Herpetology Notes

A cost-efficient open-source 3D printed harness for GPS logger use in small terrestrial turtles

Jeffery Haney — 2026-05-14

Sky-island microendemism of a Chilean coastal mountain lizard: a new record for Liolaemus frassinettii Núñez, 2007 broadens its range in three dimensions

Jorge Mella-Romero — 2026-05-22

Secret rendezvous and love bites: first report of courtship behaviour in blue Malayan Coralsnakes, Calliophis bivirgatus flaviceps (Cantor, 1839)

Ruirong Choo — 2026-05-07

Behavioural observations of the Caylloma Smooth-throated Lizard, Liolaemus annectens Boulenger, 1901, following snowfall events in the highlands of southern Peru

Irbin B. Llanqui — 2026-05-21

Maximum body size in Central American River Turtles, Dermatemys mawii Gray, 1847

Donald T. McKnight — 2026-05-13

Unusual frugivory in the Black River Turtle, Rhinoclemmys funerea (Cope, 1875): consumption of non-native Morinda citrifolia in a Costa Rican swamp forest

Todd Lewis — 2026-05-16

Nectar feeding and external pollen loads in Podarcis lusitanicus Geniez et al., 2014: evidence for trophic niche expansion in an Atlantic island ecosystem

Ane Navarro-Ayensa — 2026-05-23

Distribution and microhabitat use of naturalised Common Chameleons, Chamaeleo chamaeleon (Linnaeus, 1758), in Malta

Kristyl Farrugia — 2026-05-16

The Common Chameleon, Chamaeleo chamaeleon, was introduced to Malta in the mid-19th century and is now fully naturalised, yet detailed ecological information for the Maltese archipelago remains very limited. This study provides the first integrated assessment of its spatial and seasonal distribution, microhabitat use, and age-related patterns of variation using systematic field surveys across 13 sites. Abundance varied markedly among regions, with northern sites supporting the highest densities, likely reflecting greater availability of semi-natural and suburban vegetation. Seasonal differences in abundance were minimal, although winter surveys indicated reduced detectability. Chameleons showed strong associations with coniferous vegetation and mid-height perches (101–300 cm), with seasonal shifts consistent with thermoregulatory demands. Ontogenetic patterns indicated partial niche partitioning, with smaller individuals occupying lower and occasional peripheral branches, while larger individuals used higher and more central positions. Overall, the species’ adaptability to fragmented landscapes and human-modified habitats explains its successful establishment in Malta, while emphasising the importance of maintaining tree-rich green spaces for long-term population persistence.

First record of Gekko cf. albofasciolatus from Palawan Island, the Philippines

Kseniia M. Prondzynska — 2026-05-31

Evidence for homing in Bufo gargarizans Cantor, 1842 from a radiotelemetry study in the Republic of Korea

Seung-Min Park — 2026-05-21

Dead Blue Wildebeest legacy: an unexpected opportunistic thermoregulation support for Nile Monitor, Varanus niloticus (Linnaeus, 1766), in Kenya

Tom Heijnen — 2026-05-23

Predation of an Asian grassfrog, Fejervarya cf. limnocharis, by an Asian forest scorpion (genus Heterometrus) in Central Myanmar

Soe Thandar Aung — 2026-05-13

Oh snap: observations of heterospecific predation and cannibalism in the Snapping Turtle, Chelydra serpentina (Linnaeus, 1758)

Jordyn Williams — 2026-05-31

Clutch splitting and nesting behaviour of the Eastern Malay River Terrapin, Batagur affinis edwardmolli Praschag et al., 2009, in Malaysia

Pelf N. Chen — 2026-05-16

A longevity record of the Japanese Gecko, Gekko japonicus (Duméril & Bibron, 1836), in the wild

Taisei Komatsubara — 2026-05-31

Pseudomonas aeruginosa skin infection after long-term captivity of a Dalmatian Wall Lizard, Podarcis melisellensis (Braun, 1877)

Josip Miljković — 2026-05-16

Survivors of St. Croix: limb loss and abnormal tail regeneration in Anolis acutus Hallowell, 1856

Nicole Stevens — 2026-05-30

Range extension and species assignment of a rediscovered population of the Black Salamander complex (genus Aneides) in California, USA, based on morphological and molecular evidence

Cort Glosli — 2026-05-17

First sightings of axanthism in the Lacertidae, observed in the Greek endemic Erhard’s Wall Lizard, Podarcis erhardii (Bedriaga, 1882)

