Monitor lizards: a pan-African check-list of their zoogeography (Sauria: Varanidae: Polydaedalus)

Aim This goal of this paper is to present an up‐to‐date, accurate check‐list and distribution of the monitor lizards on the African continent. No such list of their distribution has been attempted since Robert F. Mertens' (1942) treatise (Abhandlungen Senckenbergischen Naturforschenden Gesellschaft, 462 , 465 , 466 ). Location The localities included herein are all countries on the African continent, and adjacent islands, with a list of Varanus known to Yemen and Saudi Arabian Republics included for clarity. One fossil Varanus rusingensis is included, as it is the first, and only described, fossil African Varanus known. Methods Locality records were reviewed from literature sources, museum voucher specimens, personal comments, field observations and photographic records. Results A summation of 3,268 locality records are included herein from the methods listed, with maps depicting these records. Main conclusions From the locality records listed herein, it is evident that the Nile monitor (V. niloticus) has the widest distribution, and that the Yemen monitor (V. yemenensis) has the most restricted distribution; paradoxically, both features may be indicative of their relic habitation on the African continent.     

枸杞木虱啮小蜂寄生行为及生物学特性的研究

枸杞木虱啮小蜂Tetrastichussp .是枸杞木虱ParatriozasinicaYang&Li若虫的外寄生蜂 ,自然寄生率可达 86 5 %。在温度为 2 0～ 2 5℃的室内条件下 ,完成 1个世代需 1 4～ 2 0d。成虫寿命与取食有关 ,取食 1 5 %的蜂蜜水 ,雌性成虫寿命为 1 2～ 1 7d,雄性成虫为 4～ 6d。成蜂最喜欢在 3龄和 4龄若虫上产卵。自然种群消长与寄主虫口密度相关。每年 7月到 8月下旬该蜂寄生率高 ,9月份下降 ,1 0月份几乎不见。     

Attachment Sites and Frequency Distribution of Erythraeid Mites, Leptus Indianensis (Acari: Prostigmata), Ectoparasitic on Harvestmen, Leiobunum Formosum (Opiliones)

Host attachment sites and frequency distribution of parasitism were investigated for the larval erythraeid mite Leptus indianensis parasitising a sample of 500 harvestmen, Leiobunum formosum in Tennessee, USA. A significant difference was found in the number of mites attached to different body segments of the harvestmen with the greatest number of mites attached to femurs I–IV. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the mites attached to smooth areas of the host integument between rows of stout setae. The frequency distribution of mites parasitising the harvestman population was highly clumped (Coefficient of Dispersion=3.34) with a relatively small number of hosts being parasitised by most of the mites.     

The reproduction and growth of Phrynosoma ditmarsi (sauria: Iguanidae) in captivity

Aspects of the reproduction and growth of Phrynosoma ditmarsi from Sonora, Mexico, were observed in captivity. Lizards were maintained indoors with a seasonally adjusted photoperiod. Mating occurred from August through December, with the majority of copulations observed in August, September, and October. Lizards were over-wintered between temperatures of 13°C and 16°C, with occasional drops to 8° C. The female reproductive cycle is not completely understood. Females may have stored sperm over the winter months, with ovulation and fertilization occurring in the following spring. Alternatively, embryogenesis may have been interrupted during the winter. Parturition occurred in June and July. Males became sexually mature at 13 months of age. Females first copulated at this age, resulting in the production of young at 24 months of age. Courtship and non-receptive behaviors were similar to those of other Phrynosoma.     

海南岛蜥蜴类多样性

经过多年调查,共得海南岛蜥蜴类动物标本238号,隶属5科16属22种。综合文献记录,海南岛实有蜥蜴类动物8科19属28种,约占全国总数的17％,多于福建,与广东省（含香港）相当,略少于台湾和广西。海南蜥蜴类均为东洋界物种,物种多样性较高,但特有种较少。     

Thermoregulatory behaviour in Tropidurus torquatus (Squamata, Tropiduridae) from Brazilian coastal populations: an estimate of passive and active thermoregulation in lizards

Geographical variation in the degree of thermoregulatory behaviour of the lizard Tropidurus torquatus was studied in 10 restinga populations along approximately 1500 km of Brazilian coast. An index of thermoregulation was estimated using the difference between body and environmental (air and substrate) temperatures and the percentage of negative values for these differences (proportion of body temperatures lower than environmental temperatures). In most populations, the lizards primarily used active thermoregulation, through behavioural means, and mainly in relation to substrate temperatures. Along the restingas, the degree of active thermoregulation increased as a function of the increase in the local environmental temperatures along the restingas. Behavioural thermoregulation of T. torquatus helps the lizards to maintain their body temperatures within an optimal range in which to perform their normal daily activities.     

