In this episode we gently debate subspecies, and then dive into several snake papers, from their anomalously extensive and rapid diversification, to a recent taxonomic change. Regrettably the audio on this episode was affected by a technical error, so it is far less than our usual quality (Ethan and Hiral are a little quiet, sorry!). Hopefully it doesn’t affect the listening experience too badly!

Remember that you can watch the full episode with video at youtube.com/@squamatespod!

Episode notes sometimes get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full notes and references, go to squamatespod.com

Check out Ethan’s new book, The Unfamiliars!

Episode Citations

Vences, M., Köhler, J., Scherz, M.D., Hutter, C.R., Rabe Maheritafika, H.M., Rafanoharana, J.M., Raherinjatovo, H., Rakotoarison, A., Andreone, F., Raselimanana, A.P. & Glaw, F. (2024) Four new species of forest-dwelling mantellid frogs from Madagascar allied to Gephyromantis moseri (Amphibia, Anura). Spixiana, 46(2):297–319.

Scherz, M.D., Rudolph, J., Rakotondratsima, M., Ratsoavina, F.M., Crottini, A., Andreone, F., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2024) Molecular systematics of the subgenus Gephyromantis (Phylacomantis) with description of a new subspecies. Zootaxa, 5446(2):205–220. DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.5446.2.3

de Queiroz, K. (2020) An updated concept of subspecies resolves a dispute about the taxonomy of incompletely separated lineages. Herpetological Review, 51(3):459–461. [Mark incorrectly gave publication date as being 2021]

de Queiroz, K. (2007) Species concepts and species delimitation. Systematic Biology, 56(6):879–886. DOI: 10.1080/10635150701701083

Title, P.O., Singhal, S., Grundler, M.C., Costa, G.C., Pyron, R.A., Colston, T.J., Grundler, M.R., Prates, I., Stepanova, N., Jones, M.E.H., Cavalcanti, L.B.Q., Colli, G.R., Di-Poï, N., Donnellan, S.C., Moritz, C., Mesquita, D.O., Pianka, E.R., Smith, S.A., Vitt, L.J. & Rabosky, D.L. (2024) The macroevolutionary singularity of snakes. Science, 383(6685):918–923. DOI: 10.1126/science.adh2449

Strong, C., Scherz, M.D. & Caldwell, M.W. (2021) Deconstructing the Gestalt: New concepts and tests of homology, as exemplified by a re-conceptualization of “microstomy” in squamates. Anatomical Record, 304:2303–2351. DOI: 10.1002/ar.24630

Losos, J. B. (2017) Improbable Destinies: Fate, Chance, and the Future of Evolution. Riverhead Books, New York City NY, USA. 384 pp.

Datta, D. & Bajpai, S. (2024) Largest known madtsoiid snake from warm Eocene period of India suggests intercontinental Gondwana dispersal. Scientific Reports, 14(1):8054. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-58377-0

Zaher, H., Trusz, C., Koch, C., Entiauspe-Neto, O.M., Battilana, J. & Grazziotin, F.G. (2024) Molecular phylogeny and biogeography of the dwarf boas of the family Tropidophiidae (Serpentes: Alethinophidia). Systematics and Biodiversity, 22(1):2319289. DOI: 10.1080/14772000.2024.2319289

Vences, M., Guayasamin, J.M., Miralles, A. & de la Riva, I. (2013) To name or not to name: Criteria to promote economy of change in Linnaean classification schemes. Zootaxa, 3636(2):201–244. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3636.2.1

Scherz, M.D., Vences, M., Rakotoarison, A., Andreone, F., Köhler, J., Glaw, F. & Crottini, A. (2017) Lumping or splitting in the Cophylinae (Anura: Microhylidae) and the need for a parsimony of taxonomic changes: a response to Peloso et al. (2017). Salamandra, 53(3):479–483.

Shout-outs:

Common Descent Podcast

TetZoo Podcats

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • youtube

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble • bluesky

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble • bluesky

Ethan Kocak: personal website • comic • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon • bluesky

Hiral Naik: website • twitter • instagram • bluesky

The post SquaMates Ep. 26: Let’s talk about snakes, baby first appeared on SquaMates.