Rory Mendelow — 2026-01-07

Predation on the Indian House Gecko, Hemidactylus flaviviridis Rüppell, 1835, by the huntsman spider Heteropoda venatoria in Kolkata, India

Saheba Khatun — 2026-01-07

First report of flavinistic albinism in Calamaria schmidti Marx & Inger, 1955

Oliver Christopher — 2026-01-07

New and recurrent morphological abnormalities in amphibians from northwest Mexico

Héctor A. Castro-Bastidas — 2026-01-16

A rare record of a midge biting Nidirana shyhhuangi Lin et al., 2025 in Taiwan

JhYu You — 2026-01-16

The largest Eastern Newts, Notophthalmus viridescens (Rafinesque, 1820), are found at high elevation in North Carolina

Hayleigh R. Locke — 2026-01-28

First records of axanthism in African Reed Frogs (genus Hyperolius) and an updated checklist of axanthic amphibians

Gregory Jongsma — 2026-02-01

Arboreal behaviour in Ocellated Lizards, Timon lepidus (Daudin, 1802): can trees play a role in species conservation?

Przemysław Zdunek — 2026-02-01

First case of erythristic Common Frog, Rana temporaria Linnaeus, 1758, in Latvia

Alessandro Di Marzio — 2026-02-04

Caudal regeneration in introduced and native populations of the Italian Wall Lizard, Podarcis siculus (Rafinesque-Schmaltz, 1810), in California, USA, and Taormina, Italy, with reports of tail bifurcation

Alyssa Head — 2026-02-04

Yellow is the new green: abnormal colouration of Pelophylax sp. in Latvia and Lithuania

Alessandro Di Marzio — 2026-02-04

Postprandial refuge selection strategy in the Montpellier Snake, Malpolon monspessulanus (Hermann, 1804), in a human-altered landscape

Grégory Deso — 2026-02-04

First record of fossorial foam nesting in the Forest Green Treefrog, Zhangixalus arboreus (Okada and Kawano, 1924) in Japan

Masaya Miyata — 2026-02-12

Where giants meet: the first photographic record of the Asian Water Monitor, Varanus salvator (Laurenti, 1768), on Komodo Island, Indonesia, with notes on natural history

Zichen Qiao — 2026-02-11

First record of the Southern White-lipped Mud Turtle, Kinosternon (Cryptochelys) leucostomum postinguinale (Cope, 1887), in Manabí Province, Ecuador

Moira L. M. Wiedebusch — 2026-02-11

Adult aggression toward hatchlings in Yellow Land Iguanas, Conolophus subcristatus (Gray, 1831), on Wolf Volcano, Isabela Island, Galápagos

Jorge Carrión-Tacuri — 2026-02-11

A frog-eat-frog novelty: first record of “reverse age-class cannibalism” in the Arabian Toad, Sclerophrys arabica (Heyden, 1827), from King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Royal Natural Reserve, Saudi Arabia

Mohammad A. Abdulhakeem — 2026-02-24

Consumption of a Rough Earthsnake, Virginia striatula (Linnaeus, 1766), by a Green Sunfish, Lepomis cyanellus, in Brazos County, Texas, USA

Rose C. Blanchard — 2026-02-26

Predation of Ameivula nigrigula (Arias et al., 2011) and Iguana iguana (Linnaeus, 1758) by Jaguarundi cats, Herpailurus yagouaroundi (Saint-Hilaire, 1803), in the Caatinga morphoclimatic domain, Brazil

Gabriela Felix-Nascimento — 2026-02-26

Courtship and mating behaviour of the Kenyan Rock Agama, Agama lionotus elgonis Lönnberg, 1922, and a new locality record in Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania

Przemysław Zdunek — 2026-02-26

Observation of limb abnormalities in Indirana chiravasi Padhye et al., 2014 from the Western Ghats region of Goa, India

Shubham Rane — 2026-02-26

Predation of the threadsnake Epictia borapeliotes (Vanzolini, 1996) by Guira Cuckoo (Guira guira) in Rio Grande do Norte, northeastern Brazil

Alice C.B. de Souza — 2026-02-26

First record of the non-native Chinese Stripe-necked Turtle Mauremys sinensis (Gray, 1834) on Rhodes Island, Greece

Konstantinos Kalaentzis — 2026-02-26

First record of symmetrical red stripes on a Common European Toad, Bufo bufo (Linnaeus, 1758), from Germany

Anika Sander — 2026-02-26

Polymelia in a Ladakh Toad, Bufotes latastii (Boulenger, 1882): a case of complex skeletal anomaly

Кsenia A. Matushkina — 2026-03-04

A brief overview of the natural history of the recently described, miniaturised leaf chameleon, Brookesia nana Glaw et al., 2021, from Sorata Forest, northeastern Madagascar

Jeanneney Rabearivony — 2026-03-04

First live photographic records of Sumatran Mud Snake, Sumatranus albomaculata (Duméril et al., 1854) and Simeulue Pitviper, Trimeresurus kirscheyi (Vogel et al., 2022)

Marcus Lucassen — 2026-03-06

First report of direct development in Raorchestes malipoensis Huang et al., 2023 from southeast Yunnan under laboratory conditions

Junkai Huang — 2026-03-17

One species or two? How many Trapelus species occur in Morocco?

