The maintenance of gene flow and colonization of new areas are influenced by an organism's movements in the landscape. Movement favors genetic mixing and limits inbreeding risk, hence decreasing the risk of extinction. Movement is a multifactorial process, however, and might be influenced by both individual traits and environmental factors. Studying the influence of individual characteristics and landscape features on movement is becoming an important challenge in evolutionary ecology and conservation biology, especially among threatened species such as amphibians. In a low-disperser species (Triturus marmoratus), we expected differences in movement ability to vary with individual traits, such as body length, as well as features of the landscape. On the basis of radiotracking surveys in both forests and agricultural lands, we revealed that landscape features and climatic conditions influenced the distances traveled by newts. Moreover, the individual traits, and particularly the body length and the hind-limb length, were also important factors explaining movement patterns in Marbled Newts. Highlighting such movement-related traits in a salamander species could improve estimates of movement potential based on morphological traits. Our results can assist in recommendations for conservation plans of the Marbled Newts, and more generally of amphibians.

Most amphibian species are highly dependent on available aquatic habitats and their surrounding environments. In this study, we determined which factors influence amphibian diversity in a Mediterranean ecosystem characterized by a mosaic of natural areas and traditional land use. We sampled 60 temporary and permanent ponds in northeastern Portugal, determining amphibian species richness and community composition. At local (5- and 50-m buffers) and landscape (500-m buffer) scales, we analyzed the relationship between these measures and environmental factors describing wetland characteristics, surrounding land cover, habitat heterogeneity, and local road density. Both species richness and community composition were mainly influenced by local factors. Species richness was positively correlated with pond hydroperiod, habitat heterogeneity, and scrub cover within 5 m, and negatively correlated with bare ground coverage and road density within 50 m. Coniferous forest was the only landscape variable explaining species richness with a positive association. Hydroperiod was the most important factor determining community composition, along with aquatic vegetation and several land cover variables. Traditional farmland did not adversely impact amphibian diversity, and instead might provide habitat heterogeneity and breeding sites for amphibians. Our results provide practical information for amphibian conservation and habitat management, and support the view that biodiversity can coexist with traditional farming activities. In similar landscapes, efforts to maintain the diversity of amphibian communities should focus on preserving wetlands and local habitats.

This study explores the potential morphological differences between pleurodiran and cryptodiran turtle shells. Pleurodires (Suborder Pleurodira), as suggested by their name, retract their heads into the shell by bending the neck to the side; this is different from cryptodires (Suborder Cryptodira), which withdraw their necks along a sagittal plane. Pleurodires also have evolved a unique pelvic morphology typified by two columnar pelvic elements sutured to both the carapace and plastron; in contrast, the pelvic girdle in cryptodires is loosely connected to the shell. These differences might put very different selective pressures on shell shape in these animals: The different head retraction strategies in the two groups could lead pleurodires to evolve wider and flatter anterior apertures while the differences in pelvic structure might permit the evolution of flatter carapaces (particularly in the posterior carapace) and narrower bridges as compared to cryptodires. We used 3D landmark data to characterize shell shape and used phylomorphospace plots to examine patterns of diversification within pleurodires. We also used analyses of variance to examine morphological differences between the shell shapes of cryptodire and pleurodire turtles. We found significant phylogenetic signal in pleurodire shell shape. Clustering of pleurodires in shape space primarily followed phylogeny, with all major clades occupying distinct regions of shell shape space. Pleurodires overlapped most strongly in shell shape with aquatic cryptodires, both swimmers (including sea turtles) and bottom-walkers (such as chelydrids). Future studies could seek additional support for the hypotheses, through mechanical tests of shell performance, that the mechanism of neck retraction or the presence of columnar pelvic girdles can influence the functional performance of turtle shells.

