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Gonzalez RC, Bezerra de Lima LC, Passos P, Silva MJJ. The good, the bad and the boa: An unexpected new species of a true boa revealed by morphological and molecular evidence. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0298159. [PMID: 38630841 PMCID: PMC11023597 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0298159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Snakes of the genus Boa are outstanding elements of the New World biota with a broad sociological influence on pop culture. Historically, several taxa have been recognized in the past 300 years, being mostly described in the early days of binomial nomenclature. As a rule, these taxa were recognized based on a suite of phenotypic characters mainly those from the external morphology. However, there is a huge disagreement with respect to the current taxonomy and available molecular phylogenies. In order to reconcile both lines of evidence, we investigate the phylogenetic reconstruction (using mitochondrial and nuclear genes) of the genus in parallel to the detailed study of some phenotypic systems from a geographically representative sample of the cis-Andean mainland Boa constrictor. We used cyt-b only (744bp) from 73 samples, and cyt-b, ND4, NTF3, and ODC partial sequences (in a total of 2305 bp) from 35 samples, comprising nine currently recognized taxa (species or subspecies), to infer phylogenetic relationships of boas. Topologies recovered along all the analyses and genetic distances obtained allied to a unique combination of morphological traits (colouration, pholidosis, meristic, morphometric, and male genitalia features) allowed us to recognize B. constrictor lato sensu, B. nebulosa, B. occidentalis, B. orophias and a distinct lineage from the eastern coast of Brazil, which we describe here as a new species, diagnosing it from the previously recognized taxa. Finally, we discuss the minimally necessary changes in the taxonomy of Boa constrictor complex; the value of some usually disregarded phenotypic character system; and we highlight the urgency of continuing environmental policy to preserve one of the most impacted Brazilian hotspots, the Atlantic Forest, which represents an ecoregion full of endemism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rodrigo Castellari Gonzalez
- Museu de História Natural do Ceará Prof. Dias da Rocha, Universidade Estadual do Ceará, Pacoti, Ceará, Brazil
- Departamento de Vertebrados, Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | | | - Paulo Passos
- Departamento de Vertebrados, Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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2
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Frýdlová P, Janovská V, Mrzílková J, Halašková M, Riegerová M, Dudák J, Tymlová V, Žemlička J, Zach P, Frynta D. The first description of dermal armour in snakes. Sci Rep 2023; 13:6405. [PMID: 37076516 PMCID: PMC10115820 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-33244-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 04/10/2023] [Indexed: 04/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Osteoderms, also called dermal armour, often play a role in predator defence. The presence of osteoderms is highly irregularly distributed across the squamate phylogeny and they have not been found in snakes. In this study, we searched for candidate snake species that would benefit from such armour to protect their body, focusing primarily on fossorial species with defensive tail displays. We examined the tail morphology of 27 snake species from different families using micro-computed tomography (µCT) and micro- radiography. We discovered dermal armour in four species of sand boas (Erycidae) that also feature enlarged and highly modified caudal vertebrae. This is the first description of dermal armour in snakes. Ancestral state reconstructions revealed that osteoderms likely evolved once or multiple times in Erycidae. We have not found osteoderms in any other examined snake species. Nevertheless, similar structures are known from unrelated squamate clades, such as gerrhosaurids and geckos. This supports the idea of underlying deep developmental homology. We propose the hypothesis that osteoderms protect sand boas like the "brigandine armour" of medieval warriors. We interpret it as another component of the sand boas' rich defence strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petra Frýdlová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, 128 43, Prague, Czech Republic
- Department of Anatomy, Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, 100 00, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Veronika Janovská
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, 128 43, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Mrzílková
- Department of Anatomy, Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, 100 00, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Milada Halašková
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, 100 00, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Markéta Riegerová
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, 100 00, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Dudák
- Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics, Czech Technical University in Prague, 110 00, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Veronika Tymlová
- Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics, Czech Technical University in Prague, 110 00, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Žemlička
- Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics, Czech Technical University in Prague, 110 00, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Zach
- Department of Anatomy, Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, 100 00, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Daniel Frynta
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, 128 43, Prague, Czech Republic.
