| haemogregarine specificity in two communities of florida snakes, with descriptions of six new species of hepatozoon (apicomplexa: hepatozoidae) and a possible species of haemogregarina (apicomplexa: haemogregarinidae). | five species of snakes in florida, from palm beach county in the south and alachua county 450 km to the north, occur in similar habitat but have distinctive hepatozoon species characteristic of each host species. in palm beach county, diadophis punctatus is host to hepatozoon punctatus n. sp., thamnophis sauritus sackenii to hepatozoon sauritus n. sp., and nerodia fasciata pictiventris to hepatozoon pictiventris n. sp. in alachua county, n. fasciata pictiventris is parasitized by hepatozoon fasc ... | 2001 | 11534655 |
| three new hepatozoon species (apicomplexa: hepatozoidae) infecting the florida kingsnake, lampropeltis getula floridana. | the florida kingsnake, lampropeltis getula floridana, is host to 3 species of hepatozoon at the type locality, miramar, broward county, florida, and 2, possibly all 3, species at cedar key, levy county, approximately 480 km to the northwest. hepatozoon eurytopis, n. sp. was present also in diadophis punctatus and elaphe guttata in jupiter farms, palm beach county, and in thamnophis sirtalis at gainesville, alachua county. specific identity in d. punctatus was determined from gamont morphology an ... | 2010 | 19685939 |
| herpetofaunal community change in multiple habitats after fifteen years in a southwest florida preserve, usa. | herpetofaunal declines have been documented globally, and southern florida, usa, is an especially vulnerable region because of high impacts from hydrological perturbations and nonindigenous species. to assess the extent of recent change in herpetofauna community composition, we established a baseline inventory during 1995-97 at a managed preserve in a habitat rich area of southwest florida, and repeated our sampling methods fifteen years later (2010-11). nine drift fence arrays were placed in fo ... | 2015 | 26016475 |
| experimental evidence that oral secretions of northwestern ring-necked snakes (diadophis punctatus occidentalis) are toxic to their prey. | ring-necked snakes (diadophis punctatus) are suspected of being venomous because their duvernoy's gland secretions have high levels of phospholipase activity, which is characteristic of many viperid and elapid venoms, and because anecdotal reports of feeding behavior are consistent with the use of a venom. we tested the toxicity of northwestern ring-necked snake oral secretions to a natural prey species, northwestern garter snakes (thamnophis ordinoides), by injecting 2-35 microl of oral secreti ... | 2007 | 17689581 |
| comparative phylogeography of woodland reptiles in california: repeated patterns of cladogenesis and population expansion. | the ultimate goal of comparative phylogeographical analyses is to infer processes of diversification from contemporary geographical patterns of genetic diversity. when such studies are employed across diverse groups in an array of communities, it may be difficult to discover common evolutionary and ecological processes associated with diversification. in order to identify taxa that have responded in a similar fashion to historical events, we conducted comparative phylogeographical analyses on a ... | 2006 | 16780435 |
| relict snakes of north america and their relationships within caenophidia, using likelihood-based bayesian methods on mitochondrial sequences. | this paper focuses on the phylogenetic relationships of eight north american caenophidian snake species (carphophis amoena, contia tenuis, diadophis punctatus, farancia abacura, farancia erytrogramma, heterodon nasicus, heterodon platyrhinos, and heterodon simus) whose phylogenetic relationships remain controversial. past studies have referred to these "relict" north american snakes either as colubrid, or as neotropical dipsadids and/or xenodontids. based on mitochondrial dna ribosomal gene sequ ... | 2004 | 15223038 |
| influence of physical stress, distress cues, and predator kairomones on the foraging behavior of ozark zigzag salamanders, plethodon angusticlavius. | an animal's response to environmentally induced stress can have important fitness consequences. for example, an animal may reduce activity in response to stress related to increased predation risk, but this response carries the potential cost of missed foraging or mating opportunities. we used laboratory bioassays to determine whether ozark zigzag salamanders, plethodon angusticlavius, decreased their feeding behavior following increased levels of threat-related stress. stress level was manipula ... | 2004 | 15222967 |
| the hypothalamo-hypophyseal neurosecretory system of the ring-necked snake, diadophis punctatus. | | 1965 | 14338038 |
| response of a reptile guild to forest harvesting. | despite the growing concern over reptile population declines, the effects of modern industrial silviculture on reptiles have been understudied, particularly for diminutive and often overlooked species such as small-bodied snakes. we created 4 replicated forest-management landscapes to determine the response of small snakes to forest harvesting in the coastal plain of the southeastern united states. we divided the replicated landscapes into 4 treatments that represented a range of disturbed habit ... | 2008 | 18477031 |
| phylogeography of diadophis punctatus: extensive lineage diversity and repeated patterns of historical demography in a trans-continental snake. | dynamic climatic oscillations during the pleistocene had profound effects on the distributions of species across north america. although the role of historical climate change on speciation remains controversial, the impact on genetic variation within species has been well documented. we examined mtdna sequences from the cytochrome b gene (1117 bp) and a portion of the nadh-4 gene (659 bp) for 286 individuals of diadophis punctatus to infer phylogeographic patterns and population structure and to ... | 2008 | 18055224 |
| characterization of venom (duvernoy's secretion) from twelve species of colubrid snakes and partial sequence of four venom proteins. | r.e. hill and s.p. mackessy. characterization of venom (duvernoy's secretion) from twelve species of colubrid snakes and partial sequence of four venom proteins. toxicon xx, xx-yy, 2000. - venomous colubrids, which include more than 700 snake species worldwide, represent a vast potential source of novel biological compounds. the present study characterized venom (duvernoy's gland secretion) collected from twelve species of opisthoglyphous (rear-fanged) colubrid snakes, an extremely diverse assem ... | 2000 | 10858509 |
| immature ixodes scapularis (acari: ixodidae) parasitizing lizards from the southeastern u.s.a. | preserved museum specimens of 13 lizard and 3 snake species common in the southeastern u.s.a. were examined for immature ixodes scapularis say ticks. five eumeces and 4 ophisaurus lizard species yielded an infestation prevalence of 17.8% for species of eumeces and 29.0% for species of ophisaurus. mean intensity of larvae and nymphs was 7.1 and 2.7, respectively, for species of eumeces, and 6.3 and 1.4, respectively, for species of ophisaurus. collection dates of the lizards ranged from january t ... | 1993 | 8410539 |
| histology and functional morphology of the oviduct of an oviparous snake, diadophis punctatus. | oviductal functional morphology remains poorly understood in oviparous snakes, particularly in regard to oviductal formation of albumen and the eggshell and to sperm storage. the oviduct of diadophis punctatus was examined using histology and scanning electron microscopy to determine oviductal functional morphology throughout the reproductive cycle. the oviduct is composed of four morphologically distinct regions: infundibulum, uterine tube, uterus, and vagina. the infundibulum is thin, flaccid, ... | 1996 | 29852582 |
| do ring-necked snakes choose retreat sites based upon thermal preferences? | biochemical reaction rates are highly sensitive to temperature, and the body temperatures of ectotherms covary with their immediate environment. therefore, ectotherms should choose microhabitats that permit the maintenance of physiological function. while some previous studies have found that squamate reptiles choose retreat sites that allow them to maintain physiologically optimal body temperatures, this research has been limited in context and taxonomic scope. we sought to test these empirical ... | 2018 | 29301695 |