In this episode we talk about a really cool predation observation, the importance of publishing behavioural or observational notes, and some follow-up on the anaconda mess from Episode 24.

Remember that you can watch the full episode with video at youtube.com/@squamatespod!

Episode notes sometimes get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full notes and references, go to squamatespod.com

Episode Citations

Bringsøe, H. & Dreyer, N.P. (2024) Kleptoparasitism in Micrurus mipartitus (Squamata, Elapidae) competing for the same Caecilia sp. (Gymnophiona, Caeciliidae) in western Colombia. Herpetozoa, 37:77–84. DOI: 10.3897/herpetozoa.37.e112716

Mancuso, M., Zaman, S., Maddock, S.T., Kamei, R.G., Salazar-Valenzuela, D., Wilkinson, M., Roelants, K. & Fry, B.G. (2023) Resistance Is Not Futile: Widespread Convergent Evolution of Resistance to Alpha-Neurotoxic Snake Venoms in Caecilians (Amphibia: Gymnophiona). International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 24(14) DOI: 10.3390/ijms241411353

Mailho-Fontana, Pedro L., Antoniazzi, M.M., Alexandre, C., Carvalho Pimenta, D., Mozer Sciani, J., Brodie, Edmund D., Jr. & Jared, C. (2020) Morphological Evidence for an Oral Venom System in Caecilian Amphibians. iScience, 23:101234. DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2020.101234

Vásquez-Restrepo, J.D., Alfonso-Rojas, A. & Palacios-Aguilar, R. (2024) On the validity of the recently described northern green anaconda Eunectes akayima (Squamata, Serpentes). Bionomia, 37(1):1–7. DOI: 10.11646/BIONOMINA.37.1.1

Dubois, A., Denzer, W., Entiauspe-Neto, O.M., Frétey, T., Ohler, A., Bauer, A.M. & Pyron, R.A. (2024) Nomenclatural problems raised by the recent description of a new anaconda species (Squamata, Serpentes, Boidae), with a nomenclatural review of the genus Eunectes. Bionomia, 37(1):8–58. DOI: 10.11646/BIONOMINA.37.1.2

Shout-outs:

Jodi Rowley: @jodirowley

Darren Naish/TetZoo: @tetzoo on twitter • @tetzoo on bluesky

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • youtube

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble • bluesky

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble • bluesky

Ethan Kocak: personal website • comic • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon • bluesky

Hiral Naik: website • twitter • instagram • bluesky

The post SquaMates Ep. 25: Micrurus brings all the boys to the yard first appeared on SquaMates.

In this episode we talk about the breaking news that caecilians produce milk‽, and get into some recent taxonomic works on anacondas and eyelash palm-pitvipers. Content warning: this episode contains several Hot Takes.

Episode notes sometimes get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full (extensive) notes (and references), go to http://www.squamatespod.com

Episode Citations

Wake, M.H. (2024) Amphibian hatchlings find mother’s milk. Science, 383(6687):1060–1061. DOI: 10.1126/science.ado2094

Mailho-Fontana, P.L., Antoniazzi, M.M., Coelho, G.R., Pimenta, D.C., Fernandes, L.P., Kupfer, A., Brodie, E.D. & Jared, C. (2024) Milk provisioning in oviparous caecilian amphibians. Science, 383(6687):1092–1095. DOI: 10.1126/science.adi5379

Arteaga, A., Pyron, R.A., Batista, A., Vieira, J., Meneses Pelayo, E., Smith, E.N., Barrio Amorós, C.L., Koch, C., Agne, S., Valencia, J.H., Bustamante, L. & Harris, K.J. (2024) Systematic revision of the Eyelash Palm-Pitviper Bothriechis schlegelii (Serpentes, Viperidae), with the description of five new species and revalidation of three. Evolutionary Systematics, 8:15–64.