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3
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Alfaro-Alarcón A, Hetzel U, Smura T, Baggio F, Morales JA, Kipar A, Hepojoki J. Boid Inclusion Body Disease Is Also a Disease of Wild Boa Constrictors. Microbiol Spectr 2022; 10:e0170522. [PMID: 36094085 PMCID: PMC9602588 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.01705-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Reptarenaviruses cause boid inclusion body disease (BIBD), a potentially fatal disease, occurring in captive constrictor snakes boas and pythons worldwide. Classical BIBD, characterized by the formation of pathognomonic cytoplasmic inclusion bodies (IBs), occurs mainly in boas, whereas in pythons, for example, reptarenavirus infection most often manifests as central nervous system signs with limited IB formation. The natural hosts of reptarenaviruses are unknown, although free-ranging/wild constrictor snakes are among the suspects. Here, we report BIBD with reptarenavirus infection in indigenous captive and wild boid snakes in Costa Rica using histology, immunohistology, transmission electron microscopy, and next-generation sequencing (NGS). The snakes studied represented diagnostic postmortem cases of captive and wild-caught snakes since 1989. The results from NGS on archival paraffin blocks confirm that reptarenaviruses were already present in wild boa constrictors in Costa Rica in the 1980s. Continuous sequences that were de novo assembled from the low-quality RNA obtained from paraffin-embedded tissue allowed the identification of a distinct pair of reptarenavirus S and L segments in all studied animals; in most cases, reference assembly could recover almost complete segments. Sampling of three prospective cases in 2018 allowed an examination of fresh blood or tissues and resulted in the identification of additional reptarenavirus segments and hartmanivirus coinfection. Our results show that BIBD is not only a disease of captive snakes but also occurs in indigenous wild constrictor snakes in Costa Rica, suggesting boa constrictors to play a role in natural reptarenavirus circulation. IMPORTANCE The literature describes cases of boid inclusion body disease (BIBD) in captive snakes since the 1970s, and in the 2010s, others and ourselves identified reptarenaviruses as the causative agent. BIBD affects captive snakes globally, but the origin and the natural host of reptarenaviruses remain unknown. In this report, we show BIBD and reptarenavirus infections in two native Costa Rican constrictor snake species, and by studying archival samples, we show that both the viruses and the disease have been present in free-ranging/wild snakes in Costa Rica at least since the 1980s. The diagnosis of BIBD in wild boa constrictors suggests that this species plays a role in the circulation of reptarenaviruses. Additional sample collection and analysis would help to clarify this role further and the possibility of, e.g., vector transmission from an arthropod host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Alfaro-Alarcón
- Departamento de Patología, Escuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Universidad Nacional, Heredia, Costa Rica
| | - Udo Hetzel
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- University of Helsinki, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Veterinary Biosciences, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Teemu Smura
- University of Helsinki, Faculty of Medicine, Medicum, Department of Virology, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Francesca Baggio
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Juan Alberto Morales
- Departamento de Patología, Escuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Universidad Nacional, Heredia, Costa Rica
| | - Anja Kipar
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- University of Helsinki, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Veterinary Biosciences, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Jussi Hepojoki
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- University of Helsinki, Faculty of Medicine, Medicum, Department of Virology, Helsinki, Finland
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4
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Grismer J, Scott P, Toffelmier E, Hinds B, Klabacka R, Stewart G, White V, Oaks J, Bradley Shaffer H. Genomic data reveal local endemism in Southern California Rubber Boas (Serpentes: Boidae, Charina) and the critical need for enhanced conservation actions. Mol Phylogenet Evol 2022; 174:107542. [PMID: 35690376 DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2022.107542] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2021] [Revised: 05/25/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
The mountains of southern California represent unique, isolated ecosystems that support distinct high-elevation habitats found nowhere else in the area. Analyses of several moisture-dependent species across these sky-islands indicate they exist as locally endemic lineages that occur across these fragmented mountains ranges. The Rubber Boa is a semi-fossorial snake species that is widely distributed in the cooler and more moist ecoregions regions of western North America, including isolated populations across southern California mountain ranges. We developed a genomic and ecological dataset to examine genetic diversity within Rubber Boas and to determine if the endemic Southern Rubber Boa represents a distinct lineage. We quantified current and future habitat suitability under a range of climate change scenarios, and discuss the possible environmental threats facing these unique montane isolates. Our results support four major lineages within Rubber Boas, with genetic breaks that are consistent with biogeographic boundaries observed in other co-distributed, cool-temperature, moisture adapted species. Our data support previous studies that the Southern Rubber Boa is an independent evolutionary unit and now includes multiple locally endemic sky-island populations, restricted to isolated mountain tops and ranges across southern California. Analyses of future habitat suitability indicate that many of these sky-island populations will lose most of their suitable habitat over the next 70 years given predicted increases in drought, rising temperatures, and wildfires. Collectively these data emphasize the critical conservation needs of these montane ecosystems in southern California under current and projected climate change conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesse Grismer
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, La Kretz Center for Californian Conservation Science, and Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Department of Biological Sciences and Museum of Natural History, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA; Department of Biology, La Sierra University, Riverside, CA 92515, USA.
