©Österreichische Gesellschaft für Herpetologie e.V., Wien, Austria, download unter www.biologiezentrum.at 186 SHORT NOTE HERPETOZOA 18 (3/4) Wien, 30. Dezember 2005 SHORT NOTE western Honduras.- Senckenbergiana biologica, ratios than females (e.g., head length/ snout- Frankfurt am Main; 81(1/2): 269-276. MARTINS, M. & vent length, tail length/snout-vent length) as OLIVEIRA, E. (1999): Natural history of snakes in forests of the Manaus Region, Central Amazonia, Brazil.- reported by VANNI (1980), ZUFFI (1999) and Herpetological Natural History, Phoenix; 6 (2):78-150. ANTONELLI (1999). Total length (TL; i.e. PEREZ-SANTOS, C. & MORENO, A. (1990): Anotaciones from the tip of the snout to the end of the tail) biométricas y alimenticias de la serpiente neotropical of the Spectacled Salamander is usually 8-10 Atractus badius (BOIE, 1827) (Serpentes, Colubridae) de la Colección del Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales cm (VANNI 1980; ZUFFI 1999; ANGELINI et al. de Madrid.- Revista Espanola de Herpetologia, Madrid; 2001). Until 2001 the maximum TL record- 4: 9-15. PETERS, J. A. (1960): The snakes of the sub- ed in males and females were 9.6 cm family Dipsadinae.- Miscellaneous Publications, (ANTONELLI 1999) and 11.6 cm, respectively Museum of Zoology, Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor; (114): 1-224. SAVAGE, J. (1960): A revision of the (ZAGAGLIONI 1978; VANNI 1980). Later, Ecuadorian snakes of the colubrid genus Atractus.- ANGELINI et al. (2001) reported a maximum Miscellaneous Publications, Museum of Zoology, Univ TL of 12.3 cm recorded in two females from of Michigan, Ann Arbor; (112): 1-86. different populations of S. perspicillata in KEY WORDS: Reptilia, Squamata, Serpentes, the Lepini Mountains (Central Italy). Colubridae, Atractus corrioni, diet, molluscivory, Ecuador In the beginning of April 2005 we SUBMITTED: February 02, 2005 counted 254 egg-laying females in one sin- AUTHOR: Diego F. CISNEROS-HEREDIA, Col- gle breeding site. The spawning site was a lege of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Uni- versidad San Francisco de Quito, Ave. Interoceanica pooling spring feeding livestock watering y calle Diego de Robles, Campus Cumbayâ, Edif. places at 1050 m a.s.l. in the southern Lepini Maxwell. Casula postai 17-12-841 Quito, Ecuador Mountains (Latium, Central Italy). One < diegofrancisco_cisneros@yahoo. com >. hundred and fifty S. perspicillata were caught and measured for TL and snout-vent Maximum size of the Spectacled length (SVL) with dial calipers (TL: mean ± Salamander, Salamandrina SE = 10.57 ± 0.02 cm; range 8.85-13.10). (SAVI, Among them were two females which sur- perspicillata 1821) passed the maximum length reported by pre- Salamandrina FITZINGER, 1826 is a vious studies (specimen A: TL = 12.8 cm, genus endemic to Italy, discontinuously dis- SVL = 4.6 cm, TL/SVL ratio = 2.78; speci- tributed from the northern Apennines (west- men B: TL = 13.1 cm, SVL = 4.7 cm, TL/ ernmost portion of Genoa province) to the tip SVL ratio = 2.79). The size of the remaining of Calabria. The great majority of records is specimens captured was equal to the previ- from the Tyrrhenian side, less records are ous maximum record (i.e. one specimen reached 12.3 cm) or smaller than 12.1 cm. from the Adriatic one (ZUFFI 1999). Until now Salamandrina was considered a mono- All animals were released at the place typic genus with the sole species S. terdigita- of capture just after the measuring. ta (LACÉPÈDE, 1788). However, recent ge- Student's t test indicated that female B was netic studies indicate that the genus Sala- significantly larger than the others of the mandrina requires a split in two species sample (one tailed t test; df = 148; p < named S. terdigitata (LACÉPÈDE, 1788) and 0.001). This specimen therefore can be con- S. perspicillata (SAVI, 1821) as suggest by sidered an "outlier" and not representative MATTOCCIA et al. (2005) and NASCETTI et al. of its population. (in press). Salamandrina terdigitata lives in ANGELINI et al. (2001) reported that the southern portion of peninsular Italy while the averages of TL and SVL of the Lepini S. perspicillata occurs in the Central- Mountain populations were larger than in Northern Italian Peninsula. The approximate salamanders from various other central borderline of these two specific entities pass- northern Italian regions while biometrical es through the Caserta province in the data from southern Italy are not available. Campania region (ROMANO & MATTOCCIA The averages of SVL and TL that we found unpublished). Distinguishing sexes in living were within the range reports for six Lepini animals is very difficult because this genus populations, i.e. 3.54 - 4.21 cm and 9.01 - does not show clear dimorphism in this 10.61 cm, respectively (ANGELINI et al. 2001). respect. However, males tend to be of small- These authors did not report the standard er size and have different biometrical body error or standard deviation of their mean ©Österreichische Gesellschaft für Herpetologie e.V., Wien, Austria, download unter www.biologiezentrum.at SHORT NOTE HERPETOZOA 18 (3/4) Wien, 30. Dezember 2005 SHORT NOTE 187 values and therefore a test to evaluate the ATKINSON, D. (1994): Temperature and organism size - distributional differences of biometrical a biological law for ectotherms.