Rivas, J.A., De La Quintana, P., Mancuso, M., Pacheco, L.F., Rivas, G.A., Mariotto, S., Salazar-Valenzuela, D., Baihua, M.T., Baihua, P., Burghardt, G.M., Vonk, F.J., Hernandez, E., García-Pérez, J.E., Fry, B.G. & Corey-Rivas, S. (2024) Disentangling the Anacondas: Revealing a New Green Species and Rethinking Yellows. Diversity, 16(2) DOI: 10.3390/d16020127

Shout-outs:

Lingthusiasm Podcast

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • youtube

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble • bluesky

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble • bluesky

Ethan Kocak: personal website • comic • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon • bluesky

Hiral Naik: website • twitter • instagram • bluesky

The post SquaMates Ep. 24: Green Anaconda don’t want none first appeared on SquaMates.

The Mates are back after two and a half years of hiatus! They talk about all that’s happened in the intervening time, and where we are going from here!

Episode notes can get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full (extensive) notes (and references and beautiful pictures), go to http://www.squamatespod.com

Get yourself a copy of Ethan’s book, Moistly Harmless!

Hiral is featured in this phenomenal book on Women in Herpetology! Go check out the Global Women in Herpetology project, over at https://www.womeninherpetology.com/.

Mark wants you to check out itaxotools.org for your taxonomy needs!

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • youtube

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble • bluesky

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble • bluesky

Ethan Kocak: personal website • comic • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon • bluesky

Hiral Naik: website • twitter • instagram • bluesky

The post SquaMates Ep. 22: Neil Caiman and Crew first appeared on SquaMates.

The Mates get into the evolution of Ambystoma, whether or not to use subspecies, and the fantastically diverse and oft maligned gymnophthalmids (gymmies!).

Episode notes can get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full (extensive) notes (and references and beautiful pictures), go to http://www.squamatespod.com

Episode Citations

Boccia, C.K., Swierk, L., Ayala-Varela, F.P., Boccia, J., Borges, I.L., Estupiñán, C.A., Martin, A.M., Martínez-Grimaldo, R.E., Ovalle, S., Senthivasan, S., Toyama, K.S., del Rosario Castañeda, M., García, A., Glor, R.E. & Mahler, D.L. Repeated evolution of underwater rebreathing in diving Anolis lizards. Current Biology: DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.04.040

de Queiroz, K. (2007) Species concepts and species delimitation. Systematic Biology, 56(6):879–886. DOI: 10.1080/10635150701701083

de Queiroz, K. (2020) An updated concept of subspecies resolves a dispute about the taxonomy of incompletely separated lineages. Herpetological Review, 51(3):459–461.

Everson, K.M., Gray, L.N., Jones, A.G., Lawrence, N.M., Foley, M.E., Sovacool, K.L., Kratovil, J.D., Hotaling, S., Hime, P.M., Storfer, A., Parra-Olea, G., Percino-Daniel, R., Aguilar-Miguel, X., O’Neill, E.M., Zambrano, L., Shaffer, H.B. & Weisrock, D.W. (2021) Geography is more important than life history in the recent diversification of the tiger salamander complex. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, 118(17):e2014719118. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2014719118

Gymnophthalmids

Assorted gymnophthalmids illustrated by our very own Gabriel Ugueto

Assorted gymnophthalmine gymnophthalmids illustrated by our very own Gabriel Ugueto

Bachia species illustrated by Gabriel: above, B. trinitatis; below, B. lineata

Comparison of Gymnophthalmus (above) and Tretioscincus (below). Note the brille of Gymnophthalmus versus the movable eyelid with a semi-transparent window ind Tretioscincus

Reduction of limbs and digits in various Gymnophthalmids: a Bachia, b Gymnophthalmus (4 fingers), c Tretioscincus (5 fingers but 1st one very rudimentary), d Riolama (1st reduced and clawless) e Anadia (five digits presented and clawed)

Reduction of limbs and digits in various Bachia species

One of Gabriel’s favourite gymmies: Anadia marmorata

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble

Ethan Kocak: personal website • comic • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon

The post SquaMates Ep. 21: Bachia to the Future first appeared on SquaMates.

The Mates are joined this month by Hiral Naik, a snake ecologist from South Africa! We talk turtles, skinks, crocodiles, neocolonialism in science, and Lamprophiidae!