| | - Peter Scott
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, La Kretz Center for Californian Conservation Science, and Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Department of Life, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, West Texas A&M University, Canyon, TX 79016, USA
| | - Erin Toffelmier
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, La Kretz Center for Californian Conservation Science, and Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Brian Hinds
- Department of Biology, La Sierra University, Riverside, CA 92515, USA
| | - Randy Klabacka
- Department of Biological Sciences and Museum of Natural History, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA
| | - Glenn Stewart
- Department of Biological Sciences, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA 91768, USA
| | - Virginia White
- Department of Biological Sciences and Museum of Natural History, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA
| | - Jamie Oaks
- Department of Biological Sciences and Museum of Natural History, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA
| | - H Bradley Shaffer
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, La Kretz Center for Californian Conservation Science, and Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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5
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Durso AM, Ruiz de Castañeda R, Montalcini C, Mondardini MR, Fernandez-Marques JL, Grey F, Müller MM, Uetz P, Marshall BM, Gray RJ, Smith CE, Becker D, Pingleton M, Louies J, Abegg AD, Akuboy J, Alcoba G, Daltry JC, Entiauspe-Neto OM, Freed P, de Freitas MA, Glaudas X, Huang S, Huang T, Kalki Y, Kojima Y, Laudisoit A, Limbu KP, Martínez-Fonseca JG, Mebert K, Rödel MO, Ruane S, Ruedi M, Schmitz A, Tatum SA, Tillack F, Visvanathan A, Wüster W, Bolon I. Citizen science and online data: Opportunities and challenges for snake ecology and action against snakebite. Toxicon X 2021; 9-10:100071. [PMID: 34278294 PMCID: PMC8264216 DOI: 10.1016/j.toxcx.2021.100071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Revised: 06/10/2021] [Accepted: 06/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
The secretive behavior and life history of snakes makes studying their biology, distribution, and the epidemiology of venomous snakebite challenging. One of the most useful, most versatile, and easiest to collect types of biological data are photographs, particularly those that are connected with geographic location and date-time metadata. Photos verify occurrence records, provide data on phenotypes and ecology, and are often used to illustrate new species descriptions, field guides and identification keys, as well as in training humans and computer vision algorithms to identify snakes. We scoured eleven online and two offline sources of snake photos in an attempt to collect as many photos of as many snake species as possible, and attempt to explain some of the inter-species variation in photograph quantity among global regions and taxonomic groups, and with regard to medical importance, human population density, and range size. We collected a total of 725,565 photos-between 1 and 48,696 photos of 3098 of the world's 3879 snake species (79.9%), leaving 781 "most wanted" species with no photos (20.1% of all currently-described species as of the December 2020 release of The Reptile Database). We provide a list of most wanted species sortable by family, continent, authority, and medical importance, and encourage snake photographers worldwide to submit photos and associated metadata, particularly of "missing" species, to the most permanent and useful online archives: The Reptile Database, iNaturalist, and HerpMapper.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew M. Durso
- Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Gulf Coast University, Ft. Myers, FL, USA
- Institute of Global Health, Department of Community Health and Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Rafael Ruiz de Castañeda
- Institute of Global Health, Department of Community Health and Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
| | | | - M. Rosa Mondardini
- Citizen Science Center Zürich (ETH Zürich and University of Zürich), Zürich, Switzerland
| | | | | | | | - Peter Uetz
- The Reptile Database, Richmond, VA, USA
- Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Arthur D. Abegg
- Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
- University of São Paulo, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Jeannot Akuboy
- University of Kisangani, Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo
| | | | - Jennifer C. Daltry
- Flora & Fauna International, Cambridge, England, UK
- Global Wildlife Conservation, Austin, TX, USA
| | | | - Paul Freed
- The Reptile Database, Richmond, VA, USA
- Reptile Database, Scotts Mills, OR, USA
| | | | - Xavier Glaudas
- University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Bangor University, Bangor, Wales, UK
| | - Song Huang
- Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | | | - Yatin Kalki
- Madras Crocodile Bank Trust, Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu, India
| | | | | | | | | | - Konrad Mebert
- Global Biology, Birr, Switzerland
