WWW.IRCF.ORG/REPTILESANDAMPHIBIANSJOURNALTABLE OF CONTENTS IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS IRCF REPTILES • VOL15, &NO AMPHIBIANS 4 • DEC 2008 189 • 23(1):10–15 • APR 2016 IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS CONSERVATION AND NATURAL HISTORY TABLE OF CONTENTS FEATURE ARTICLES A Rapid. Chasing Bullsnakes Survey (Pituophis catenifer sayi )of in Wisconsin: the Critically Endangered On the Road to Understanding the Ecology and Conservation of the Midwest’s Giant Serpent ...................... Joshua M. Kapfer 190 . The Shared History of Treeboas (Corallus grenadensis) and Humans on Grenada: ZapataA Hypothetical Excursion Toad, ............................................................................................................................ Peltophryne florentinoiRobert W. Henderson 198 (Anura:RESEARCH Bufonidae), ARTICLES in Cuba: New Locality . The Texas Horned Lizard in Central and Western Texas ....................... Emily Henry, Jason Brewer, Krista Mougey, and Gad Perry 204 . The Knight Anole (Anolis equestris) in Florida .............................................and ConservationBrian J. Camposano, Kenneth L. Krysko, Kevin M. Approaches Enge, Ellen M. Donlan, and Michael Granatosky 212 CONSERVATION ALERTRoberto Alonso Bosch1 and Marlon E. Cobos Cobos2 . World’s Mammals in Crisis ............................................................................................................................................................. 220 1Museo de. More Historia Than NaturalMammals “Felipe ...................................................................................................................................................................... Poey,” Facultad de Biología, Universidad de La Habana, La Habana, Cuba ([email protected]) 223 2.DepartamentoThe “Dow Jones deIndex” Biología of Biodiversity Animal ........................................................................................................................................... y Humana, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de La Habana, La Habana, Cuba225 HUSBANDRY Photographs by Marlon E. Cobos Cobos. Captive Care of the Central Netted Dragon ....................................................................................................... Shannon Plummer 226 PROFILE . Kraig Adler: A Lifetime Promoting Herpetology ................................................................................................ Michael L. Treglia 234 Abstract.—We provide new distributional data for the most geographically restricted and threatened Cuban toad, the Zapata Toad (COMMENTARYPeltophryne florentinoi), and evaluate this information for its potential conservation implications. Prior . to this survey, the Thespecies Turtles Havewas Been known Watching from Me ........................................................................................................................ only one locality. Although our records extend Eric the Gangloff geographic 238 distribution about 20 km toBOOK the east REVIEW from the previous locality, unsuitable habitats limited the species’ true extent of occurrence. Intermittent salt-water. Threatened lagoons, Amphibians local of the lithographicWorld edited by S.N. features, Stuart, M. and Hoffmann, anthropogenic J.S. Chanson, N.A. disturbances Cox, impede the continuity of R. Berridge, P. Ramani, and B.E. Young .............................................................................................................. Robert Powell 243 the toad’s distribution along the coastal forests. New surveys and long-term monitoring protocols could offer better clues about the distribution,CONSERVATION biology, RESEARCH and REPORTS: conservation Summaries status of Published of this Conservation species. Research Reports ................................. 245 NATURAL HISTORY RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Reports on Natural History ................................. 247 NEWBRIEFS ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 248 Key words: Caribbean EDITORIAL toad; INFORMATION distribution; ..................................................................................................................................................... endangered species; suitable habitat 251 FOCUS ON CONSERVATION: A Project You Can Support ............................................................................................... 252 ith eight endemic species, the Cuban Archipelago produce a species-specific, long, pulsating, and low-frequency Whosts the most species in the genus Peltophryne, a advertisement call (Hernández et al. 2010) at night from suite of endemic West Indian toads (Henderson and Powell exposed positions on limestone rocks (Alonso et al. 2007). 