Can mite parasitism affect the condition of bat hosts? Implications for the social structure of colonial bats

Ectoparasitism may be recognized as one of the main costs of coloniality, but little is known about how it affects the fitness and social structure of bats, the most gregarious of mammals. We studied these issues using the colonial bat Miniopterus schreibersii and its haematophagous parasitic mite Spinturnix psi as a model. Body condition is an important indicator of individual fitness that is potentially affected by ectoparasitism. Thus, we measured host body condition and mite loads in a total of 969 bats throughout the annual cycle. Mites were rare while hosts hibernated, increased in abundance in spring and peaked during nursing season of bats, when they were particularly abundant on lactating females and young bats. This strong seasonal variation in mite loads is related to the reproductive cycle of mites, which in turn appears to be synchronized with the reproductive cycle of their hosts. Mite loads and the condition of bats were negatively correlated, and information available suggests that this may be due to an effect of parasitism, although other possible causes for this trend cannot be excluded. However, a negative correlation was only observed during the bat's nursing season, when mites were most abundant, and heavily parasitized bats lost about 10% of their weight. Mite parasitism did not seem to be a significant disadvantage of coloniality, except in nurseries, where it might impose some costs. However, as females and young usually aggregate in these colonies, we presume that for them such costs are probably offset by advantages of group living. Adult males, however, are usually absent from nurseries, which may be a strategy to minimize mite parasitism. Overall, the results suggest that ectoparasitism may play a role in determining the social structure of M. schreibersii and of many other temperate bats that have similar life cycles and ectoparasitic loads.     

Reptiles from Len?óis Maranhenses National Park,Maranh?o,northeastern Brazil

We are presenting a list of the reptile species from Lençóis Maranhenses National Park (LMNP), Maranhão, Brazil, obtained during 235 days of field work. The study area is located in the contact zone between three major Neotropical ecosystems: Amazonia, Caatinga, and Cerrado. The PNLM encompasses the largest dune fields in Brazil, wide shrubby areas (restingas), lakes, mangroves, and many freshwater lagoons. We have recorded 42 species of reptiles in the area: 24 snakes, 12 lizards, two worm lizards, three turtles, and one alligator. About 81 % of the recorded species occurred only in restinga areas. Our data highlights the uniqueness of the PNLM in the context of the biomes that surround it and shows the importance of efforts to improve the conservation of reptiles living in the restinga, which currently comprise only about 20 % of the total area protected by the park, but which are the mesohabitat containing most of the reptile species in the Lençóis Maranhenses complex of habitats.     

Ultrastructural aspects of Fallisia effusa (Haemosporina: Garniidae) in thrombocytes of the lizard Neusticurus bicarinatus (Reptilia: Teiidae)

The fine structure of the different stages of the Fallisia effusa (Haemosporina: Garniidae), infecting the thrombocytes of the semi-aquatic Amazonian lizard Neusticurus bicarinatus (Reptilia: Teiidae) is described. Gametocytes, meronts, and merozoites of Fallisia effusa were found within a parasitophorous vacuole (PV). Multiple infections of micro- and macrogametocytes were observed. A circumferential coil of microtubules was seen in the cytoplasm of the infected host cell and this microtubule array was pronounced in cells harboring gametocytes. A deep invagination of the inner membrane complex of gametocytes may be involved in nutrition. The non-pigmented parasites underwent both merogony and gametogony in thrombocytes of the peripheral blood. No infection of the erythrocytes was observed. These observations confirm that Fallisia effusa displays characteristic features distinguishing it from other members of the Haemosporidian families, and that it has the ability to modulate microtubule assembly.