- Institute of Development, Ecology, Conservation & Cooperation, Rome, Italy
| | - Mark-Oliver Rödel
- Museum für Naturkunde - Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Manuel Ruedi
- Museum d'Histoire naturelle Geneve, Geneva, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Frank Tillack
- Museum für Naturkunde - Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Wolfgang Wüster
- Molecular Ecology and Fisheries Genetics Laboratory, School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Bangor, Wales, UK
| | - Isabelle Bolon
- Institute of Global Health, Department of Community Health and Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
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6
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Carrillo-Briceño JD, Sánchez R, Scheyer TM, Carrillo JD, Delfino M, Georgalis GL, Kerber L, Ruiz-Ramoni D, Birindelli JLO, Cadena EA, Rincón AF, Chavez-Hoffmeister M, Carlini AA, Carvalho MR, Trejos-Tamayo R, Vallejo F, Jaramillo C, Jones DS, Sánchez-Villagra MR. A Pliocene-Pleistocene continental biota from Venezuela. SWISS JOURNAL OF PALAEONTOLOGY 2021; 140:9. [PMID: 34721281 PMCID: PMC8550326 DOI: 10.1186/s13358-020-00216-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2020] [Accepted: 12/25/2020] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The Pliocene-Pleistocene transition in the Neotropics is poorly understood despite the major climatic changes that occurred at the onset of the Quaternary. The San Gregorio Formation, the younger unit of the Urumaco Sequence, preserves a fauna that documents this critical transition. We report stingrays, freshwater bony fishes, amphibians, crocodiles, lizards, snakes, aquatic and terrestrial turtles, and mammals. A total of 49 taxa are reported from the Vergel Member (late Pliocene) and nine taxa from the Cocuiza Member (Early Pleistocene), with 28 and 18 taxa reported for the first time in the Urumaco sequence and Venezuela, respectively. Our findings include the first fossil record of the freshwater fishes Megaleporinus, Schizodon, Amblydoras, Scorpiodoras, and the pipesnake Anilius scytale, all from Pliocene strata. The late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene ages proposed here for the Vergel and Cocuiza members, respectively, are supported by their stratigraphic position, palynology, nannoplankton, and 86Sr/88Sr dating. Mammals from the Vergel Member are associated with the first major pulse of the Great American Biotic Interchange. In contrast to the dry conditions prevailing today, the San Gregorio Formation documents mixed open grassland/forest areas surrounding permanent freshwater systems, following the isolation of the northern South American basin from western Amazonia. These findings support the hypothesis that range contraction of many taxa to their current distribution in northern South America occurred rapidly during at least the last 1.5 million years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge D. Carrillo-Briceño
- Universität Zürich, Paläontologisches Institut und Museum, Karl-Schmid-Straße 4, 8006 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Rodolfo Sánchez
- Museo Paleontológico de Urumaco, Calle Bolívar s/n, Urumaco, Estado Falcón Venezuela
| | - Torsten M. Scheyer
- Universität Zürich, Paläontologisches Institut und Museum, Karl-Schmid-Straße 4, 8006 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Juan D. Carrillo
- CR2P, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, 8 Rue Buffon, 75005 Paris, France
- Gothenburg Global Biodiversity Centre, Carl Skottsbergs gata 22B, 41319 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Massimo Delfino
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Torino, Via Valperga Caluso 35, 10125 Torino, Italy
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Edifici ICTA/ICP, c/Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona Spain
| | - Georgios L. Georgalis
- Universität Zürich, Paläontologisches Institut und Museum, Karl-Schmid-Straße 4, 8006 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Leonardo Kerber
- Centro de Apoio à Pesquisa Paleontológica da Quarta Colônia (CAPPA), Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), São João do Polêsine, Rio Grande do Sul Brazil
- Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi, Coordenação de Ciências da Terra e Ecologia, Belém, PA Brazil
| | - Damián Ruiz-Ramoni
- Centro Regional de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia Tecnológica de La Rioja (CRILAR), Provincia de La Rioja, CONICET, UNLaR, SEGEMAR, UNCa, Entre Ríos y Mendoza s/n, 5301 Anillaco, La Rioja, Argentina
| | - José L. O. Birindelli
- Departamento de Biologia Animal e Vegetal, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Londrina, Brazil
| | - Edwin-Alberto Cadena
- Grupo de Investigación Paleontología Neotropical Tradicional y Molecular (PaleoNeo), Facultad de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado, 0843-03092 Balboa, Ancón Panama
| | - Aldo F. Rincón
- Departamento de Física y Geociencias, Universidad del Norte, Km. 5 Vía Puerto Colombia, Barranquilla, Colombia
| | - Martin Chavez-Hoffmeister
- Laboratorio de Paleontología, Instituto de Ciencias de La Tierra, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile
