., Catherine A. Whitehead, and Juliana Lazzari. 2012. “Spatial Dynamics of the Knob-Tailed Gecko Nephrurus Stellatus in a Fragmented Agricultural Landscape.” Landscape Ecology 27 (6): 829–41.

Webb, Jonathan K., David A. Pike, and Richard Shine. 2008. “Population Ecology of the Velvet Gecko, Oedura Lesueurii in South Eastern Australia: Implications for the Persistence of an Endangered Snake.” Austral Ecology 33 (7): 839–47.

Species of the Bi-Week:

Hoskin, Conrad J., and Patrick Couper. 2013. “A Spectacular New Leaf-Tailed Gecko (Carphodactylidae: Saltuarius) from the Melville Range, North-East Australia.” Zootaxa 3717 (4): 543–58.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Blay, Nicola, and Isabelle M Côté. 2001. “Optimal Conditions for Breeding of Captive Humboldt Penguins (Spheniscus Humboldti): A Survey of British Zoos.” Zoo Biology 20: 545–55.

Brown, G. P., and Shine, R. 2007. "Like mother, like daughter: inheritance of nest-site location in snakes." Biology letters, 3(2): 131-133.

Croak BM, Pike DA, Webb JK, Shine R, 2010. "Using artificial rocks to restore nonrenewable shelter sites in human-degraded systems: colonization by fauna." Rest Ecol 18:428–438.

Gamble, T. 2010. "A review of sex determining mechanisms in geckos (Gekkota: Squamata)". Sexual Development, 4(1-2): 88-103.

James, Alexander N., Kevin J. Gaston, and Andrew Balmford. 1999. “Balancing the Earth’s Accounts.” Nature 401 (6751): 323–24.

Llewelyn, John, Ben L. Phillips, Greg P. Brown, Lin Schwarzkopf, Ross A. Alford, and Richard Shine. 2011. “Adaptation or Preadaptation: Why Are Keelback Snakes (Tropidonophis Mairii) Less Vulnerable to Invasive Cane Toads (Bufo Marinus) than Are Other Australian Snakes?” Evolutionary Ecology 25 (1): 13–24.

Oliver, P. M., Bauer, A. M., Greenbaum, E., Jackman, T., and Hobbie, T. 2012. "Molecular phylogenetics of the arboreal Australian gecko genus Oedura Gray 1842 (Gekkota: Diplodactylidae): Another plesiomorphic grade?." Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 63(2): 255-264.

Shine R., Webb J. K., Fitzgerald M. and Sumner J. 1998. "The impact of bush-rock removal on an endangered snake species, Hoplocephalus bungaroides (Serpentes: Elapidae)." Wildl. Res. 25: 285–95.

Smith, A. L., Bull, C. M., and Driscoll, D. A. 2012. "Post-fire succession affects abundance and survival but not detectability in a knob-tailed gecko." Biological Conservation, 145(1): 139-147.

Werner, Y. L., Frankenberg, E., Volokita, M., and Harari, R. 1993. "Longevity of geckos (Reptilia: Lacertilia: Gekkonoidea) in captivity: an analytical review incorporating new data." Israel Journal of Zoology, 39(2): 105-124.

Music – Treehouse by Ed Nelson

The Interviews 001 - John 'Gecko Wrangler' McGrath Oct 10, 2017

Show notes

In our first ever interview episode we talk to John McGrath, publisher of digital magazine iHerp Australia. We chat about his experiences in the magazine and publishing industry, and his history with reptiles and amphibians.

Read iHerp Magazine FREE here: https://iherpaustralia.com.au/magazine/#id-bookcase

iHerp facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iherpaustralia/

iHerp twitter: https://twitter.com/iHerpAustralia

Music: Treehouse by Ed Nelson

011 Survival of the Vipers Oct 03, 2017

Show notes

Vipers are found in numerous corners of the globe, and in this episode we explore a little about how they’ve managed it. Starting with pit viper’s use of their heat sensing abilities, moving on to viper reactions to climatic shifts, and finishing up with how they are doing now. Naturally our Species of the Bi-week is a new viper, this time from Africa. FULL REFERENCE LIST AVAILABLE AT: herphighlights.podbean.com

Main Paper References:

Martínez-Freiría, F, P.-A. Crochet, S. Fahd, P. Geniez, J.C. Brito, and G. Velo-Antón. 2017. “Integrative Phylogeographic and Ecological Analyses Reveal Multiple Pleistocene Refugia for Mediterranean Daboia Vipers in North-West Africa.” Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 122 (2): 366–384.

Maritz, Bryan, Johannes Penner, Marcio Martins, Jelka Crnobrnja-Isailović, Stephen Spear, Laura R.V. Alencar, Jesús Sigala-Rodriguez, et al. 2016. “Identifying Global Priorities for the Conservation of Vipers.” Biological Conservation 204: 94–102.

Safer, Adam B., and Michael S. Grace. 2004. “Infrared Imaging in Vipers: Differential Responses of Crotaline and Viperine Snakes to Paired Thermal Targets.” Behavioural Brain Research 154 (1): 55–61.

Species of the Bi-Week:

Gower, David J., Edward O.Z. Wade, Stephen Spawls, Wolfgang Böhme, Evan R. Buechley, Daniel Sykes, and Timothy J. Colston. 2016. “A New Large Species of Bitis Gray, 1842 (Serpentes: Viperidae) from the Bale Mountains of Ethiopia.” Zootaxa 4093 (1): 41–63.

Other Mentioned Papers/Studies:

Alencar, Laura R.V., Tiago B. Quental, Felipe G. Grazziotin, Michael L. Alfaro, Marcio Martins, Mericien Venzon, and Hussam Zaher. 2016. “Diversification in Vipers: Phylogenetic Relationships, Time of Divergence and Shifts in Speciation Rates.” Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 105: 50–62.

Böhm, Monika, Ben Collen, Jonathan E M Baillie, Philip Bowles, Janice Chanson, Neil Cox, Geoffrey Hammerson, et al. 2013. “The Conservation Status of the World’s Reptiles.” Biological Conservation 157: 372–85.

Breidenbach, Carla Harvey. 1990. “Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles Thermal Cues Influence Strikes in Pitless Vipers.” Journal of Herpetology 24 (4): 448–50.

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Music – Treehouse by Ed Nelson

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