Aristea Paraskevopoulou — 2026-03-18

First record of Dennys’s Treefrog, Zhangixalus dennysi (Blanford, 1881), from Bolikhamxai Province, Laos

Yukio Ichioka — 2026-04-20

Backing out: dead-end tunnels reveal capacity for reverse concertina movement in Cornsnakes, Pantherophis guttatus (Linnaeus, 1766)

Bizaya Gurung — 2026-04-10

Carnivory by a Gecarcinus ruricola (Linnaeus, 1758) on a hatchling Iguana iguana (Linnaeus, 1758) on Saba, Dutch Caribbean

Matthijs P. van den Burg — 2026-03-17

First record of the Burmese Whipping Frog, Polypedates mutus (Smith, 1940), from Manipur State, India, with the description of its tadpole

Yumkham S. Devi — 2026-03-22

Predation of the Japanese Keelback, Hebius vibakari (Boie, 1826), by the Ussuri Pitviper, Gloydius ussuriensis (Emelianov, 1929) in South Korea, with remarks on prey size

Yucheol Shin — 2026-04-06

First record of the Green Whipsnake, Chironius exoletus (Linnaeus, 1758), preying on an egg clutch of the Orange-legged leaf frog, Pithecopus hypochondrialis (Daudin, 1800)

Jhorran O. de Souza — 2026-04-14

Crazy little thing called love: interspecific amplexus and early hybrid embryogenesis in two treefrogs (genus Dendropsophus) in Brazil

Mariana Routh — 2026-04-23

First records of the Chaco Racer, Philodryas psammophidea Günther, 1872, in the Cerrado of Paraguay

Matías Silvera — 2026-04-10

Wild Royal Pythons, Python regius (Shaw, 1802), in Senegal react variably to threats from potential chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus) predators

Joseph H. Furman — 2026-04-23

Post-hatching parental care by a wild male Crocodylus porosus Schneider, 1801 in Australia

David White — 2026-03-19

A new dietary item during the juvenile stage of the Black Spiny-Tail Iguana, Ctenosaura similis (Gray, 1831)

Eric E. Flores — 2026-03-18

First record of predation on the Amazonian Motmot, Momotus momota (Linnaeus, 1766), by the Paraguayan Rainbow Boa, Epicrates crassus Cope, 1862, in the Brazilian Cerrado

Carlos G. F. de Oliveira — 2026-03-31

Extending the known range of the Crowned Leafnosed Snake, Lytorhynchus diadema (Duméril et al., 1854), in Jordan’s Eastern Desert

Ehab Eid — 2026-03-18

Seasonal overland dispersal of the Suriname Toad, Pipa pipa (Linnaeus, 1758), in the Peruvian Amazon

Brian Crnobrna — 2026-05-30

The Suriname toad (Pipa pipa) is a highly aquatic species with cryptic habits, making field observations rare. Despite its presumed dependency on permanent waterbodies, overland dispersal of the species remains poorly understood. We investigated P. pipa movement patterns at an oxbow lake in the Peruvian Amazon using pitfall traps deployed in November 2012 (early wet season) and April 2013 (late wet season). A total of 18 captured indicated directional movement between permanent water and seasonal wetlands. Nine individuals migrated from permanent water to seasonally flooded areas as they became inundated, then returned to permanent water as these wetlands dried. Pitfall traps facing opposing directions caught no individuals, confirming movement directionality. This represents the largest number of P. pipa encounters documented at a single site, providing evidence for regular terrestrial activity in this species. Our findings suggest that seasonal hydrological changes drive overland dispersal, exhibiting patterns akin to amphibian migration. We highlight the utility of pitfall trapping for studying P. pipa populations and provide a foundation for future studies on its dispersal ecology.

