Latest research
Newly published papers on reptiles and amphibians from the HerpAtlas research library, updated automatically. Browse by animal on the species pages.
- Amphibian Strategies Against Attacks by Flies: Host-Specificity and Threats.
de Campos LLF, Pinho LC, Neckel-Oliveira S et al. · Ecology and evolution · 2026-01 · open access
Species interactions are fundamental to ecological and evolutionary processes, shaping ecosystem dynamics and driving biodiversity. Among those, interactions between flies and amphibians are common in tropical areas, yet most aspects of their ecology and evolution are understudied. Using the PRISMA…
- Escaping Constraints to Innovate: Maternal Neofunctionalization in a HoxB4 Duplicate.
Carvalho JL, Silva-Filho JC, de Oliveira JL · Journal of experimental zoology. Part B, Molecular and developmental evolution · 2026-01 · open access
Transcription factors are typically thought to play a limited role in developmental evolution due to their high pleiotropic nature. However, such constraints may be relaxed following gene duplication or when proteins are organized into structural and functional modules, opening avenues for…
- Living in the city has its advantages: thermoregulation behavior and activity time in the Torquate lizard.
González-Morales JC, Suárez-Varón G, Bastiaans E et al. · Journal of thermal biology · 2026-01 · open access
Urban development transforms natural ecosystems, imposing novel challenges on the organisms that persist within them. One such change is the "heat island" effect, which involves higher temperatures in urban areas compared to non-urban areas. Therefore, identifying the traits related to persisting…
- Co-Immunoprecipitation-Coupled Mass Spectrometry Analysis of Zyxin's Interactome and Phosphosites in Early Xenopus laevis Development.
Parshina EA, Ziganshin RH, Zaraisky AG et al. · International journal of molecular sciences · 2026-01 · open access
Protein complexes, assembled by scaffold proteins, act as molecular machines driving development. The mechanosensitive adapter protein Zyxin is a key example, integrating actin cytoskeleton dynamics with gene expression. However, the developmental regulation of its interactions and…
- Coral Snake Toxicity
Beaird D, Lee VR · StatPearls Publishing, Treasure Island (FL) · 2026-01
- Evaluation of in-vitro growth assays for Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis revealed methylene blue colorimetry is the most accurate.
Sumanasekera KK, Skerratt LF, Berger L et al. · Journal of microbiological methods · 2026-01 · open access
Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) is a destructive fungal pathogen, having caused the global decline and extinction of numerous amphibian species. Robust methodologies to accurately measure fungal growth in-vitro are needed for experiments aimed at understanding the physiology, pathogenicity, and…
- Shelter and microhabitat use by an invasive snake: Control implications
Borja Maestresalas, Julien C. Piquet, Marta López‐Darias · Global Ecology and Conservation · 2026-01 · open access
- Monitoring the Prevalence and Distribution of Chytrid Fungus ( Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis ) in the Kihansi Spray Toad ( Nectophrynoides asperginis ) Population in the Kihansi Gorge Spray Wetlands, Tanzania.
Mtui DT, Haule LJ, Ogutu JO et al. · Ecology and evolution · 2026-01 · open access
Introduction The chytrid fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis ( Bd ), has caused declines and extinctions of amphibians across North America, Mesoamerica, Oceania, Europe, and Africa (Hanlon et al. ; Fisher et al. ). Originating from Asia, this pathogen has spread to other continents since the…
- Skin Coloration Changes and Thermoregulation in Anolis carolinensis Across Different Thermal Environments.
Hu J, Xiong Y, Liu R et al. · Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2026-01 · open access
Ambient temperature plays a crucial role in shaping the skin color of some lizard species. While the long-term correlation between ambient temperature and skin color changes in lizards has been well-studied, how they adjust skin color and body temperature in response to short-term thermal…
- Dietary modulation shapes gut microbiota and digestive physiology associated with specialized frugivory in Teratoscincus roborowskii .
Yang Y, Feng H, Wang Z et al. · Frontiers in microbiology · 2026-01 · open access
Diet plays a key role in determining the composition and function of the gut microbiota. Teratoscincus roborowskii inhabits extreme desert environments and displays a unique frugivorous behavior. To investigate the relationship between its gut microbiota and metabolites associated with this…
- Forest-dwelling crab-eating foxes, Cerdocyon thous (Carnivora, Canidae), in eastern Ecuador: new ecological and genetic records of an elusive Neotropical canid.
