- reptile conservation

WWW.IRCF.ORG/REPTILESANDAMPHIBIANSJOURNAL
TABLE OF CONTENTS
REPTILES
& AMPHIBIANS • 21(4):140–141 • DEC
IRCF REPTILES &IRCF
AMPHIBIANS
• VOL15,
NO 4 • DEC 2008 189
2014
IRCF
REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS
C O N S E R V AT I O N A N D N AT U R A L H I S T O R Y
T A B L E
O F
C O N T E N T S
INTRODUCED
FEATURE ARTICLES
SPECIES
First Record of the Brahminy Blindsnake,
Indotyphlops braminus (Squamata: Typhlopidae),
in Cuba
 Chasing Bullsnakes (Pituophis catenifer sayi) in Wisconsin:
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:
A Hypothetical Excursion ............................................................................................................................Robert W. Henderson
198
RESEARCH ARTICLES
 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
............................................. Brian J. Camposano, Kenneth L. Krysko, Kevin M. Enge, Ellen M. Donlan, and Michael Granatosky
212
CONSERVATION ALERT
Luis M.
Díaz1
and Antonio
Cádiz2
1
 World’s Mammals
Crisis .............................................................................................................................................................
MuseoinNacional
de Historia Natural de Cuba, Habana Vieja, Cuba (luisfromcuba@yahoo.es)
 More Than
Mammals ......................................................................................................................................................................
2
Facultad de Biología, Universidad de La Habana, Ciudad de La Habana, Cuba (cadiz@fbio.uh.cu)
 The “Dow Jones Index” of Biodiversity ...........................................................................................................................................
HUSBANDRY
Photographs by the senior author.
 Captive Care of the Central Netted Dragon ....................................................................................................... Shannon Plummer
T
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1
he BrahminyPBlindsnake
(Indotyphlops braminus) , is
1 The Brahminy Blindsnake also is known as the “Flowerpot Blindsnake” for its
ROFILE
unisexual and reproduces
by Promoting
parthenogenesis.
This
propensity to be transported in the
rootL.systems
potted plants, a frequent means
 Kraig Adler: A Lifetime
Herpetology ................................................................................................
Michael
Treglia of234
of introduction to areas where the species is not native. Indotyphlops braminus was
breeding strategy and its capacity to survive in pots and small
COMMENTARY
formerly included in the genus Ramphotyphlops until the recent revision of the
containers used for plant
cultivation and sometimes internaTyphlopidae by Hedges et al. (2014).Eric
The
genus as
currently defined comprises 22
 The Turtles Have Been Watching Me ........................................................................................................................
Gangloff
238
species, most of them distributed in southern Asia, especially India and Sri Lanka.
tional transportation are characteristics of a very successful
BOOK REVIEW
 Threatened Amphibians of the World edited by S.N. Stuart, M. Hoffmann, J.S. Chanson, N.A. Cox,
R. Berridge, P. Ramani, and B.E. Young .............................................................................................................. Robert Powell





CONSERVATION RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Conservation Research Reports .................................
NATURAL HISTORY RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Reports on Natural History .................................
NEWBRIEFS ......................................................................................................................................................................................
EDITORIAL INFORMATION .....................................................................................................................................................
FOCUS ON CONSERVATION: A Project You Can Support ...............................................................................................
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Back Cover. Michael Kern
Front Cover. Shannon Plummer.
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Fig. 1. Brahminy Blindsnake (Indotyphlops braminus; MNHNCu 5071), from Lawton, Havana City, Cuba with details of the head in dorsal and lateral
views. The dark dorsal and ventral surfaces readily distinguish this foreign species from native typhlopids.
Copyright © 2014. Luis M. Díaz. All rights reserved.