- Advances in Ecological Research, San Diego; 25: 1-58. ATKINSON, data between the sample measured by us D. & SIBLY, R. M. (1997): Why are organisms usually and those studied by these authors in the bigger in colder environments? Making sense of a life Lepini Mountains was inapplicable. history puzzle.- Trends in Ecology and Evolution, Amsterdam; 12: 235-239. BARBIERI, F. & PELLEGRINI, However, comparisons (Kruskal- M. (in press). Salamandrina terdigitata. In: Atlante Wallis) among means of TL attained by four degli Anfibi e dei Rettili d'Italia - Atlas of Italian Am- populations from the Lepini Mts. (ROMANO phibians and Reptiles. Edizioni Polistampa, Firenze. & MATTOCCIA, unpublished data) resulted in CAETANO, M. H. & CASTANET, J. (1993). Variability and microevolutionary patterns in Triturus marmoratus highly significant (p < 0.001) differences. from Portugal: age, size, longevity and individual Ectotherms living under colder climate con- growth.- Amphibia-Reptilia, Leiden; 14: 117-129. ditions tend to reach a larger size than their HOUCK, L. D. (1982): Growth rates and age at sexual conspecifics living in warmer climates (e.g., maturity for the neotropical salamander, Bolitoglossa RAY 1960; reviewed in ATKINSON 1994; subpalmata.- Copeia, Lawrence; 1982 (2): 474-478. MATTOCCIA M. & ROMANO A. & SBORDONI V. (2005): PARTRIDGE & FRENCH 1996; ATKINSON & Mitochondrial DNA sequence analysis of the spectacled SIBLY 1997). Many authors provide data re- salamander, Salamandrina terdigitata (Urodela: garding the increase in body size with in- Salamandridae), supports the existence of two distinct creasing altitude or latitude in other Urodela species.- Zootaxa, Auckland; 995: 1-19. NASCETTI, G. & ZANGARI, F. & CANESTRELLI, D. (in press): The spec- species (e.g., CAETANO & CASTANET 1993; tacled salamanders, Salamandrina terdigitata LACÉ- HOUCK 1982). In contrast, other works re- PÈDE, 1788 and S. perspicillata SAVI, 1821: genetic dif- vealed a more complex pattern and relation- ferentiation and evolutionary history.- Rendiconti Lincei Science Fisiche e Naturali, Roma; 16. PART- ships among amphibian body size and en- RIDGE, L. & FRENCH, V. (1996): Thermal evolution of vironmental temperature, latitude and alti- ectotherm body size: Why get big in the cold? pp. tude, and found the larger specimens in low- 265-292. In: JOHNSTON I. A. & BENNETT A. F. (eds.): land populations (e.g., SCILLITANI et al. 1992; Animals and temperature: Phenotypic and evolutionary adaptation. Cambridge (Cambridge University Press). VENCES et al. 1999). The largest specimens RAY, C. (1960): The application of Bergmann's and of Salamandrina were found in the Lepini Allen's rules to the poikilotherms.- Journal of Mountains (ANGELINI et al. 2001; this note). Morphology, Hoboken; 106: 85-108. SCILLITANI, G. & Anyway, these mountains are not a cold CAPUTO, V. & FRJSENDA, S. (1993): On the maximum size attained by the newt, Triturus italiens (PERACCA, zone in comparison with other territories 1898) (Caudata: Salamandridae).- Boll. Mus. reg. Sci. where the Spectacled Salamander lives nat., Torino; 11:209-217. VANNI, S. (1980): Note sulla (e.g., Northern Apennine). Breeding sites of Salamandrina dagli occhiali (Salamandrina terdigitata this species are known to occur up to 1.500 (LACÉPÈDE, 1788)) in Toscana (Amphibia: Sala- m (BARBIERI & PELLEGRINI in press) and mandridae).- Atti Soc. Toscana Se. Nat., Mem., Pisa (B) also in the Lepini Mountains they are found 87: 135-159. VENCES, M. & PIQUÉ, N. & LOPEZ, A. & PUENTE, M. & MlRAMONTES, C. & VlEITES, D. R. at elevations higher than 1050 m a.s.l. (1999): Summer habitat population estimate and body (CORSETTI 1994; ROMANO pers. obs.) Very size variation in a high altitude population of Rana tem- poor biometrical data referring to high alti- poraria.- Amphibia-Reptilia, Leiden; 20: 431-435. tude populations is available; however spo- ZAGAGLIONI, S. (1978): Ricerche sulla biologia della salamandrina dagli occhiali (Salamandrina terdigitata, radic measuring of specimens revealed LACÉPÈDE) Anfibi, Urodeli. Unpubl. Thesis, Univ. di always TL values below 12.1 cm (ROMANO Firenze, Fac. Se. Mat., Fis. & Nat., 66 pp. ZuFFi, M. A. unpublished data). L. (1999): Salamandrina terdigitata (LACÉPÈDE, 1788) - Brillensalamander; pp. 229-246. In: