Fèlix Amat Orriols

Natural Sciences Museum of Granollers · Herpetology

King cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) is a snake widely distributed through southeastern tropical Asia, but in two separate subpopulations: one located in the Western Ghats (western Indian Peninsula) and the other much more extensive, ranging between the southern slopes of the Himalayas, Assam, Indochina to southeastern China. Similarly, it also appears...

Calotriton arnoldi is an endemic amphibian inhabiting Montseny Natural Park and Biosphere Reserve (PNRBM), listed as “critically endangered (CR)” by IUCN. At the end of 2016, the Life Tritó del Montseny (LIFETM) project (LIFE15 NAT/ES/000757) was launched. The aim of the project was to promote around fifty actions to ensure the conservation of C. a...

Calotriton arnoldi is an endemic amphibian inhabiting Montseny Natural Park and Biosphere Re-serve (PNRBM). It was recognized as a new taxon in 2005 by means of genetic and morphologi-cal analyses and, due to its small distribution range and population size, it was listed as “Criti-cally endangered (CR)” by IUCN. Its area of distribution is small a...

The Montseny brook newt (Calotriton arnoldi) is one of the most endangered amphibians in Europe, and most aspects of its biology and population dynamics are little known. We estimated the demographic parameters of the species at two distinct sites encompassing the environmental variability in habitat features by using a capture-recapture Huggins ro...

South-western Europe has a rich diversity of lacertid lizards. In this study, we evaluated the occupancy patterns and niche segregation of five species of lacertids, focusing on large-bodied species (i.e., adults having ˃75 mm snout-vent length) that occur in south-western Europe (Italian to the Iberian Peninsula). We characterized the niches occup...

Demographic traits were analyzed in the Pyrenean brook newt (Calotriton asper) to evaluate whether its variability responds to the adaptation to the different habitats. In this study, life history traits of Calotriton asper were studied in nine populations living in two different kinds of habitats in the Pyrenees mountains: lakes and streams. Skele...

The conservation project of the Hermann’s tortoise in the Garraf Natural Park consists on the release of specimens in favorable areas and their subsequent monitoring. The results obtained in 2018 are provisional due to the sampling difficulties linked to climatic conditions. However, it allows us to notice a certain decrease in the population in th...

Molecular ecologists often rely on phylogenetic evidence for assessing the species-level systematics of newly-discovered lineages. Alternatively, the extent of introgression at phylogeographic transitions can provide a more direct test to assign candidate taxa into subspecies or species categories. Here we compared phylogenetic versus hybrid zone a...

The Montseny brook newt (Calotriton arnoldi) is an endemic amphibian of Montseny Natural Park and Biosphere Reserve, Spain. It was acknowledged as a new taxon in 2005 and, based on its small range and population size, is listed as critically endangered by the IUCN. Research has confirmed a strong geographic structure within C. arnoldi populations,...

Hermann's Tortoise is the object of a conservation project h fhe Parc del Garra consisting of the reintroduction of the species (7868 specimens since 1992) and subsequent monitoring. The results obtained in 26 years of fbllow-up are provisional, but the need to continue releasing individuals seems clear, in order to minimize possible declines in th...

Sexual dimorphism in the size and shape of the Sardinian cave salamander (Atylodes genei) was analysed using morphometric measurements. Males and females are roughly equal in body size (mean snout-vent length SVL: 53.8 and 53.4 mm, respectively) but differed in body shape. Relative to their SVL, males had comparatively larger heads, longer limbs an...

The Montseny brook newt (Calotriton arnoldi) is an endemic amphibian from the Montseny Natural Park. It was recognized as new taxa in 2005 and based on their small range and population size is considered as critically endangered by IUCN. The total extension of the streams where it lives is less than 5 km and the maximum adult population size is not...

Differences in environmental conditions such as those between lakes and streams can produce phenotypic variation and ultimately promote evolutionary diversification. Some species of newts and salamanders can occupy these habitats and express alternative phenotypes: metamorphs that lose gills at metamorphosis and paedomorphs that retain them at the...

Facultative paedomorphosis is a common polyphenism in newts where two alternative phenotypes can coexist: metamorphs and paedomorphs (mature with larval traits, i.e. retaining gills). This phenomenon has been reported in some lacustrine populations of the Pyrenean newt (Calotriton asper). The morphology and life-history traits were studied in a lac...

The Pyrenees represent a natural laboratory for biogeographic, evolutionary and ecological research of mountain fauna as a result of the high variety of habitats and the profound effect of the glacial and interglacial periods. There is a paucity of studies providing a detailed insight into genetic processes and better knowledge on the patterns of g...

List and codification of environmental variables from the BIOCLIM dataset. List and codification of environmental variables from the BIOCLIM dataset. Units expressed and mean, median, minimum and maximum values for the 44 Calotriton asper populations. Temperature data is in units °C *10 with a 0.1°C precision. (XLSX)

Pairwise FST values among Calotriton asper populations. Pairwise FST values among Calotriton asper populations. See Table 1 for the population codification; p values were <0.05 for all pairs except for those in bold. (XLSX)

Estimates of effective population size (Ne) for each Calotriton asper population. Estimates of effective population size (Ne) for each Calotriton asper population, calculated with two analytical approaches (ONeSAMP, and COLONY) and using different priors; estimates of the upper and lower 95% CI estimates for each method are indicated. (XLSX)

Plot of deltaK values calculated by Evanno’s method from the Structure analyses. Plot of deltaK values calculated by Evanno’s method from the Structure analyses. A) Global dataset of the 44 Calotriton asper populations. B) Western Pyrenean populations, i.e. Cluster 1. C) Central-eastern Pyrenean populations, i.e. Cluster 2. (TIF)

IBD of the five genetic clusters. Results of the isolation by distance analyses (IBD; Mantel test) of the five genetic Calotriton asper clusters. (XLSX)

Microsatellite data of the Calotriton asper dataset used. (XLSX)

Neighbor-joining tree among the Calotriton asper populations. Neighbor-joining tree using DA distances among the Calotriton asper populations showing the relationships between the five genetic clusters defined by STRUCTURE analysis. As for the population codifications see Table 1. (TIF)

Pearson correlation matrix of environmental and geographical variables. Pearson correlation matrix of environmental and geographical variables. In bold, significant levels of p<0.05. See text, for the codes of the variables. (XLSX)

Univariate linear regression between genetic diversity and geographical and environmental selected variables. Univariate linear regression between genetic diversity and geographical and environmental selected variables of Calotriton asper populations. In bold significant levels of p<0.05. (XLSX)

Linear regressions between the genetic diversity across the longitude and altitude using only stream populations. Linear regressions between the three genetic diversity indices (Ar, HO and HE) across the longitude (A) and altitude (B) ranges when only stream Calotriton asper populations were analyzed. (TIF)

ANOVA among the three distinct habitat types to genetic diversity. ANOVA with Tukey HSD posthoc test among the three distinct habitat types to allelic richness (Ar) observed (HO) and expected heterozygosity (HE). (XLSX)

Spatial interpolation of the genetic diversity measures acroos the Calotriton asper distribution range. Spatial interpolation of the genetic diversity of Calotriton asper. A) First axis of a principal components analysis (PC1) summarizing the allelic richness, the rarified private allele richness and the observed and expected heterozygosities (posi...

We report a case of strong population decline in a population of Pyrenean newt (Calotriton asper) in the Ibon of Perramó, Aragon, Central Pyrennes, Spain. Field sampling performed during July 2017 showed a clear reduction of the population size in comparison with previous years. Less of 25 individuals were observed by sampling the southeastern shor...

We report a case of strong population decline in a population of Pyrenean newt (Calotriton asper) in the Ibon of Perramó, Aragon, Central Pyrennes, Spain. Field sampling performed during July 2017 showed a clear reduction of the population size in comparison with previous years. Less of 25 individuals were observed by sampling the southeastern shor...

In the present work, we use an exceptional database including 5,359 records of 101 species of Oman’s terrestrial reptiles together with spatial tools to infer the spatial patterns of species richness and endemicity, to infer the habitat preference of each species and to better define conservation priorities, with especial focus on the effectiveness...

Anuran amphibians undergo major morphological transitions during development, but the contribution of their markedly different life-history phases to macroevolution has rarely been analysed. Here we generate testable predictions for coupling versus uncoupling of phenotypic evolution of tadpole and adult life-history phases, and for the underlying e...

Nexus file of morphological characters of tadpoles of mantellid frogs. Characters as in Supplementary Table 5.

Supplementary Figures, Supplementary Tables, Supplementary Methods and Supplementary Refernces

Perl script used to extract list of Gene Ontologies associated with morphology from Mantidactylus betsileanus annotated transcripts, based on list defined on morphology-associated GO terms list in Xenopus laevis.

Nexus file of morphological characters of adult mantellid frogs. Characters as in Supplementary Table 4.

We provide an update of the geographical distribution and phylogenetic relationships of mitochondrial haplotype groups of the European common frog, Rana temporaria, one of the most widespread amphibians on Earth. Our data set of 378 newly determined DNA sequences of the cytochrome b gene is combined with 640 previously published sequences, mainly f...

The Persian Horned Viper (Pseudocerastes persicus) is distributed from northeast Iraq through the Iranian Plateau to western Pakistan with isolated populations in the Hajar Mountains of south-eastern Arabia. Like the other members of the genus Pseudocerastes, P. persicus is a sit-and-wait ambush feeder with low vagility, a characteristic that often...

Patterns of sexual dimorphism and age structure were investigated in two populations of the newt Calotriton arnoldi, endemic of the Montseny Massif (NE of the Iberian Peninsula). In contrast to the Pyrenean newt (Calotriton asper) sexual dimorphism in the Montseny brook newt is characterized by slightly larger females (60.3 ± 0.3 mm; maximum: 68 mm...

Many studies have identified climate warming to be among the most important threats to biodiversity. Climate change is expected to have stronger effects on species with low genetic diversity, ectothermic physiology, small ranges, low effective populations sizes, specific habitat requirements and limited dispersal capabilities. Despite an ever-incre...

The fecundity-advantage-hypothesis (FAH) explains larger female size relative to male size as a correlated response to fecundity selection. We explored FAH by investigating geographic variation in female reproductive output and its relation to sexual size dimorphism (SSD) in Lacerta agilis, an oviparous lizard occupying a major part of temperate Eu...

Painted frogs (Discoglossus) contain five to six species of Western Palearctic anurans that are mainly distributed in allopatry. We here provide the first comprehensive assessment of the phylogeography of the Moroccan species D. scovazzi and geographically characterize its contact zone with D. pictus in Eastern Morocco. Discoglossus scovazzi shows,...

A molecular phylogeny of the sphaerodactylid geckos of the genus Pristurus is inferred based on an alignment of 1845 base pairs (bp) of concatenated mitochondrial (12S) and nuclear (acm4, cmos, rag1 and rag2) genes for 80 individuals, representing 18 of the 23–26 species, and the three subspecies of P. rupestris. The results indicate that P. rupest...

Painted frogs (Discoglossus) contain 5-6 species of Western Palearctic anurans that are mainly distributed in allopatry. We here provide the first comprehensive assessment of the phylogeography of the Moroccan D. scovazzi and geographically characterize its contact zone with D. pictus in Eastern Morocco. Discoglossus scovazzi shows, in general, a w...

The Pyrenean brook newt (Calotriton asper) is a salamandrid that mostly lives in fast running and cold mountain-streams, although some populations are also found in lakes. In the present work, we report in detail on the occurrence of facultative paedomorphosis traits in a population from a Pyrenean high altitude lake. We compare its morphology, lif...

The genus Calotriton includes two species of newts highly adapted to live in cold and fast-flowing mountain springs. The Pyrenean brook newt (Calotriton asper), restricted to the Pyrenean region, and the Montseny brook newt (Calotriton arnoldi), endemic to the Montseny massif and one of the most endangered amphibian species in Europe. In the presen...

With more than 250 species, the Mantellidae is the most species-rich family of frogs in Madagascar. These frogs are highly diversified in morphology, ecology and natural history. Based on a molecular phylogeny of 248 mantellids, we here examine the distribution of three characters reflecting the diversity of eye colouration and two characters of he...

We report the presence of pigmented skin tumors in three populations of the endangered amphibian Montseny brook newt, Calotriton arnoldi, one of the European amphibian species with the smallest distribution range (40 km(2) in the Montseny Natural Park, Catalonia, Spain). Examination of one of the tumors by light microscopy was consistent with chrom...

Caudal autotomy is a defensive mechanism widely adopted by lungless salamanders (Plethodontidae) from the New World. In contrast, in Europe, this mechanism was not described until very recently for just one Sardinian species, Hydromantes (Speleomantes) sarrabusensis. We report on tail autotomy observed in another species from the same island, Hydro...

A més de posar en evidència el valor natural i l’elevada riquesa d’aquest territori, l’estudi dels boscos, les pastures, el paisatge i els usos tradicionals han fet possible que en el llibre es proposin tot un seguit de criteris de gestió. També, que es posi de manifest que l’activitat humana ha contribuït a l’enriquiment de l’espai però, alhora, q...

We used capture-recapture techniques and skeletochronological analysis to investigate body size, population size, and age structure of a population of Palmate Newts (Lissotriton helveticus) living in two adjacent lakes at 2,300 m in Andorra (Eastern Pyrenees). Females were larger (minimum–maximum, 31.0–47.0 mm vs. 32.0–42.0 mm) and heavier (0.8–2.1...

In northwest Africa some species from Sahelian origin appear with relict populations and apparently isolated by the extreme aridity of the Sahara desert. However very tolerant to aridity species could maintain continuous populations as might be the case for Echis leucogaster as indicated by results from genetic analysis and bioclimatic models. Resu...

Estat de la recerca dels amfibis i els rèptils al parc natural del Montseny. El tritó del Montseny Calotriton arnoldi

The persistence of populations is based on the optimization of reproductive processes as a means of compensating for the loss of individuals through mortality. One way of reaching this equilibrium is the coadaptation of reproductive traits defining different strategies. I explored these tactics in lacertid lizards by analysing the covariation betwe...

We report the first study of diet composition of a Pyrenean lizard of the genus Iberolacerta, the Aurelio's lizard, I. aurelioi, living in an alpine rocky slope at 2300 m of altitude in Andorra. Diet composition was studied during two years from 289 faecal pellets containing 966 prey items. Number of prey per pellet shows annual, seasonal and sexua...

A phylogeny of West Palearctic Salamandridae based on 1208 bp of mtDNA sequences (300 bp of cytb, 346 bp of 12S rRNA and 562 bp of 16S rRNA) indicates the European brook newts (Euproctus) are polyphyletic. To reflect revised relationships, the Tyrrhenian species (E. montanus ( Savi, 1838) and E. platycephalus ( Gravenhorst, 1829)) are retained in E...

West European Rock lizards, Lacerta (Iberolacerta) have small widely separated ranges in highland areas. Mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences corroborate the monophyly of the group and show it is not closely related to any of the other Rock lizards with which it was formerly placed in Archaeolacerta, an assemblage for which there is no evidence...

The thermal relations, diel, and annual activity and microhabitat use of Lacerta agilis were studied in the Pyrenean isolated range of this species. Although, this heliothermic lizard demonstrated thermoregulatory capability, thermal constraints attributable to the mountain climate were observed. The activity pattern was that typical of cold temper...

The reproductive cycle of Lacerta agilis was studied in the Pyrenees at the southwestern boundary of the species range. The activity period is short (about 4.5 months). Males attain sexual maturity at smaller sizes than females and show mixed type spermatogenesis and spring spermiogenesis. Vitellogenesis in females is rapid (45 days for the whole p...

State of Conservation of the Pyrenean brook salamander (Euproctus asper) for the Biosphere Reserve and Montseny Natural Park