摘要: Dear Editor, Life-history studies including dietary preferences and trophic interactions are essential for understanding community ecology in lizards(Pianka, 1986). The family Agamidae is one of the largest in terms of species diversity and occurs in a variety of habitats(Uetz et al., 2024). Members of the family Agamidae that feed mostly on ground-dwelling insects are ambush(sit-and-wait) predators that rely on visual scanning, i. e., remaining motionless, elevating their bodies, and raising their heads while scanning their surroundings until prey is spotted(Herrel et al., 1998; Ibrahim and El-Naggar, 2013).

摘要: Parasites, such as flatworms, nematodes, and pentastomes, are commonly found inhabiting reptiles. In this study, we examined parasite infection status in 10 squamate species, including 5 snake species and 5 lizard species. We identified one genuslevel and nine species-level parasites in these hosts, which belong to the phyla Platyhelminthes, Nemathelminthes, and Arthropoda. The overall infection rate was 45%, with significant differences in infection rates between lizard and snake species. Parasites in snakes included the Kalicephalus sp., Ophidascaris filaria, Ophiotaenia bungari, Raillietiella orientalis and Spirometra erinaceieuropaei, and parasitic parasites in lizards were mainly composed of Meteterakis japonica, Plagiorchis koreanus, Spauligodon carbonelli, Spauligodon saxicolae and Strongyluris calotis, respectively. There were significant differences in infection rates among different species and regions, and even among different tissues of the same species. The overall investigation of squamate parasites in China will provide some basic information for public health safety.

摘要: Successful non-native species can exhibit rapid divergence of key phenotypic traits to facilitate population persistence and further range expansion. Such phenotypic shifts can be sex-dependent as males and females usually have distinct reproductive and dispersal modes responding to relevant selective forces. Here, we showed significant phenotypic divergence in a set of fitness-related traits among males but not among females in the introduced oriental fire-bellied toads(Bombina orientalis), which established a non-native population in Beijing after being introduced in 1927. Specifically, compared with the native counterparts, introduced males displayed younger age and reduced body size, but increased hindlimb length and eye size after controlling the age effect. As the toads have male-biased sex ratio and male-biased dispersal during breeding season, the observed shifts may suggest that the male-biased selective forces have induced increased energy allocation to dispersal and foraging, and thus decreased allocation to maintain longevity in males. Overall, our study provides evidence for the modification of fitness-related phenotypic traits in a non-native anuran population compared with native populations and extends our understanding of key trait divergence in established non-native amphibian under sexual-unbalanced selective forces.

摘要: This study provides an updated checklist of snake species in China, building upon the 2020 checklist and incorporating comprehensive review of relevant literature published from 2020 to December 2024, as well as pre-2020 sources that may have been overlooked. As of the end of 2024, the Chinese Serpents fauna included 19 families, 71 genera, and 355 species of snakes. Significant progress has been made in the past five years, including the description of one new family, one new genus, and 60 new species. One subfamily and seven subspecies were elevated to full status, and 12 species were resurrected as valid species. Four genera and 27 species were newly recorded, three genera and four species were synonymized, and one family, four genera, and 12 species were excluded from the documented herpetofauna. This updated list highlights the presence of significant snake diversity and unresolved taxonomic challenges, emphasizing the potential for further discoveries. It also identifies under-researched groups, stressing the urgent need for focused taxonomic and ecological efforts to enhance our understanding of snake biodiversity in China.

摘要: The Qinghai-Xizang Plateau presents an extreme environment characterized by high altitude,low oxygen availability,and harsh living conditions.High-altitude-residing amphibians,such as Rana kukunoris,have evolved specific physiological adaptations to survive in these habitats.However,the composition and functional significance of their gut microbiota with regard to these adaptations remain poorly explored.This study utilized 16S rR NA gene sequencing to characterize and compare the gut microbiota of Rana kukunoris with that of two low-altitude frogs,Rana amurensis and Rana dybowskii,to investigate potential microbial contributions to high-altitude adaptation.Results revealed significant differences in gut microbiota diversity and composition between high-and lowaltitude frogs.Notably,Akkermansia muciniphila and Desulfovibrio species were significantly enriched in Rana kukunoris.Functional predictions indicated significant enrichment of arginine biosynthesis pathways and associated metabolic processes in the high-altitude frog,which may enhance oxygen utilization and vascular homeostasis under hypoxic conditions.These findings provide insights into the gut microbiota of Rana kukunoris and suggest a potential crucial role in facilitating physiological adaptations to extreme environments through enhanced metabolic flexibility and stress resistance.

