Leptodactylus fallax

Number of Pages: 3Integrative BiologyGeological Science

Eleutherodactylus martinicensis

Number of Pages: 4Integrative BiologyGeological Science

Eleutherodactylus barlagnei

Number of Pages: 3Integrative BiologyGeological Science

Eleutherodactylus amplinympha

Number of Pages: 4Integrative BiologyGeological Science

Erroneous environs or aberrant activities? Reconciling unexpected collection localities for three New Guinea Worm-eating Snakes (Toxicocalamus, Serpentes, Elapidae) using historical account

Permission granted from editor to include publisher's pdf file.In contrast to birds and large mammals, which can usually be observed and recognized using binoculars and field guides, many reptile and amphibian species are secretive, rarely seen, and difficult to identify from a distance. The characters that separate closely related snakes or lizards often revolve around some finite details of the head or body scalation rather than highly visible color patterns, and these are essentially impossible to discern without close inspection; sometimes these characteristics are difficult to determine even up close, without magnification. Therefore, while many bird and mammal distribution maps may be compiled from non-invasive observations, often by armies of experienced amateurs, the ranges of many reptile species often depend on the locality data that should accompany museum specimens whose identity has been established. If such data are inaccurate or erroneous, it may then easily lead to misconceptions regarding the range and conservation status of a particular species – to use a computing term, garbage in, garbage out

Eleutherodactylus pinchoni

Number of Pages: 3Integrative BiologyGeological Science

A portable, low-cost approach for photographing fluid preserved snake specimens- Recommendations with comments on optimizing specimen photography in Natural History collections

Access to preserved specimens in museum collections is one of the key needs of those engaged in systematics research (e.g., Bi et al. 2013; Rocha et al. 2014; McLean et al. 2016). Yet, sometimes the constraints of research budgets and time prevent the optimal use of this critical resource, resulting in project delays, incomplete information, or flawed scientific conclusions. With many natural history museums now digitizing information related to specimens in their collections, imaging of specimens is a logical next step, and one of critical importance to make holdings available electronically to a broader audience (Baird 2010; Lister et al. 2011; Knight-Davis et al. 2015; Page et al. 2015). A complete 2D image library of all specimens in a collection may appear utopian at the moment, given the millions of specimens and lack of financial support for collections (e.g., Paknia et al. 2015). However, outside of visiting each collection to study individual specimens, or requesting loans of unique and valuable specimens, the lack of suitable specimen images means that some data may simply remain unavailable to researchers who cannot afford to obtain them. We wish to emphasize that the approach we advocate herein in no way negates the need to maintain and make accessible physical specimens in a collection. Although in rare cases where the lack of specimens is unavoidable (e.g., Marshall and Evenhuis 2015; Pape et al. 2016), there is no replacement for examining a well-preserved specimen. Our method should be regarded as an ancillary technique, useful when it is necessary to obtain preliminary data or when it is not possible to examine the specimen in person, and for archival purposes

Courtship entanglements: a first report of mating behavior and sexual dichromatism in the Southeast Asian keel-bellied whipsnake, Dryophiops rubescens

We describe the first observations of courtship behavior and sexual dichromatism in the keel-bellied whipsnake, Dryophiops rubescens, from an encounter near Sandakan, eastern Sabah, Borneo, Malaysia. During this behavior, two males and a female were longitudinally intertwined, with the males jockeying for position along the body of the female. This “mating braid” lasted for well over 1 h, with the entwined snakes moving a distance of over 10 m together. While polygynous mating is known from other snake species, direct observations of mating behaviors in Southeast Asian colubrids are extremely rare. These observations also revealed the presence of sexual dichromatism in D. rubescens, with darker head coloration present in the males

First record of the Common Wolfsnake, Lycodon capucinus (H. Boie in F. Boie 1827), from New Guinea, with comments on its widespread distribution and confused taxonomy, and a new record for the Common Sun Skink, Eutropis multifasciata (Kuhl 1820)

We report the first records of the Island Wolfsnake, Lycodon capucinus (H. Boie in F. Boie 1827) at Timika, Mimika Regency, Papua Province, Indonesian New Guinea. These are of considerable interest since they provide further proof for the ability of this species to disperse via human transport, and the expansion into New Guinea represents a significant milestone, a distance of 675 km (by air) from the closest known population on Seram Island in the Moluccan Archipelago. Of even broader interest is the fact that one of the specimens contained a prey item, a Common Sun Skink, Eutropis multifasciata (Kuhl 1820), in itself a significant territorial expansion for that species. We preface our reports with a comprehensive review of the available information on the Island Wolfsnake’s taxonomy and distribution. We also discuss the expansion of E. multifasciata across Wallacea and into New Guinea

First Record of the Poorly Known Skink Sphenomorphus oligolepis (Boulenger, 1914) (Reptilia: Squamata: Scincidae) from Seram Island, Maluku Province, Indonesia

Based on four specimens discovered in the collection of The Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom, we present a new distribution record for the skink Sphenomorphus oligolepis for Seram Island, Maluku Province, Indonesia. This find constitutes the westernmost record for the species and extends its range by over 800 km. The species was heretofore only known from apparently isolated mainland New Guinean populations