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INTRODUCED SPECIES
IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • 21(4):140–141 • DEC 2014
colonizer (McKeown 1996, Bomford et al. 2009, Powell et
al. 2011). The species is the most widely distributed snake
on Earth. From its presumed original distribution in southeastern Asia (Storr 1981, Wallach 2008), it has invaded
tropical and subtropical regions throughout the world and is
now known from Africa, Australia, Japan, the United States
(including the Hawaiian Islands), Central America, and the
Lesser Antilles (Wallach 2008, Kraus 2009). In the Caribbean
islands, these snakes have been reported from Anguilla, Aruba,
St. Christopher, Barbados, Guadeloupe, Mustique, the Turks
& Caicos, Curaçao, and St. Eustatius (Powell et al. 2011).
West Indian populations might have been introduced from
Florida (Powell et al. 2011), but Sanchez and López-Forment
(1988) suggested that at least some Mexican populations can
be traced to the Philippines.
Here we report on five individuals of Indotyphlops braminus recorded in two localities in the City of Havana. Four
of them were deposited in the herpetological collection of
Museo Nacional de Historia Natural de Cuba (MNHNCu
5071–4). Three specimens (MNHNCu 5071–3; Fig. 1) were
collected by the senior author in Loma del Burro, Lawton,
Municipality of 10 de Octubre, Havana City (23°06’00’’N;
82°21’24’’W; 38m above sea level) on 23 and 30 July 2014.
Another specimen (MNHNCu 5074) was found by the junior
author in Playa, Havana City (23°06’25’’N; 82°25’18’’W) on
26 July 2014. The two localities are about 7 km apart, suggesting that this species is broadly established and might still
be spreading. Adult specimens had total lengths of 125 mm
(MNHNCu 5072), 139 mm (MNHNCu 5071), and 144
mm (MNHNCu 5174). One juvenile (MNHNCu 5073)
had a total length of 67 mm. Robert Powell confirmed the
B
identity of the specimens from photographs.
The snakes were found active at night (2000–2030 h) on
rainy days as they crossed paved walking trails or were collected directly on the surface of the ground. In addition, a
crushed and desiccated individual was seen but not collected
on 22 August 2014 on a street close to a public park only a
few meters from the first locality.
The species most likely was introduced in Cuba as a consequence of importing ornamental plants, as has been suggested
for other Caribbean islands (Powell et al. 2011). Although the
origin(s) of Cuban populations remain(s) obscure, national
garden and agricultural suppliers might be contributing to the
apparently rapid increase in distribution within the country.
Literature Cited
Bomford, M., F. Kraus, S.C. Barry, and E. Lawrence. 2009. Predicting establishment success for alien reptiles and amphibians: A role for climate matching.
Biological Invasions 11:713–724.
Hedges, S.B., A.B. Marion, K.M. Lipp, J. Marin, and N. Vidal. 2014. A taxonomic framework for typhlopid snakes from the Caribbean and other regions
(Reptilia, Squamata). Caribbean Herpetology 49:1–61.
Kraus, F. 2009. Alien Reptiles and Amphibians, a Scientific Compendium, and
Analysis. Invading Nature: Springer Series in Invasion Biology 4. Springer,
Dordrecht, The Netherlands.
McKeown, S. 1996. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians in the Hawaiian
Islands. Diamond Head Publishing, Inc., Los Osos, California.
Powell, R., R.W. Henderson, M.C. Farmer, M. Breuil, A.C. Echternacht, G. van
Buurt, C.M. Romagosa, and G. Perry. 2011. Introduced amphibians and
reptiles in the Greater Caribbean: Patterns and conservation implications, pp.
63–143. In: A. Hailey, B.S. Wilson, and J.A. Horrocks (eds.), Conservation of
Caribbean Island Herpetofaunas. Volume 1: Conservation Biology and the Wider
Caribbean. Brill, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Sánchez, O. and W. López-Forment C. 1988. Anfibios y reptiles de la región de
Acapulco, Guerrero, México. Anales del Instituto de Biología, UNAM, serie
Zoología 58:735–750.
Storr, G.M. 1981. The genus Ramphotyphlops (Serpentes: Typhlopidae) in western
Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum 9:235–271.
Wallach, V. 2008. Range extensions and new island records for Ramphotyphlops
braminus (Serpentes: Typhlopidae). Bulletin of the Chicago Herpetological
Society 43:80–82.
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