2009). Six of the Cuban species (P.Front cataulaciceps Cover. Shannon, P. Plummer. empusa, CitingBack Cover. rising-sea-level Michael Kern models of Hernández et al. (2005), Totat et velleseque audant mo Totat et velleseque audant mo P. florentinoi, P. gundlachi, P. longinasusestibus inveliquo, and P.velique taladai rerchil ) are Rodríguez-Schettinoestibus inveliquo velique rerchil and Rivalta (2007) suggested that the listed as Vulnerable, Endangered, erspienimus,or Critically quos accullabo. Endangered Ilibus erspienimus,entire range quos accullabo. of P. florentinoiIlibus could be inundated in the not- aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum in the IUCN Red List (Hedges andfugiatis Díaz maionsequat 2004a, eumque b, c, d, e; too-distantfugiatis maionsequat future. eumque That threat, combined with a reduced Rivalta 2008), and only two (P. fustigermoditia erereand nonsedis P. peltocephala ma sectiatur ) extentmoditia erere of nonsedisoccurrence ma sectia (<100- km2), qualified the Zapata Toad ma derrovitae voluptam, as quos tur ma derrovitae voluptam, as are of Least Concern (Hedges andaccullabo. Díaz 2010; IUCN SSE for listing as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List Amphibian Specialist Group 2014). Several species have a (Rivalta 2008). Rivalta (2012), noting the lack of evidence wide distribution, others are regional endemics that inhabit of decreases in population size or habitat quality, but citing lowlands and mountains in Western, Central, or Eastern a reduced area of occupancy (<10 km2) and vulnerability to Cuba, whereas a few, such as the Zapata Toad, P. florentinoi human activity and future threats, catalogued the species as (Díaz and Cádiz 2008) have a very restricted range. Vulnerable (VU) in the Red Book of Cuban Vertebrates. The Zapata Toad evolved during the most recent spe- Herein we provide new distributional data for this geo- ciation event among Cuban toads (Alonso et al. 2012). It graphically restricted and threatened Cuban toad. We also inhabits semideciduous sclerophyll forests or microphyl- evaluate the suitability of the species’ habitat and discuss lous evergreen forest (MEF) sensu Capote et al. (1989) on a potential implications of this information for the toad’s con- limestone landscape near Playa Girón in the Zapata Swamp, servation. Matanzas Province, Cuba (Moreno and Rivalta 2007; Rivalta et al. 2014). Reproduction occurs exclusively in rainwater- Methods inundated small depressions characteristic of karstic substrates From 5–8 November 2015, we conducted a rapid survey with (Díaz and Cádiz 2008; Henderson and Powell 2009). Males the goal of finding active individuals of Peltophryne florentinoi Copyright © 2016. Roberto Alonso Bosch. All rights reserved. 10 ALONSO AND COBOS IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • 23(1):10–15 • APR 2016 at the type locality and nearby areas along roadsides east of h), using headlamps to search for P. florentinoi tadpoles, juve- Playa Girón (Fig. 1A-B). During the day we identified suit- niles, and adults. We walked transects of 200–500 m (1–3 able habitats, and returned to those sites at night (2000–2300 m on both sides of a trail) in four selected areas. We also Fig. 1. Study area and distributional records of the Zapata Toad (Peltophryne florentinoi). (A) Location of the Zapata Biosphere reserve in the Cuban Archipelago. (B) Type locality (blue circle) and new record of P. florentinoi (red circle). Some unsuitable areas due to intermittent salt-water lagoons (1, 2) and anthropogenic disturbances (3, 4) are indicated by orange asterisks. (C, inset) Type locality and other records of new sightings around Girón (black dots). (D, inset) New locality record for this species. 11 ALONSO AND COBOS IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • 23(1):10–15 • APR 2016 Fig. 2. Typical habitat of the Zapata Toad (Peltophryne florentinoi). A. Microphyllous evergreen forest (MEF). B. Karstic substrates with small reservoirs (“casimbas”) used during breeding. played back recordings of the advertisement call in Alonso et extensively disturbed sites) to gain a better understanding of al. (2007) for 3 min during every 100 m of each transect. We the state of the species’ habitat throughout its potential range. also measured air temperature (± 0.5 °C) and relative humid- ity (± 5%) using a thermohygrometer (HANNAInstruments). Results We defined suitable habitats (Moreno and Rivalta, 2007) During the first night, we found five active individuals (three by the presence of karstic substrates and MEF (Fig. 2). On adult males, one adult female, and one juvenile) in somewhat day 1, we explored areas near Playa Girón (Fig.1C, inset); on degraded microphyllous evergreen forest (MEF) on karstic