Other Contributions
Nature Notes
Aspidoscelis lineattisima (Cope, 1878). Diet. The Twelve-lined Whiptail, Aspidoscelis lineattisima, is a medium-sized lizard endemic to Mexico (maximum snout–vent length = 112 mm; García and Ceballos, 1994), which occurs along the Pacific lowlands from central Nayarit southward the Río Balsas and Valle de Tepalcatepec area in Michoacán and northern Guerrero, at elevations from sea level to 1,000 m (Duellman and Wellman, 1960; PonceCampos and García-Aguayo, 2007). This terrestrial species is a diurnal and terrestrial forager that has been reported to feed on insects, arachnids, myriapods, and gastropods (Balderas-Valdivia and Ramírez-Bautista, 2002; CamposReyes, 2008; Güizado-Rodríguez and Casas-Andreu, 2011), and a snake (Conophis vittatus) also was found in the stomach contents of a specimen (GüizadoRodríguez et al., 2006). Aspidoscelis lineattisima is protected by Mexican law (SEMARNAT) under the Special Protection category (Ponce-Campos and García-Aguayo, 2007). Although cockroaches (Blattodea) are part of the diet of A. lineatissima (Güizado-Rodríguez and Casas-Andreu, 2011), to date they have not been identified to species level. On 26 October 2007, at the campus of the Universidad de Guadalajara (20°42'14.33"N, 105°13'18.25"W; datum WGS 84; elev. 11 m) in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico, we observed an individual of A. lineattissma preying on a live Surinam Cockroach, Pycnoscelus surinamensis (Fig. 1). This introduced, parthenogenetic cockroach has become a peridomestic and greenhouse pest, and is a potential vector of nematodes (Schwabe, 1949). Although probably not a significant factor in the biological control of P. surinamensis, as blattodeans are not an important part of the diet of A. lineattissma (Güizado-Rodríguez and Casas-Andreu, 2011), this lizard might be perceived as “beneficial” to humans because it preys on a pest.
Fig. 1. An Aspidoscelis lineattisima preying on a non-native cockroach, Pycnoscelus surinamensis, in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico. ' © Frank Mc Cann
Literature Cited Balderas-Valdivia, C., and A. Ramírez-Bautista. 2002. Cnemidophorus lineatissimus. Pp. 281–284 In F. A. Noguera, J. H. Vega-Rivera, A. N. García-Aldrete, and M. Quesada Avendaño (Eds.), Historia Natural de Chamela. Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México, D.F., Mexico. Campos-Reyes, F. E. 2008. Caracterización de la Estrategia de Forrajeo de Aspidoscelis lineattissima (Sauria: Teiidae) y el Efecto de la Estacionalidad en la Misma Dentro del Bosque Tropical Caducifolio, en la Región de Chamela, Jalisco. Unpublished Licenciatura thesis, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México, D.F., Mexico. Duellman, W. E. and J. Wellman. 1960. A systematic study of the lizards of the deppei group (genus Cnemidophorus) in Mexico and Guatemala. Miscellaneous Publications, Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan 111: 1–81. García, A., and G. Ceballos. 1994. Guía de Campo de los Reptiles y Anfibios de la Costa de Jalisco, México / Field Guide to the Reptiles and Amphibians of the Jalisco Coast,
Mesoamerican Herpetology
Mexico. Fundación Ecológica de Cuixmala, A.C. and Instituto de Biología U.N.A.M., México, D.F., Mexico. Güizado-Rodríguez, M. A., and G. Casas-Andreu. 2011. Facultative specialization in the diet of the Twelve-lined Whiptail, Aspidoscelis lineatissima. Journal of Herpetology 45: 287– 290. Güizado-Rodríguez, M. A., G. Casas-Andreu, and G. BarriosQuiroz. 2006. Natural History Notes. Aspidoscelis lineatissima (Twelve-lined Whiptail). Diet. Herpetological Review 37: 345. Ponce-Campos, P., and A. García-Aguayo. 2007. Aspidoscelis lineattissima. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2007: e.T64273A12760398. (http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK. 2007.RLTS.T64273A12760398.en; accessed 20 April 2016). Schwabe, C. W. 1949. Observations on the life history of Pycnoscelus surinamensis (Linn.), the intermediate host of the chicken eyeworm in Hawaii. Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 13: 433–436.
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Other Contributions
Nature Notes
Fabio Germán Cupul-Magaña1, Frank Mc Cann2, Armando H. Escobedo-Galván1, and Julio C. EstradaÁlvarez3 Centro Universitario de la Costa, Universidad de Guadalajara, Av. Universidad 203, Delegación Ixtapa, C.P. 48280, Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico. E-mail:
[email protected] 1
Condominio Girasol departamento 12, carretera a Mismaloya km 8.5, C.P. 48390, Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico.
2
Museo Universitario de Historia Natural Dr. Manuel M. Villada UAEMex, Inst. Literario 100, Colonia Centro, Toluca, Estado México C.P. 50000 & Laboratorio de Investigación y Análisis, ENTOMOLOGICAL RESEARCH, Metepec, Estado México, Mexico. 3
Aspidoscelis guttata (Wiegmann, 1834). Opportunistic water acquisition. Animals obtain water from three sources: preformed water (contained in food), metabolic water, and liquid water (when enough water molecules located in one place form a pool) (Pough et al., 2004). Water collection has been reported for a number of species of lizards and snakes (Nielsen et al., 2016; Mata-Silva et al., 2014, and citations therein). Herein, we report an observation of water consumption by the Mexican Racerunner, Aspidoscelis guttata, in coastal Oaxaca, Mexico. This endemic teiid is distributed in the state of Veracruz, on the Atlantic versant, and in the states of Guerrero, Oaxaca, and Chiapas on the Pacific versant. Its elevational range extends from sea level to 1,200 m (Köhler, 2008). Despite its relatively wide distribution, little is known regarding its natural history and behavior (Mata-Silva and Ramírez-Bautista, 2005). On 23 December 2013 at 1530 h, one of us (SMG) observed an adult A. guttata drinking water from a poultry waterer (Fig.1). This observation took place in the backyard of a house located in the town of La Luz, Municipio de Villa de Tututepec de Melchor Ocampo, Oaxaca, Mexico (16.113361°N, 97.596647°W; WGS 84; elev. 55 m). The lizard drank water for ca. 1 min, but because of the shape of the waterer and point of observation SMG could not discern if the lizard drank the water by licking or swallowing movements. In this region, animals likely find
Fig. 1. An adult Mexican Racerunner (Aspidoscelis guttata) drinking water from a poultry waterer in La Luz, Municipio de Villa de Tututepec de Melchor Ocampo, Oaxaca, Mexico. ' © Stephanye Mata-González
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