| | - Alfredo A. Carlini
- Lab. Morfología Evolutiva Desarrollo (MORPHOS), and División Paleontología de Vertebrados, Museo de La Plata, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Paseo del Bosque s/n, B1900FWA La Plata, Argentina
| | - Mónica R. Carvalho
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado, 0843-03092 Balboa, Ancón Panama
| | - Raúl Trejos-Tamayo
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Estratigrafía (IIES), Universidad de Caldas, Calle 65 #26-10, Manizales, Colombia
- Departamento de Geología, Universidad de Salamanca, 37008 Salamanca, Spain
| | - Felipe Vallejo
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Estratigrafía (IIES), Universidad de Caldas, Calle 65 #26-10, Manizales, Colombia
- Departamento de Geología, Universidad de Salamanca, 37008 Salamanca, Spain
| | - Carlos Jaramillo
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado, 0843-03092 Balboa, Ancón Panama
- Departamento de Geología, Universidad de Salamanca, 37008 Salamanca, Spain
- ISEM, U. Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Douglas S. Jones
- Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 USA
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7
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Durso AM, Moorthy GK, Mohanty SP, Bolon I, Salathé M, Ruiz de Castañeda R. Supervised Learning Computer Vision Benchmark for Snake Species Identification From Photographs: Implications for Herpetology and Global Health. Front Artif Intell 2021; 4:582110. [PMID: 33959704 PMCID: PMC8093445 DOI: 10.3389/frai.2021.582110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2020] [Accepted: 02/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
We trained a computer vision algorithm to identify 45 species of snakes from photos and compared its performance to that of humans. Both human and algorithm performance is substantially better than randomly guessing (null probability of guessing correctly given 45 classes = 2.2%). Some species (e.g., Boa constrictor) are routinely identified with ease by both algorithm and humans, whereas other groups of species (e.g., uniform green snakes, blotched brown snakes) are routinely confused. A species complex with largely molecular species delimitation (North American ratsnakes) was the most challenging for computer vision. Humans had an edge at identifying images of poor quality or with visual artifacts. With future improvement, computer vision could play a larger role in snakebite epidemiology, particularly when combined with information about geographic location and input from human experts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew M Durso
- Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Gulf Coast University, Ft. Myers, FL, United States.,Institute of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Isabelle Bolon
- Institute of Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Marcel Salathé
- AICrowd, Lausanne, Switzerland.,Digital Epidemiology Laboratory, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Geneva, Switzerland
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8
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Henderson RW, Hileman ET, Sajdak RA, Harrison BC, Powell R, Bradke DR. Effects of body size, diet, and transience on the demography of the arboreal boid snake
Corallus grenadensis
on Carriacou (Grenada Grenadines, West Indies). POPUL ECOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/1438-390x.12079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Eric T. Hileman
- Department of Wildlife Fisheries and Aquaculture, Mississippi State University Mississippi State Mississippi USA
| | | | | | - Robert Powell
- Department of Biology Avila University Kansas City Missouri USA
| | - Danielle R. Bradke
- Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources University of Georgia Athens Georgia USA
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9
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Jadin RC, Jowers MJ, Orlofske SA, Duellman WE, Blair C, Murphy JC. A new vine snake (Reptilia, Colubridae, Oxybelis) from Peru and redescription of O. acuminatus. EVOLUTIONARY SYSTEMATICS 2021. [DOI: 10.3897/evolsyst.5.60626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The Brown Vine Snake, Oxybelis aeneus, was until recently considered a single species, distributed from southern Arizona through the Neotropics into southeastern Brazil. However, newly conducted research restructured the species with a substantial taxonomic revision, recognizing five additional taxa (i.e. O. koehleri, O. microphthalmus, O. potosiensis, O. rutherfordi, O. vittatus) in this species complex. This revision focused on populations in North America, Central America, and northern South America while neglecting the southern portion of its distribution. Here, we examine the taxonomic history of the complex and use it along with specimen data to resurrect O. acuminatus from southeastern Brazil. Finally, we describe a new species from the Peruvian Amazon based on morphological characters. This work increases the species diversity of the O. aeneus complex to eight, and we expect further increases in biodiversity discoveries with continued exploration of the New World vine snakes.