Turtles in the Kinosternidae are well-known to have unique shell shapes and shell constructions, including hinged plastrons in many species. Members of this group also live in a wide range of habitats. Despite this variability, and the likely importance of shell shape in determining fitness across this clade's range, no studies have comprehensively surveyed the variation in shell shape in this clade, nor the allometric or ecomorphological patterns possible among these species. This study used geometric morphometric methods to quantify shape in the shells of 25 of the 26 species in Kinosternidae. We assessed carapace strength using finite element modeling and calculated several morphometric measures that are correlated with the ability of turtles to right themselves when overturned. These morphological and functional data were used to describe patterns of morphological and functional evolution, and to test hypotheses about the ecological or functional morphology within this group. No patterns in ecomorphology were identified. A relationship between posterior plastral kinesis and shell morphology and strength was found, however, indicating that different mechanisms of defense exert a stronger influence on shell shape than environmental pressures. Such mechanisms are likely important for turtles that cannot rely solely on shell strength for defense as a result of their small size. In addition, morphological proxies for righting performance indicate that kinosternids are unexceptional among turtles regarding this function. This is the first large-scale study of functional and ecological morphology in this clade, but much opportunity remains for discovering finer scale patterns of variation and unique functional characteristics associated with the unique shell shapes of this group.

Intraspecific variation in behavior is often associated with age or size class, with many animals experiencing ontogenetic differences in diet, predation risk, physiological function, and competition. The nature of intraspecific behavioral variation will depend on the environmental context and has been more thoroughly examined for diurnal species. We studied microhabitat use and activity relative to time of night and the lunar cycle for the nocturnal gecko Chondrodactylus turneri, in the Namib Desert. Geckos preferred larger rocks with more crevices and were clumped in their occupancy of rocks, with some rocks being occupied by as many as eight individuals. Age classes differed in their use of open areas, with juveniles being encountered more often in the open. Activity levels varied with moon phase and time, with adults and juveniles exhibiting different relationships. Our results indicate that multiple factors might be influencing intraspecific behavioral variation.

Invasive species present challenges to native organisms and offer unique opportunities to examine adaptations to novel stressors. We studied behavioral responses to invasive Red Imported Fire Ants (Solenopsis invicta) in native Puerto Rican Dwarf Geckos (Sphaerodactylus macrolepis) on Guana Island, British Virgin Islands. Geckos were exposed to no fire ants, few fire ants, or many fire ants. Solenopsis invicta was aggressive toward the geckos and the foraging ants frequently stung Dwarf Geckos, even when far from the mound. Dwarf Geckos displayed an array of anti-ant behaviors including consuming fire ants, flicking ants away with their limbs and/or tail, and rapidly fleeing attacking ants. These behaviors were elicited more frequently when more fire ants were encountered. Despite being stung often and by as many as nine fire ants, none of the tiny geckos died. Future research could usefully explore potentially delayed effects of fire ant envenomation and the impacts of fire ants on these geckos via egg predation or competition for invertebrate prey.

There have been relatively few studies on the population structure of species from countries having high levels of biodiversity, such as Brazil, even though most species are at some risk of extinction. Precise estimates of population parameters, such as abundance and survival probability, are necessary for evaluating the status of populations and developing management policies for species and their associated habitats. Here, we used mark–recapture methods to model the demography of the sand lizard, Liolaemus arambarensis, an endemic species of southern Brazil. Specifically, we estimated population size, survival probability, and sex ratio of three populations, while accounting for imperfect individual detectability. Our goal was to evaluate how the population structure of this species reflects its conservation status according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. The estimated population size of mature individuals was higher than 250 individuals but lower than 2500 individuals; therefore, the species should be categorized as Endangered by IUCN population criteria. Monthly survival probability of adult females, adult males, and juveniles was relatively high (ranging from 0.74 to 0.85), whereas capture and recapture probabilities were low (ranging from 0.01 to 0.22). The accelerated degradation and alteration of sand lizard habitat, restinga areas of the Southern Coastal Plain, highlight the importance of long-term monitoring to detect future patterns of fluctuation and possible population declines of its few known populations.

We describe a new genus and two new species of toads from the Sumatran volcanoes Gunung Sorikmarapi and G. Kunyit, in the provinces of Sumatera Utara and Jambi, respectively. The new taxa can be distinguished from other genera, and each other, based on genetic differentiation, morphology, and advertisement call structure. We employ both nuclear and mitochondrial data to provide a phylogenetic hypothesis of relationships for the bufonid genera of the Sunda Shelf. While broadly corroborating previous studies, our results also shed light on the phylogenetic position of Pseudobufo. The new genus, Duttaphrynus, and Pseudobufo are basal to other Sunda Shelf genera in our phylogenies.