Behaviour to avoid saltwater sites during spawning in Buergeria japonica (Hallowell, 1861)

Takashi Haramura — 2026-03-17

The use of spawning sites by female amphibians can strongly influence the rate of egg survival. Coastal areas are risky environments for amphibian breeding because the rate of egg survival falls drastically with increased water salinity. Buergeria japonica is an anuran species that breeds in coastal environments but avoids spawning in sites with increased salinity. The aim of this study is to understand the behavioural sequence of how this frog avoids saltwater sites. To address this question, I recorded spawning behaviour in a laboratory experiment. Although amplectant pairs randomly visited and entered fresh and saltwater sites, they rapidly left saltwater sites after entering the water. The amount of time spent in saltwater sites prior to exiting the water declined with increasing water salinity. The selection of a spawning site was determined by gravid females only because each male was clasping onto the back of the female and did not contribute to the locomotion of amplectant pairs. This result suggests that female B. japonica are able to quickly determine the salinity level of potential breeding sites. Together, all adaptive responses allow this species to persist in a coastal environment, in which salinity of breeding sites varies greatly.

Age structure and body size of Southern Banded Newts, Ommatotriton vittatus (Gray, 1835), in a pristine pond in the coastal mountains of Lattakia, Syria

Diaa Alkhayer — 2026-03-17

The Southern Banded Newt (Ommatotriton vittatus) is widely distributed across Syria, yet its demographic and life-history traits remain largely unexplored. This study provides the first skeletochronological assessment of Ommatotriton vittatus in Syria, focusing on age structure, growth, and sexual maturity, using a dataset of thirty-six individuals (15 males, 21 females). Maximum ages reached seven years in males and eight years in females, although the age distribution did not differ significantly between sexes. Mean snout–vent lengths were 62.2 mm and 58.0 mm, for males and females respectively, with males being significantly larger. Both sexes attained sexual maturity at two years, a markedly earlier age than reported for other Ommatotriton populations. This accelerated development likely reflects favourable environmental conditions and high habitat quality at the study site. The findings establish the first demographic baseline for O. vittatus in Syria and contribute to understanding how local ecological factors shape amphibian life-history strategies in the eastern Mediterranean region.

Population size and nocturnal activity of Cyprus Grass Snakes, Natrix natrix moreotica (Bedriaga, 1882), in an arid island environment

Marilena Stamatiou — 2026-03-18

Grass Snakes (Natrix spp.) constitute the most widespread snake taxon in the Eurasian continent. While research on Grass Snakes is historically robust, there is a lack of data for the distribution, population trends and estimates, and ecology of Natrix natrix inhabiting the island of Cyprus, often accredited on its elusive nature. The Grass Snake population in the Troodos Mountains has garnered the most attention in the past, while the vulnerable lowland population in the southeast of the island remains relatively understudied. It is assumed that this latter population is small, highly fragmented and inhabits habitats that face severe anthropogenic pressures. These threats are exacerbated by prolonged drought and heat waves. Population monitoring and estimates of the number of individuals per life stage are needed to inform and support the long-term conservation of lowland N. natrix populations in Cyprus. We estimated the number of individuals in two lowland areas and highlight the usefulness of nocturnal instead of diurnal transect surveys. Lastly, we recommend ways to move forward with monitoring the lowland population of the species in order to aid its long-term survival.

Population size and microhabitat features of the crocodile newt Tylototriton pasmansi Bernardes et al., 2020 in northern Vietnam

Dung Van Tran — 2026-04-23

Pasman's Crocodile Newt (Tylototriton pasmansi) is endemic to tropical broadleaf forests in northern Vietnam. Information regarding its population size, distribution, and habitat characteristics remains extremely limited, and its IUCN Red List status is Data Deficient. This study was conducted in Xuan Son National Park and Phu Canh Nature Reserve, Phu Tho Province, to estimate population sizes and identify relevant habitat features of the species. We found newt habitats based on community interviews and then conducted capture-mark-recapture surveys. The results showed that the population size of these newts was quite small, with only an estimated 70 and 236 individuals at the examined sites in Xuan Son National Park and Phu Canh Nature Reserve, respectively. The microhabitat of T. pasmansi primarily comprises small, shallow ponds with minimal water flow and muddy bottoms at elevations of around 1000 m, characterized by a wide pH range. This is the first study estimating the population size of a newt species in Vietnam. As climate change intensifies, habitat monitoring and improvements, such as the establishment of breeding pools, along with education of local residents are needed to prevent local extinctions of this interesting species.

Natural history observations of the Knysna Dwarf Chameleon, Bradypodion damaranum (Boulenger, 1887): thermal extremes and feeding on flora

Krystal A. Tolley — 2026-04-20