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10
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Characterization of Color Pattern Dimorphism in Turks and Caicos Boas, Chilabothrus chrysogaster chrysogaster, on Big Ambergris Cay, Turks and Caicos Islands. J HERPETOL 2020. [DOI: 10.1670/18-051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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11
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Viana PF, Ezaz T, Cioffi MDB, Liehr T, Al-Rikabi A, Tavares-Pinheiro R, Bertollo LAC, Feldberg E. Revisiting the Karyotype Evolution of Neotropical Boid Snakes: A Puzzle Mediated by Chromosomal Fissions. Cells 2020; 9:cells9102268. [PMID: 33050432 PMCID: PMC7601083 DOI: 10.3390/cells9102268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2020] [Revised: 09/28/2020] [Accepted: 10/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The Boidae family is an ancient group of snakes widely distributed across the Neotropical region, where several biogeographic events contributed towards shaping their evolution and diversification. Most species of this family have a diploid number composed of 2n = 36; however, among Booidea families, the Boidae stands out by presenting the greatest chromosomal diversity, with 2n ranging between 36 and 44 chromosomes and an undifferentiated XY sex chromosome system. Here, we applied a comparative chromosome analysis using cross-species chromosome paintings in five species representing four Boidae genera, to decipher the evolutionary dynamics of some chromosomes in these Neotropical snakes. Our study included all diploid numbers (2n = 36, 40, and 44) known for this family and our comparative chromosomal mappings point to a strong evolutionary relationship among the genera Boa, Corallus, Eunectes, and Epicrates. The results also allowed us to propose the cytogenomic diversification that had occurred in this family: a process mediated by centric fissions, including fission events of the putative and undifferentiated XY sex chromosome system in the 2n = 44 karyotype, which is critical in solving the puzzle of the karyotype evolution of boid snakes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrik F. Viana
- Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Coordenação de Biodiversidade, Av. André Araújo 2936, Petrópolis, Manaus 69067-375, AM, Brazil; (P.F.V.); (E.F.)
| | - Tariq Ezaz
- Institute for Applied Ecology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Canberra, Canberra 12 2616, ACT, Australia;
| | - Marcelo de Bello Cioffi
- Departamento de Genética e Evolução, Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos 13565-090, SP, Brazil; (M.d.B.C.); (L.A.C.B.)
| | - Thomas Liehr
- Institute of Human Genetics, University Hospital Jena, Am Klinikum 1, 07747 Jena, Germany;
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +49-3641-9396850
| | - Ahmed Al-Rikabi
- Institute of Human Genetics, University Hospital Jena, Am Klinikum 1, 07747 Jena, Germany;
| | - Rodrigo Tavares-Pinheiro
- Departamento de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde, Laboratório de Herpetologia, Universidade Federal do Amapá, Macapá 68903-419, AP, Brazil;
| | - Luiz Antônio Carlos Bertollo
- Departamento de Genética e Evolução, Universidade Federal de São Carlos, São Carlos 13565-090, SP, Brazil; (M.d.B.C.); (L.A.C.B.)
| | - Eliana Feldberg
- Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Coordenação de Biodiversidade, Av. André Araújo 2936, Petrópolis, Manaus 69067-375, AM, Brazil; (P.F.V.); (E.F.)