Episode notes can get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full (extensive) notes (and references and beautiful pictures), go to http://www.squamatespod.com

Episode Citations

Thomson, R.C., Spinks, P.Q. & Shaffer, H.B. (2021) A global phylogeny of turtles reveals a burst of climate-associated diversification on continental margins. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(7):e2012215118. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2012215118

Chapple, D.G., Roll, U., Böhm, M., Aguilar, R., Amey, A.P., Austin, C.C., Baling, M., Barley, A.J., Bates, M.F., Bauer, A.M., Blackburn, D.G., Bowles, P., Brown, R.M., Chandramouli, S.R., Chirio, L., Cogger, H., Colli, G.R., Conradie, W., Couper, P.J., Cowan, M.A., Craig, M.D., Das, I., Datta-Roy, A., Dickman, C.R., Ellis, R.J., Fenner, A.L., Ford, S., Ganesh, S.R., Gardner, M.G., Geissler, P., Gillespie, G.R., Glaw, F., Greenlees, M.J., Griffith, O.W., Grismer, L.L., Haines, M.L., Harris, D.J., Hedges, S.B., Hitchmough, R.A., Hoskin, C.J., Hutchinson, M.N., Ineich, I., Janssen, J., Johnston, G.R., Karin, B.R., Keogh, J.S., Kraus, F., LeBreton, M., Lymberakis, P., Masroor, R., McDonald, P.J., Mecke, S., Melville, J., Melzer, S., Michael, D.R., Miralles, A., Mitchell, N.J., Nelson, N.J., Nguyen, T.Q., de Campos Nogueira, C., Ota, H., Pafilis, P., Pauwels, O.S.G., Perera, A., Pincheira-Donoso, D., Reed, R.N., Ribeiro-Júnior, M.A., Riley, J.L., Rocha, S., Rutherford, P.L., Sadlier, R.A., Shacham, B., Shea, G.M., Shine, R., Slavenko, A., Stow, A., Sumner, J., Tallowin, O.J.S., Teale, R., Torres-Carvajal, O., Trape, J.-F., Uetz, P., Ukuwela, K.D.B., Valentine, L., Van Dyke, J.U., van Winkel, D., Vasconcelos, R., Vences, M., Wagner, P., Wapstra, E., While, G.M., Whiting, M.J., Whittington, C.M., Wilson, S., Ziegler, T., Tingley, R. & Meiri, S. (2021) Conservation status of the world’s skinks (Scincidae): Taxonomic and geographic patterns in extinction risk. Biological Conservation, 257:109101. DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109101

Hekkala, E., Gatesy, J., Narechania, A., Meredith, R., Russello, M., Aardema, M.L., Jensen, E., Montanari, S., Brochu, C., Norell, M. & Amato, G. (2021) Paleogenomics illuminates the evolutionary history of the extinct Holocene “horned” crocodile of Madagascar, Voay robustus. Communications Biology, 4(1):505. DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-02017-0

Naik, H., Kgaditse, M. M. & Alexander, G. J. (2021) Ancestral Reconstruction of Diet and Fang Condition in the Lamprophiidae: Implications for the Evolution of Venom Systems in Snakes. Journal of Herpetology, 55(1):1–10. DOI: 10.1670/19-071 [x]

Shout-outs

Liam Revell’s PhyTools blog

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble

Ethan Kocak: personal website • comic • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon

Hiral Naik: website • twitter • instagram • save the snakes

The post SquaMates Ep. 20: Lerista Explains It All first appeared on SquaMates.

After a corona-induced hiatus, the Mates are back with a looser format and some deep dives on tiny chameleons, glowing geckos, and the much debated Lacey act!

Episode notes sometimes get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full (extensive) notes (and references and beautiful pictures), go to http://www.squamatespod.com

Works in Froggress

National Geographic Article featuring Gabriel’s illustrations

Get ready for the superstars of the story of life

The first three books in @Ben_garrod‘s #Extinct series are out on 13th May! Fantastically illustrated by @SerpenIllus.

Pre-order here & support independent bookshops: https://t.co/SSIy6oxgwM pic.twitter.com/jN1hJWZWb7

— Zephyr Books (@_ZephyrBooks) April 10, 2021

Mark and Ella at their wedding!