摘要: The anuran family Ceratobatrachidae is one of the most speciose groups of amphibians,but the geographic distributions of many genera and species await documentation.During the field survey of Tongbiguan Provincial Nature Reserve in southwestern Yunnan Province,China,at the China-Myanmar border region,we collected several frogs that resemble the genus Alcalus,which was previously known from Indochina only.Based on mitochondrial phylogeny,our newly collected specimens are sister to Alcalus fontinalis Boruah,Narayanan,Gerard,Das,and Deepak,2023 from Northeast India,but it differs from the latter by a suit of characters,including in differences in body size,head length,snout length,tympanum diameter,eye diameter,forearm length,toe webbing formula,relative length of fingers and toes,and dorsal pattern and coloration.Herein,based on the integration of morphological and genetic data,we report the genus Alcalus from China for the first time and describe a new species from China-Myanmar border region.Our study further demonstrates that southern section of the Gaoligong Mountain has a rich diversity of amphibians that warrant continuous survey efforts.Future fieldwork in these mountains is needed to better understand and fully uncover the species richness in this border region.

摘要: Two new species of Leptobrachella are described from Vietnam based on morphological differences and genetic divergences in 16S rRNA mitochondrial gene sequences. The new taxa are distinguished from each other and from other species of the genus Leptobrachella in body size, head width/length ratio, tympanum morphology, dorsal skin texture, the presence/absence of fringes on toes, color of dorsal and ventral body, and iris color. The two new species are also divergent from each other and from other congeners by a 4.14% or greater uncorrected genetic distance. Leptobrachella batxatensis sp. nov. is genetically closest to L. shiwandashanensis and L. wuhuangmontis from China. Leptobrachella duyenae sp. nov. is genetically closest to L. bidoupensis from Vietnam with strong nodal support from both BI and ML analyses(1.0/99%).

摘要: Advertisement calls are essential for communication among anuran amphibians, with their production influenced by a range of environmental factors and morphological traits. To understand the primary sources of variation of advertisement calls in male Leptobrachium liui, we recorded their advertisement calls during the breeding season and analyzed two primary acoustic parameters: call duration(CD) and dominant frequency(DF), along with their within-individual coefficients of variation. Additionally, we collected nest-related environmental parameters and morphological traits to investigate how these factors influence the variation in advertisement calls. Our analyses revealed that both nest-related environmental parameters(particularly water temperature) and individual morphological traits(especially head morphology) significantly influenced advertisement call characteristics in male L. liui. Water temperature showed a negative relationship with CD, while head morphology was positively associated with both CD and DF. These findings enhance our understanding of the factors shaping acoustic communication in L. liui during the breeding season and highlight the importance of both environmental and morphological factors in anuran vocalization.

摘要: The dependence of energy metabolism on temperature is universally recognized as a critical physiological hallmark for evaluating the susceptibility of ectothermic organisms to global warming.However,the underlying physiological and biochemical bases of this temperature dependence remain largely unknown.In this study,we conducted a simulated climate warming experiment under seminatural enclosure conditions and compared the differences in resting metabolic rate (RMR) and key metabolic enzyme activities between the warming and control groups of Takydromus septentrionalis at various test temperatures.We found that the activities of hexokinase,lactate dehydrogenase,alanine aminotransferase and acetyl-CoA carboxylase of T.septentrionalis were not affected by climate warming,despite a decrease in RMR measured at high temperatures of 34°C and 38°C.Overall,these findings suggest that artificial warming simulating climate change can lead to a decline in RMR,but does not alter the activity of key metabolic enzymes.Our study provides insight into how climate warming influences the energy metabolism of lizards.

摘要: Global framework for nature management requires identifying areas of high priority for biodiversity conservation and restoration.The unique environments of Qinghai-Xizang Plateau(QXP) provide irreplaceable habitats for biodiversity which is prominent under future climate change.Despite the recent increase in research interest on conservation priorities,there is a lack of comprehensive and targeted protection strategies for pandemic species under climate change.Here,we compiled an exhaustive dataset with the variables of extinction risk and occurrence records of ectothermic lizards to investigate the conservation priorities in the QXP.We assessed the conservation status of the QXP lizards and identified the priority protected areas within the QXP under future climate scenarios using phylogenetic generalized least squares and ensemble species distribution models.Our analyses suggested nine lizard species to be prioritized for protection,with the most critical priority species being Dopasia gracilis,D.harti,and Phrynocephalus putjatai.Moreover,the priority protected areas covered～4.7%area of the QXP,mostly in the southern QXP and southeastern Hengduan Mountains.Protecting these regions would achieve a conservation effectiveness of≥95%for species richness,phylogenetic and functionaldiversity under climate change.Our findings provide realistic guidance for improving the conservation effectiveness of specific-lizard and-regions in the QXP under climate change.Our“bottom-up”approach could help the conservation efforts of other regions and species as an alternative to“top-down”global maps.