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12
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Exquisitely Preserved Fossil Snakes of Messel: Insight into the Evolution, Biogeography, Habitat Preferences and Sensory Ecology of Early Boas. DIVERSITY 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/d12030100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Our knowledge of early evolution of snakes is improving, but all that we can infer about the evolution of modern clades of snakes such as boas (Booidea) is still based on isolated bones. Here, we resolve the phylogenetic relationships of Eoconstrictor fischeri comb. nov. and other booids from the early-middle Eocene of Messel (Germany), the best-known fossil snake assemblage yet discovered. Our combined analyses demonstrate an affinity of Eoconstrictor with Neotropical boas, thus entailing a South America-to-Europe dispersal event. Other booid species from Messel are related to different New World clades, reinforcing the cosmopolitan nature of the Messel booid fauna. Our analyses indicate that Eoconstrictor was a terrestrial, medium- to large-bodied snake that bore labial pit organs in the upper jaw, the earliest evidence that the visual system in snakes incorporated the infrared spectrum. Evaluation of the known palaeobiology of Eoconstrictor provides no evidence that pit organs played a role in the predator–prey relations of this stem boid. At the same time, the morphological diversity of Messel booids reflects the occupation of several terrestrial macrohabitats, and even in the earliest booid community the relation between pit organs and body size is similar to that seen in booids today.
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13
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Aungst ER, Puente-Rolón AR, Reynolds RG. Genetic diversity in the US ex situ populations of the endangered Puerto Rican Boa, Chilabothrus inornatus. Zoo Biol 2020; 39:205-213. [PMID: 32056297 DOI: 10.1002/zoo.21535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2019] [Revised: 10/15/2019] [Accepted: 02/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The Puerto Rican Boa (Chilabothrus inornatus) was placed on the US Endangered Species List in 1970. Progress has been made since to clarify the recovery status of this species, though the design of a new recovery plan must include information regarding genetic variation within and among populations of this species. While measures of genetic diversity in wild populations of this species are finally becoming available, relative genetic diversity represented in ex situ populations is unknown, which hampers efforts to develop an ex situ species management plan. Here, we provide an analysis of genetic diversity in US public and private collections (zoos and breeders) using mitochondrial sequence data and five highly polymorphic nuclear microsatellite loci. We analyzed 50 boas from the US ex situ population and determined overall genetic diversity and relatedness among these individuals. We then compared these data to mitochondrial and microsatellite data obtained from 176 individuals from wild populations across the native range of the species. We found little inbreeding and a large amount of retained genetic diversity in the US ex situ population of C. inornatus relative to wild populations. Genetic diversity in the ex situ population is similar to that found in wild populations. Ours is only the second explicit attempt to characterize genetic diversity at the molecular level in ex situ populations of boid snakes. We anticipate that these results will inform current breeding strategies as well as offer additional information that will facilitate the continuation of ex situ conservation breeding or management in boas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily R Aungst
- Department of Biology, 1 University Heights, Asheville, North Carolina
| | | | - R Graham Reynolds
- Department of Biology, 1 University Heights, Asheville, North Carolina
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14
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Suárez-Atilano M, Cuarón AD, Vázquez-Domínguez E. Deciphering Geographical Affinity and Reconstructing Invasion Scenarios of Boa imperator on the Caribbean Island of Cozumel. COPEIA 2019. [DOI: 10.1643/cg-18-102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Marco Suárez-Atilano
- Departamento de Ecología de la Biodiversidad, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ap. Postal 70-275, Ciudad Universitaria, Ciudad de México, 04510, México; (MSA) ; and (EVD)
| | - Alfredo D. Cuarón
- SACBÉ—Servicios Ambientales, Conservación Biológica y Educación A.C., Casa del General 1er piso, Rancho Chichihualco, km 4.5 Carretera Costera Zona Hotelera Norte, Cozumel, Quintana Roo 77613, México;
| | - Ella Vázquez-Domínguez
- Departamento de Ecología de la Biodiversidad, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ap. Postal 70-275, Ciudad Universitaria, Ciudad de México, 04510, México; (MSA) ; and (EVD)
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