Episode Citations

Scherz, M.D., Schmidt, L., Crottini, A., Miralles, A., Rakotoarison, A., Raselimanana, A.P., Köhler, J., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2021) Into the Chamber of Horrors: A proposal for the resolution of nomenclatural chaos in the Scaphiophryne calcarata complex (Anura: Microhylidae), with a new species-level phylogenetic hypothesis for Scaphiophryninae. Zootaxa, 4938(1):392–420. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4938.4.2

Glaw, F., Köhler, J., Hawlitschek, O., Ratsoavina, F.M., Rakotoarison, A., Scherz, M.D. & Vences, M. (2021) Extreme miniaturization of a new amniote vertebrate and insights into the evolution of genital size in chameleons. Scientific Reports, 11:2522. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-80955-1

Prötzel, D., Heß, M., Schwager, M., Glaw, F. & Scherz, M.D. (2021) Neon-green fluorescence in the desert gecko Pachydactylus rangei caused by iridophores. Scientific Reports, 11:297. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-79706-z

Jowers, M.J., Othman, S.N., Borzée, A., Rivas, G.A., Sánchez-Ramírez, S., Auguste, J., Downie, J.R., Read, M. & Murphy, J.C. (2021) Unraveling unique island colonization events in Elachistocleis frogs: phylogeography, cryptic divergence, and taxonomical implications. Organisms Diversity & Evolution 21:189–206. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13127-021-00487-y

Dal Vechio, F., Prates, I., Grazziotin, F.G., Graboski, R. & Rodrigues, M.T. (2021) Molecular and phenotypic data reveal a new Amazonian species of pit vipers (Serpentes: Viperidae: Bothrops). Journal of Natural History 54(37–38):2415–2437. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00222933.2020.1845835

Marshall, B.M., Strine, C. & Hughes, A.C. (2020) Thousands of reptile species threatened by under-regulated global trade. Nature Communications 11:4738. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-18523-4 

Shout-outs

The Chameleon Academy Podcast

Darren Naish: @tetzoo • The Tetzoo Blog

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble

Ethan Kocak: personal website • comic • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon

The post SquaMates Ep. 19: Nobody Expects the Lacey Imposition first appeared on SquaMates.

Here’s episode 18, a Works in Froggress episode, featuring the Mates, Dr Mark D. Scherz, Gabriel Ugueto, and Ethan Kocak, talking about what’s going on in their new lives stuck inside—Ethan’s setting off on a freelancing lifestyle, Gabriel has been tweaking the same illustration forever, and Mark is working on FIIIIIIIIIISH! The Mates then dive into a discussion about Uroplatus geckos!

Episode notes sometimes get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full (extensive) notes (and references and beautiful pictures), go to http://www.squamatespod.com

A note: this episode was recorded on the 24th of April 2020, a time when most of humanity seemed united in their fight against a common enemy, the coronavirus COVID-19. In the meantime, another enemy of humanity has been brought into the limelight that, by its very nature, divides. That enemy is racism. The experiences of Christian Cooper highlight how people of colour may be treated when engaging in field sciences like ornithology or herpetology, and similar stories are being heard from people of colour across social media (e.g. see the #BlackInNature tag on twitter). We must strive to make field-based sciences like herpetology inclusive of people of colour, and to fight racism wherever we encounter it in order to disassemble the systematic discrimination that plagues our fields and our societies. We at the SquaMates podcast stand firmly behind the BlackLivesMatter movement.

Check out Ethan’s new professional website, www.ethankocak.com!

Episode Citations

Glaw, F., Scherz, M.D., Rakotoarison, A., Crottini, A., Raselimanana, A.P., Andreone, F., Köhler, J. & Vences, M. (2020) Genetic variability and partial integrative revision of Platypelis frogs (Microhylidae) with red flash marks from eastern Madagascar. Vertebrate Zoology, 70(2):141–156. DOI: 10.26049/VZ70-2-2020-04 [pdf]

Miralles, A., Bruy, T., Wolcott, K., Scherz, M.D., Begerow, D., Beszteri, B., Bonkowski, M., Felden, J., Gemeinholzer, B., Glaw, F., Glöckner, F.O., Hawlitschek, O., Kostadinov, I., Nattkemper, T.W., Printzen, C., Renz, J., Rybalka, N., Stadler, M., Weibulat, T., Wilke, T., Renner, S.S. & Vences, M. (2020) Repositories for taxonomic data: where we are and what is missing. Systematic Biology, syaa026. DOI: 10.1093/sysbio/syaa026 (online ahead of print)

Mantidactylus radaka, one of the recently described frogs.

Rancilhac, L., Bruy, T., Scherz, M.D., Pereira, E.A., Preick, M., Straube, N., Lyra, M., Ohler, A., Streicher, J.W., Andreone, F., Crottini, A., Hutter, C.R., Randrianantoandro, J.C., Rakotoarison, A., Glaw, F., Hofreiter, M. & Vences, M. (in press) Target-enriched DNA sequencing from historical type material enables a partial revision of the Madagascar giant stream frogs (genus Mantidactylus). Journal of Natural History. DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2020.1748243 (online ahead of print) [Request PDF]

Rakotoarison, A., Scherz, M.D., Köhler, J., Ratsoavina, F.M., Hawlitschek, O., Megson, S., Vences, M. & Glaw, F. (2020) Frogs of the genus Platypelis from the Sorata massif in northern Madagascar: description of a new species and reports of range extensions. Zoosystematics and Evolution, 96(1):263–274. DOI: 10.3897/zse.96.47088 [pdf]

Curious Kids: can chameleons change colour when they sleep?

Main discussion: Uroplatus

Here are some of Mark’s photos of some Uroplatus species. Also check out www.uroplatus.info for information about Uroplatus geckos!

Gamble, T., Greenbaum, E., Jackman, T.R. & Bauer, A.M. (2015) Into the light: diurnality has evolved multiple times in geckos. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 115(4):896–910. DOI: 10.1111/bij.12536

Ratsoavina, F.M., Raminosoa, N.R., Louis Jr., E.E., Raselimanana, A.P., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2013) An overview of Madagascar’s leaf tailed geckos (genus Uroplatus): species boundaries, candidate species and review of geographical distribution based on molecular data. Salamandra, 49(3):115–148. Available here, and strongly recommended reading for those interested in Uroplatus!

Ratsoavina, F.M., Scherz, M.D., Tolley, K.A., Raselimanana, A.P., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2019) A new species of Uroplatus (Gekkonidae) from Ankarana National Park, Madagascar, of remarkably high genetic divergence. Zootaxa, 4683(1):84–96. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4683.1.4

Ratsoavina, F.M., Raselimanana, A.P., Scherz, M.D., Rakotoarison, A., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2019) Finaritra! A new leaf-tailed gecko (Uroplatus) species from Marojejy National Park in north-eastern Madagascar. Zootaxa, 4545(4):563–577. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4545.4.7

Ratsoavina, F.M., Gehring, P.-S., Scherz, M.D., Vieites, D.R., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2017) Two new species of leaf-tailed geckos (Uroplatus) from the Tsaratanana mountain massif in northern Madagascar. Zootaxa, 4347(3):446–464. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4347.3.2

Russell, A.P., Hood, H.A. & Bauer, A.M. (2014) Laryngotracheal and cervical muscular anatomy in the genus Uroplatus (Gekkota: Gekkonidae) in relation to distress call emission. African Journal of Herpetology, 63(2):127–151. DOI: 10.1080/21564574.2014.940065

Crottini, A., Madsen, O., Poux, C., Strauß, A., Vieites, D.R. & Vences, M. (2012) Vertebrate time–tree elucidates the biogeographic pattern of a major biotic change around the K–T boundary in Madagascar. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, 109(14):5358–5363. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1112487109

Shout-outs

The Chameleon Academy Podcast

Dave Hone: @Dave_Hone

Darren Naish: @tetzoo • The Tetzoo Blog

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble

Ethan Kocak: hire Ethan • website • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon

The post SquaMates Ep. 18: Amici manere domi! first appeared on SquaMates.

We’re back with Episode 17! In this Breaking Newts episode, the Mates, Dr Mark D. Scherz, Gabriel Ugueto, and Ethan Kocak, talk about the coolest new research in herpetology and Gabriel’s extremely squeaky chair! Featuring a few controversial new bits of science, some amazing turtles, diverse salamanders, and glowing, bony amphibians!

