We review the Philippine frogs of the genus Leptobrachuim. All previous treatments have referred Philippine populations to L. hasseltii, a species we restrict to Java and Bali, Indonesia. We use external morphology, body proportions, color pattern, advertisement calls, and phylogenetic analysis of molecular sequence data to show that Philippine populations of Leptobrachium represent three distinct and formerly unrecognized evolutionary lineages, and we describe each (populations on Mindoro, Palawan, and Mindanao Island groups) as new species. Our findings accentuate the degree to which the biodiversity of Philippine amphibians is currently underestimated and in need of comprehensive review with new and varied types of data.

Lagom: Pinagbalik aralan namin ang mga palaka sa Pilipinas mula sa genus Leptobrachium. Ang nakaraang mga palathala ay tumutukoy sa populasyon ng L. hasseltii, ang uri ng palaka na aming tinakda lamang sa Java at Bali, Indonesia. Ginamit namin ang panglabas na morpolohiya, proporsiyon ng pangangatawan, kulay disenyo, pantawag pansin, at phylogenetic na pagsusuri ng molekular na pagkakasunod-sunod ng datos upang maipakita na ang populasyon sa Pilipinas ng Leptobrachium ay kumakatawan sa tatlong natatangi at dating hindi pa nakilalang ebolusyonaryong lipi. Inilalarawan din naming ang bawat isa (populasyon sa Mindoro, Palawan, at mga grupo ng isla sa Mindanao) na bagong uri ng palaka. Ang aming natuklasan ay nagpapatingkad sa antas kung saan ang biodibersidad ng amphibians sa Pilipinas sa kasalukuyan ay may mababang pagtatantya at nangangailangan ng malawakang pagbabalik-aral ng mga bago at iba't ibang uri ng datos.

We studied the spatial and reproductive ecology of a population of Copperheads (Agkistrodon contortrix), a North American pitviper, in a basalt trap-rock ecosystem in the central Connecticut River Valley, a region that constitutes the northeastern extreme of this species' geographic range. Adult males (n  =  20) and females (n  =  15) were surgically implanted with radio-transmitters and tracked every 48 h during the active season (April through October) for three consecutive years (2001 to 2003). From late autumn to early spring (November through March), when snakes were hibernating and thus inactive, tracking was reduced to once per week. We generated data on movement and other spatial parameters for each subject using GPS coordinates. There were significant sex differences in activity range size and multiple movement parameters. Throughout the active season males had greater activity range sizes and showed greater movement than females. This trend was pronounced during the mating season, which was restricted to late summer and early fall (late July through September). In contrast to most populations of A. contortrix from more southern and western localities, we did not observe any sexual activity (e.g., courtship, coitus, and male–male fighting) in the spring. Individuals of both sexes showed annual fidelity to: (i) activity range location, (ii) activity range size, (iii) movement distances, (iv) particular features of their activity ranges (e.g., refuge sites), and (v) hibernation sites. Males and females showed no difference in preferred seasonal habitats. In both sexes, shifts in habitat associations during the active season included migrations from over-wintering sites within basalt trap rockslides to upper-elevation, open deciduous forest during the summer foraging and reproductive season. Parturition in the field was recorded in eight instances and was always close to one of the two hibernacula used by the individuals in the study area.

Aspects of the reproductive biology of male and female Agkistrodon piscivorus are described using histological techniques, reviewed, and compared with historical data on A. piscivorus. These include anatomical description at the macro and microscopic levels, and correlation of the male and female urogenital cycles to the reproductive life history of A. piscivorus. New anatomical descriptions and discussion of the efferent ducts, including the ductuli efferentes, proximal and distal ductuli epididymides, ductus deferens, and ampulla ductus deferens, are also presented here at the light and electron microscopy levels. Morphology of all distinct regions of the male and female urogenital systems are discussed and compared with historical investigations on other squamates. In comparison to other snakes, A. piscivorus possesses some unique reproductive characters, whereas others are more conserved. In terms of the reproductive cycle, the ability of males and females to store sperm allows the dissociation of reproductive event timing between the sexes. Thus, the only event that must be coordinated between the sexes is copulation, which is proposed to occur in the fall and the spring in A. piscivorus. In females, the atrophy and activity of the reproductive organs (e.g., secretory activity) varies concurrently with vitellogenesis and the mating seasons. In males, spermatogenesis peaks in the summer, independent of the mating season, except in Louisiana where a spring and fall peak of spermatogenesis occur, and where the spring and fall mating seasons overlap. Renal sexual segment hypertrophy in males peaks in the fall and spring in more southern populations (Alabama and Louisiana) concurrent with fall and spring mating seasons. In Georgia, only a fall peak is observed. Secretory activity of the male excurrent ducts also peaks during times of mating activity in one population studied (Louisiana).

We investigated the thermoregulatory abilities and behavior of Pseudocordylus melanotus melanotus (Drakensberg crag lizard) in terms of the relationship between the operative temperature (T_e), selected temperature (T_sel), set-point range (T_set) and field active body temperature (field T_sel), exposure to low temperature, body posture and activity. The T_e range for P. m. melanotus was about 58 C (−3.20 C in winter to 54.94 C in summer). In a laboratory thermal gradient, in a setting that is independent of ecological costs or thermal constraints, lizards maintained T_set (defined as the interquartile range of T_sel, after Hertz et al., 1993) between 29.00 ± 0.36 C and 31.78 ± 0.16 C in winter and 29.61 ± 0.28 C and 32.47 ± 0.18 C in summer. The mean T_sel was 30.08 ± 0.14 C in winter and 30.99 ± 0.11 C in summer. In the field, however, lizards achieved significantly lower T_b, which suggests that the thermal environment limited the T_b that lizards were able to achieve. Lizards were active for significantly longer and selected significantly higher T_b in summer than in winter. During winter, lizards spent a significant amount of time at T_b below their lower critical limiting temperature (defined by loss of righting). The most frequently assumed body postures in summer were those where the head or body were raised, whereas, in winter, lizards usually lay with head and body flat on the rock substrate. We suggest that these differences reflect the physiological requirements of the lizards: Head-up postures in sit-and-wait foragers are consistent with scanning for prey while head-down postures are likely motivated by thermoregulatory needs. It is clear that P. m. melanotus can thermoregulate efficiently, but the T_b maintained may be constrained by the range of T_e available to the lizards in their natural environment. Pseudocordylus m. melanotus currently appears to be geographically constrained by low environmental temperatures at the edge of its range. Should global warming become a reality in southern Africa, this species could inadvertently benefit by occupying new habitat that was previously unavailable because of thermal constraints.

We describe two new whiptail lizard species, previously assigned to Cnemidophorus lemniscatus, from islands of the state of Nueva Esparta and Los Frailes Archipelago, off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. The two new species differ from C. lemniscatus in color, pattern, and squamation. The species from the islands of Margarita and Cubagua can be distinguished from the one of Los Frailes Archipelago in having the circumorbital semicircles extending further anteriorly, more scales between supraocular and supraciliaries, and a larger number of scales of a smaller size between the preanal shield and anal spurs. The two new species also differ conspicuously in color and pattern of both sexes and all age classes. Additionally, we comment on the status of the population of Cnemidophorus of Los Testigos Archipelago, discuss the morphological and color variation observed in C. lemniscatus from northern Venezuela and restrict the distribution of the latter species in the country to the mainland.