The amphibians and reptiles of Mindanao Island, southern Philippines, II: the herpetofauna of northeast Mindanao and adjacent islands

We summarize all available amphibian and reptile species distribution data from the northeast Mindanao faunal region, including small islands associated with this subcenter of endemic vertebrate biodiversity. Together with all publicly available historical information from biodiversity repositories, we present new data from several major herpetological surveys, including recently conducted inventories on four major mountains of northeast Mindanao, and adjacent islands of Camiguin Sur, Dinagat, and Siargao. We present species accounts for all taxa, comment on unresolved taxonomic problems, and provide revisions to outdated IUCN conservation status assessments in cases where our new data significantly alter earlier classification status summaries. Together, our comprehensive analysis of this fauna suggests that the greater Mindanao faunal region possesses distinct subcenters of amphibian and reptile species diversity, and that until this area is revisited and its fauna and actually studied, with on-the-ground field work including targeted surveys of species distributions coupled to the study their natural history, our understanding of the diversity and conservation status of southern Philippine herpetological fauna will remain incomplete. Nevertheless, the northeast Mindanao geographical area (Caraga Region) appears to have the highest herpetological species diversity (at least 126 species) of any comparably-sized Philippine faunal subregion

Over-splitting destabilizes the taxonomy of hylaranine frogs: A response to Chandramouli et al. (2020)

Chan, Kin Onn, Abraham, Robin K., Sanguila, Marites B., Brown, Rafe M. (2020): Over-splitting destabilizes the taxonomy of hylaranine frogs: A response to Chandramouli et al. (2020). Zootaxa 4877 (3): 598-600, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4877.3.1

Results of tree analyses

MrBayes results: (1) mt+nc combined matrix and tree (161 samples); (2) mt matrix and tree (161 samples); and (3) nc matrix and tree (59 samples). BEAST results using reduced matrices (51 samples): (1) molecular clock calibrated tree and (2) geological event calibrated tree. RAxML result using reduced matrix

FIGURE 3 in Additions to Philippine Slender Skinks of the Brachymeles bonitae Complex (Reptilia: Squamata: Scincidae) III: a new species from Tablas Island

FIGURE 3. Photograph of lateral and ventral views of head of preserved holotype of Brachymeles dalawangdaliri sp. nov. (CAS 137149). Photographs taken by JLW and MLP.Published as part of Davis, Drew R., Geheber, Aaron D., Watters, Jessa L., Penrod, Michelle L., Feller, Kathryn D., Ashford, Alissa, Kouri, Josh, Nguyen, Daniel, Shauberger, Kathryn, Sheatsley, Kyra, Winfrey, Claire, Wong, Rachel, Sanguila, Marites B., Brown, Rafe M. & Siler, Cameron D., 2016, Zootaxa 4132 (1), DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4132.1.3, http://zenodo.org/record/25893

Cryptic extinction risk in a western Pacific lizard radiation

Cryptic ecologies, the Wallacean Shortfall of undocumented species’ geographical ranges and the Linnaean Shortfall of undescribed diversity, are all major barriers to conservation assessment. When these factors overlap with drivers of extinction risk, such as insular distributions, the number of threatened species in a region or clade may be underestimated, a situation we term ‘cryptic extinction risk’. The genus Lepidodactylus is a diverse radiation of insular and arboreal geckos that occurs across the western Pacific. Previous work on Lepidodactylus showed evidence of evolutionary displacement around continental fringes, suggesting an inherent vulnerability to extinction from factors such as competition and predation. We sought to (1) comprehensively review status and threats, (2) estimate the number of undescribed species, and (3) estimate extinction risk in data deficient and candidate species, in Lepidodactylus. From our updated IUCN Red List assessment, 60% of the 58 recognized species are threatened (n = 15) or Data Deficient (n = 21), which is higher than reported for most other lizard groups. Species from the smaller and isolated Pacific islands are of greatest conservation concern, with most either threatened or Data Deficient, and all particularly vulnerable to invasive species. We estimated 32 undescribed candidate species and linear modelling predicted that an additional 18 species, among these and the data deficient species, are threatened with extinction. Focusing efforts to resolve the taxonomy and conservation status of key taxa, especially on small islands in the Pacific, is a high priority for conserving this remarkably diverse, yet poorly understood, lizard fauna. Our data highlight how cryptic ecologies and cryptic diversity combine and lead to significant underestimation of extinction risk

Amphibians of the Philippines, Part I: Checklist of the Species

Volume: 62Start Page: 457End Page: 53