Episode notes sometimes get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full (extensive) notes (and references), go to http://www.squamatespod.com

A note: this episode was recorded on the 24th of April 2020, a time when most of humanity seemed united in their fight against a common enemy, the coronavirus COVID-19. In the meantime, another enemy of humanity has been brought into the limelight that, by its very nature, divides. That enemy is racism. The experiences of Christian Cooper highlight how people of colour may be treated when engaging in field sciences like ornithology or herpetology, and similar stories are being heard from people of colour across social media (e.g. see the #BlackInNature tag on twitter). We must strive to make field-based sciences like herpetology inclusive of people of colour, and to fight racism wherever we encounter it in order to disassemble the systematic discrimination that plagues our fields and our societies. We at the SquaMates podcast stand firmly behind the BlackLivesMatter movement.

Episode Citations

Anole Online Learning Resources

Xing, L., O’Connor, J.K., Schmitz, L., Chiappe, L.M., McKellar, R.C., Yi, Q. & Li, G. (2020) Hummingbird-sized dinosaur from the Cretaceous period of Myanmar. Nature, 579:245–249. 10.1038/s41586-020-2068-4 — Darren Naish has done a great job of first writing about this in its original interpretation, and then updating his article to explain the ethical and phylogenetic problems associated with the paper. On the 29th of May, 2020, an editor’s note was added to the paper, that reads ‘Readers are alerted that doubts have been expressed about the phylogenetic placement of the fossil described in this paper. We are investigating and appropriate editorial action will be taken once this matter is resolved.’

Breuil M, Schikorski D, Vuillaume B, Krauss U, Morton MN, Corry E, Bech N, Jelić M, Grandjean F (2020) Painted black: Iguana melanoderma (Reptilia, Squamata, Iguanidae) a new melanistic endemic species from Saba and Montserrat islands (Lesser Antilles). ZooKeys, 926:95-131. 10.3897/zookeys.926.48679

Vargas-Ramírez, M., Caballero, S., Morales-Betancourt, M.A., Lasso, C.A., Amaya, L., Gregorio Martínez, J., das Neves Silva Viana, M., Vogt, R.C., Pires Farias, I., Hrbek, T., Campbell, P.D. & Fritz, U. (2020) Genomic analyses reveal two species of the matamata (Testudines: Chelidae: Chelus spp.) and clarify their phylogeography. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 106823. 10.1016/j.ympev.2020.106823

Sánchez-Villagra, M.R., Pritchard, P.C.H., Paolillo, A. & Linares, O.J. (1995) Geographic variation in the matamata turtle, Chelus fimbriatus, with observations on its shell morphology and morphometry. Chelonian Conservation and Biology, 1(4):293–300.

Here is the Tetrapod Zoology blog by Darren Naish about Matamata mentioned in the episode, which was the basis of this comic by Ethan!

Lamb, J.Y. & Davis, M.P. (2020) Salamanders and other amphibians are aglow with biofluorescence. Scientific Reports, 10:2821. 10.1038/s41598-020-59528-9

Jaramillo, A.F., De La Riva, I., Guayasamin, J.M., Chaparro, J.C., Gagliardi-Urrutia, G., Gutiérrez, R.C., Brcko, I., Vilà, C. & Castroviejo-Fisher, S. (2020) Vastly underestimated species richness of Amazonian salamanders (Plethodontidae: Bolitoglossa) and implications about plethodontid diversification. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 149:106841. 10.1016/j.ympev.2020.106841

Vieites, D.R., Wollenberg, K.C., Andreone, F., Köhler, J., Glaw, F. & Vences, M. (2009) Vast underestimation of Madagascar’s biodiversity evidenced by an integrative amphibian inventory. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, 106(20):8267–8272. 10.1073/pnas.0810821106

Rovito, S.M., Parra-Olea, G., Hanken, J., Bonett, R.M. & Wake, D.B. (2013) Adaptive radiation in miniature: the minute salamanders of the Mexican highlands (Amphibia: Plethodontidae: Thorius). Biological Journal of the Linnaean Society, 109:622–643.