Anaguano-Yancha F, Pilatasig AL, Simba L et al. · ZooKeys · 2026-01 · open access
The crab-eating fox, Cerdocyon thous , is the most broadly distributed native canid in South America, occupying a wide range of ecosystems from open savannas to dense tropical forests from Venezuela to Argentina. Its geographical range is expanding towards the Pacific coast of Central America by…
- Detection of intestinal parasites from feces of captive ophidians in Mexico.
Leyva-Araujo JM, Vásquez-Aguilar AA · Veterinary research communications · 2026-01
- Comparative skin microbiome analyses reveal differences between wild populations and captive groups of the Montseny brook newt ( Calotriton arnoldi ).
Tulloch S, Estarellas M, Adams DC et al. · ISME communications · 2026-01 · open access
The Montseny brook newt, Calotriton arnoldi , is a Critically Endangered amphibian species endemic to the Montseny Massif in Catalonia, Northeastern Spain. Due to population declines and threats to its natural habitat, an ex-situ breeding program was initiated in 2007. A key goal of the program is…
- Rediscovering nesting activities of Lepidochelys olivacea along the Dakshina Kannada Coast Karnataka West Coast of India.
Shettigar T, Haragi S, Mariyappa A · Scientific reports · 2026-01 · open access
- Six new non-native turtles in Portugal: A growing threat apart from the Red-Eared slider and Chinese stripe-necked turtle
João Rato, Maria Silva, Tatiana Catarrinho et al. · Herpetozoa · 2026-01 · open access
We report the first records of non-native freshwater turtles in Portugal, highlighting the growing diversity of species introduced in addition to the known Trachemys scripta and Mauremys sinensis . In 2024 and 2025, we surveyed 39 sites across Portugal and confirmed the presence of seven non-native…
- Desert lizards modulate nutritional responses to match seasonal biological needs.
Joshi M, Tatu A, Hawlena D et al. · Royal Society open science · 2026-01 · open access
Animals in extreme environments such as deserts experience severe seasonal fluctuations in abiotic conditions and resources. Under these conditions, they must obtain macronutrients in optimal amounts and ratios to meet their nutritional requirements, which themselves vary with seasonal changes in…
- Comprehensive methodology for evaluating the immobility responses in laboratory animals.
Estrada-Silva MA, Cruz-Rodríguez J, Silva-Luna G et al. · MethodsX · 2026-01 · open access
- Digestion is unaffected by surgical elimination of the right-to-left cardiac shunt in American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis).
Slay CE, Eme J, Wehrle BA et al. · The Journal of experimental biology · 2026-01
- Nasal hormone administration can support ambystomid salamander ex situ conservation breeding programs
D. Chen, Carrie K. Kouba, Carrie K. Kouba et al. · Journal for Nature Conservation · 2026-01 · open access
- A standardized drone-based protocol for monitoring freshwater turtles.
Dobie L, Blouin-Demers G · MethodsX · 2026-01 · open access
- Heat shock protein 70 in Cynops orientalis: bidirectional thermal regulation and metabolic optimization in amphibian climatic adaptation.
Liu J, Tang Y, Fang Z et al. · BMC genomics · 2026-01 · open access
- Population structure of Hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) nesting along the Persian Gulf coastline revealed by inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers.
Farahvashi M, Mohammadabadi M, Askari-Hesni M et al. · Scientific reports · 2026-01 · open access
- Feeding ecology of scolopendromorphs: integrating a global literature review with Japanese citizen-sourced data.
Uno R · PeerJ · 2026-01 · open access
Knowledge of food habits is essential for ecological research, yet those are often assessed based on general assumptions rather than evidence, especially in secretive animals that are difficult to observe in the wild, such as centipedes. This leads to underestimation and mischaracterisation of…
- Foxi1 regulates multipotent mucociliary progenitors and ionocyte specification through transcriptional and epigenetic mechanisms.
Bowden S, Brislinger-Engelhardt MM, Hansen M et al. · PLoS biology · 2026-01 · open access
Foxi1 is a master regulator of ionocytes (ISCs/INCs) across species and organs. Two subtypes of ISCs exist, and both α- and β-ISCs regulate pH- and ion-homeostasis in epithelia. Gain and loss of FOXI1 function are associated with human diseases, including Pendred syndrome, male infertility, renal…
- Detection of Leptospira in cane toads (Rhinella jimi) from urban and rural Paraíba, Brazil.
de Souza Rocha KN, de Lima Peixoto A, de Medeiros Pereira LS et al. · The Veterinary record · 2026-01 · open access
Background Leptospirosis is a significant zoonosis in tropical regions, where poor sanitation and favourable climate aid its spread. Synanthropic animals such as the cane toad (Rhinella jimi), which share environments with both people and wild and domestic animals, may harbour Leptospira and…
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