Search

Precise estimates on the abundance and population size of a species are fundamental to the reliable evaluation of its conservation status. Demographic data can provide important insights into different aspects of the ecology, life history, and evolutionary history of a species, and can help to detect changes in population size, which is important in biological conservation. Here, we present the first systematic estimate of the abundance, detectability, and site occupancy of the Lancehead, Bothrops jararaca (Wied-Neuwied 1824), at Serra das Torres Natural Monument in the Atlantic Forest of Espírito Santo State, southeastern Brazil. To understand better the ecological factors driving occupancy, we also analyzed the principal habitats used by B. jararaca. We used the Rapid Assessment method to sample a B. jararaca population between January and March 2018 using active searching and pitfall traps. We applied the Royle-Nichols occupancy model to estimate the abundance of B. jararaca, as well as single-season, singlespecies occupancy models to analyze the types of habitats in which B. jararaca was most frequently detected. We recorded 47 juveniles and adults of B. jararaca (1.5 snakes per sampling day) and estimated an abundance of 137 ± 25 (mean ± SE) individuals for the sampled area within the MONAST. We found higher detectability in deeper leaf litter and higher detectability where there was a low percentage of canopy cover. Our results advance the understanding of snake population dynamics and contribute to the knowledge of the abundance patterns of B. jararaca. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most work with frogs has provided high relevance of information focusing primarily on adults, which is mainly due to the difficulty of identifying the larval stage of these organisms. Ilha Grande, the third largest island at the Brazilian coast, is one of the most important remnants of the Atlantic Rainforest Biome in Brazil. This study aimed to characterize the morphology of the tadpoles of 11 frog species that occur in oceanic face (southwards) of the Ilha Grande, Southeastern Brazil. Using these characters, we provide a key for the identification of these tadpoles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores visual signaling in Hyloides uai (Torrent Frog), focusing on their behavior in a specific environment.