Yoshida, T., Ujiie, R., Savitzky, A.H., Jono, T., Inoue, T., Yoshinaga, N., Aburaya, S., Aoki, W., Takeuchi, H., Ding, L., Chen, Q., Cao, C., Tsai, T.-S., Silva, A.d., Mahaulpatha, D., Nguyen, T.T., Tang, Y., Mori, N. & Mori, A. (2020) Dramatic dietary shift maintains sequestered toxins in chemically defended snakes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, 117:5964. 10.1073/pnas.1919065117

Paluh, D.J., Stanley, E.L. & Blackburn, D.C. (2020) Evolution of hyperossification expands skull diversity in frogs. Proceedings of the national Academy of Sciences of the USA, 117:8554. 10.1073/pnas.2000872117

Jared, C., Mailho-Fontana, Pedro L., Antoniazzi, Marta M., Mendes, Vanessa A., Barbaro, Katia C., Rodrigues, Miguel T. & Brodie, Edmund D., Jr. (2015) Venomous Frogs Use Heads as Weapons. Current Biology, 25(16):2166–2170. 10.1016/j.cub.2015.06.061

Interestingly, there is probably a third species we did not know about: Cajade, R., Hermida, G., Piñeiro, J.M., Regueira, E., Alcalde, L., Fusco, L.S. & Marangoni, F. (2017) Multiple anti-predator mechanisms in the red-spotted Argentina Frog (Amphibia: Hylidae). Journal of Zoology, 302(2):94–107. 10.1111/jzo.12439 — thanks to Dan Paluh (@danpaluh) for bringing that to our attention on twitter!

Esquerré, D., Donnellan, S., Brennan, I.G., Lemmon, A.R., Lemmon, E.M., Zaher, H., Grazziotin, F.G. & Keogh, J.S. (in press) Phylogenomics, biogeography and morphometrics reveal rapid phenotypic evolution in pythons after crossing Wallace’s line. Systematic Biology. 10.1093/sysbio/syaa024

Sandoval, M.T., Ruiz García, J.A. & Álvarez, B.B. (2020) Intrauterine and post-ovipositional embryonic development of Amerotyphlops brongersmianus (Vanzolini, 1976) (Serpentes: Typhlopidae) from northeastern Argentina. Journal of Morphology, 281:523–535. 10.1002/jmor.21119

Simison, W.B., Parham, J.F., Papenfuss, T.J., Lam, A.W. & Henderson, J.B. (in press) An annotated chromosome-level reference genome of the red-eared slider turtle (Trachemys scripta elegans). Genome Biology and Evolution. 10.1093/gbe/evaa063

Grundler, M.C. (2020) SquamataBase: a natural history database and R package for comparative biology of snake feeding habits. Biodiversity Data Journal, 8:e49943. 10.3897/BDJ.8.e49943

Shout-outs

Yara Haridy: @yara_haridy

Darren Naish: @tetzoo • The Tetzoo Blog

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble

Ethan Kocak: website • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon

The post SquaMates Ep. 17: Malayopython and the Glowing Tail first appeared on SquaMates.

Episode 16 is here, in this episode we—Dr Mark D. Scherz, Gabriel Ugueto, and Ethan Kocak—feature an interview with Professor Emily Taylor of Cal Poly, and two of her students, Isabelle Barnes and Katie Rock, talking about their amazing dataset about sex biases in publishing in herpetology, recorded at the 9th World Congress of Herpetology in Dunedin, New Zealand.

Episode notes sometimes get clipped on your device or by your podcast provider; for full (extensive) notes (and references), go to http://www.squamatespod.com

For more information about the dataset we talk about, check out Professor Taylor’s tweet about it here, but most importantly, read the detailed blog post about it here. We were thrilled to be able to interview this team, and will update this post when the data are published.

More shoutouts:

Rachunliu G. Kamei: @chungkamei

Helen Bond Plylar: @SssnakeySci

Follow the show and the hosts on social media!

SquaMates: website • twitter • instagram • facebook

Mark D. Scherz: website • twitter • instagram • tumblr • facebook • researchgate • redbubble

Gabriel Ugueto: website • twitter • instagram • facebook • redbubble

Ethan Kocak: website • twitter • tumblr • facebook • patreon

The post SquaMates Ep. 16: Sex-bias in herpetology first appeared on SquaMates.