Francisco Dal Vechio

• Mestre em Herpetologia
• Doutorando at University of São Paulo

Major historical landscape changes have left significant signatures on species diversification. However, how these changes have affected the build-up and maintenance of Amazonia’s megadiversity continues to be debated. Here, we addressed this issue by focusing on the evolutionary history of a pan-Amazonian toad genus that has diversified throughout...

Recent genetic studies have found unclear species boundaries and evidence of undescribed diversity in the poorly studied jararacussu species group within Bothrops. In this contribution, we investigate phenotypic and genetic diversity in the Amazonian snake Bothrops brazili to test previous assertions of unrecognised species diversity within this ta...

The Pantepui region of northern South America harbours an endemic fauna that differs dramatically from those of the surrounding lowland rainforests and savannas. A component of this unique fauna is Riolama, a poorly known genus of microteiid lizards with four described and two undescribed species restricted to tepui mountains. We here implement an...

The known diversity of treefrogs of the genus Phyllodytes has rapidly increased in recent years, currently comprising 14 species. Recent field work in the Atlantic Rainforest of the state of Bahia lead to the discovery of a new large species of Phyllodytes which is herein described based on multiple evidence including morphological, acoustical and...

The South American and West Indian Casque-headed Treefrogs (Hylidae: Hylinae: Lophyohylini) include 85 species. These are notably diverse in morphology (e.g. disparate levels of cranial hyperossification) and life history (e.g. different reproductive modes, chemical defences), have a wide distribution, and occupy habitats from the tropical rainfore...

Few studies have focused on the diverse fauna of southwestern Brazilian Amazonia. This region, spared from large-scale human occupation until the second half of the twentieth century, has been threatened by expanding agriculture, logging, and mining. Here, we describe a new nurse frog (Allobates, Aromobatidae) from the open highland habitats of Ser...

The Pantepui region of northern South America harbours an endemic fauna that differs dramatically from those of the surrounding lowland rainforests and savannas. A component of this unique fauna is Riolama, a poorly known genus of microteiid lizards with four described and two undescribed species restricted to tepui mountains. We here implement an...

Aim To investigate (a) historical biogeographical connections and species interchange among rain forest habitats and (b) the role of riverine barriers on population divergence and speciation in the Neotropical region. Location Amazonia and Atlantic Forest in South America. Taxon Bothrops jararacussu species group (Serpentes: Viperidae). Methods...

Amphisbaena bahiana was described by Vanzolini in 1964 on the basis of a single specimen from Villa Nova municipality (now Senhor do Bonfim), Bahia state, Brazil. The holotype was obtained approximately 100 years ago, and only three additional specimens have been mentioned in the literature subsequently. We report two additional specimens of A. bah...

Gymnophthalmus represents a challenging group for systematics of microteiid lizards. Due to scarcity of exemplars and molecular data, the taxonomy of the genus has been unstable, and six of its eight species are considered part of a poorly-delimited complex of unisexual and bisexual species. Unnamed populations of red-tailed Gymnophthalmus from sav...

DOI: 10.1111/zsc.12273; ORIGINAL ARTICLE: Reconquering the water: Evolution and systematics of South and Central American aquatic lizards (Gymnophthalmidae) Sergio Marques-Souza1 | Ivan Prates2 | Antoine Fouquet3 | Agustín Camacho1 | Philippe J. R. Kok4 | Pedro M. S. Nunes5 | Francisco Dal Vechio1 | Renato Sousa Recoder1 | Nathalia Mejia1 | Mauro T...

The Cercosaurini tribe stands out from other Gymnophthalmidae lizards for including several species with morphological adaptations to aquatic lifestyle (“Crocodile- Like Morphology” – CLM). Recent molecular phylogenies of Cercosaurini demonstrated the paraphyly of CLM species, implicitly suggesting that adaptations to the aquatic life evolved more...

Zootaxa 4420 (4): 451-474 Abstract A new species of Amphisbaena is described from the Brazilian Amazon, within the area impacted by the Teles Pires hydroelectric power plant, Jacareacanga municipality, State of Pará. Amphisbaena hoogmoedi sp. nov. can be diagnosed from its congeners by the following combination of characters: snout convex in profil...

The lizard genus Psilophthalmus was originally described from the sandy deposits at the northern end of Serra do Espinhaço, in Santo Inácio, state of Bahia, but since then it has been recorded in other Brazilian localities of the states of Bahia, Minas Gerais, and Sergipe. Here, we review the collected specimens based on molecular markers (mitochon...

Several decades ago, Vanzolini (1991) described Amphisbaena arenaria Vanzolini, 1991 based on a single individual (MZUSP 65817) collected at Raso da Catarina, a large flat sandy deposit at the southern bank of São Francisco River. In the same paper he described A. frontalis Vanzolini, 1991 based on specimens collected at another sandy area, at the...

Since 1965, Amphisbaena leucocephala Peters, 1878 has been considered species inquirenda due to overlap in meristic data between it and A. pretrei and the the low number of specimens available for analysis. Herein, based on recently collected specimens, we review its taxonomic status through morphological and genetic data. Both analyses recovered A...

To date, 22 species of amphisbaenids have been recorded at Brazilian Amazon (Ribeiro et al. 2008), six of them are small and have two pre-cloacal pores (Hoogmoed & Ávila-Pires 1991; Teixeira Jr. et al. 2014). Most of these species have narrow distributions, and its biology and phylogenetic relationships are poorly understood (Hoogmoed & Ávila-Pires...

Diferentes fisionomias foram intensivamente amostradas no Parque Nacional da Serra das Confusões (PNSCo) com o objetivo de acessar o padrão de distribuição da sua herpetofauna. Sessenta e seis espécies foram encontradas no parque (47 répteis e 19 anfíbios); a curva de rarefação de lagartos, embora não totalmente estabilizada em uma assíntota, indic...

We provide geographic data for the poorly known dipsadid Erythrolamprus pygmaeus, including the first record in Rondônia state, as well a new record in central Amazon at lower Purus River, Amazonas state. Additionally we review its distribution in Pará state.

Uma nova espécie de Amphisbaena é descrita de uma floresta semidecidual em Conceição do Mato Dentro, sul da Cadeia do Espinhaço, Minas Gerais, Brasil. A seguinte combinação de caracteres permite diagnosticar a nova espécie das demais congêneres: cabeça arredondada; dois ou três poros pré-cloacais dispostos em sequência; 190-199 annuli corporais; 2-...

We provide geographic data for the poorly known dipsadid Siphlophis worontzowi including the first records to the Tocantins state and on the left bank of Madeira River at Rondônia State. Our data also extend its distribution on Mato Grosso State. We also provide new morphometric, meristic and ecological data to the knowledge of this species.

Micrablepharus maximiliani (Reinhardt & Luetken, 1861) is a microteiid lizard widely distributed in the open areas of South America. Little is known about its ecology and reproductive biology. Here, we analyzed aspects of the natural history of a population of M. maximiliani from a Cerrado area in the state of Piauí, northeastern Brazil. Our result...

Abstract. Recent efforts to improve sampling of Brazilian biodiversity have yielded a number of undescribed species of amphisbaenids. Herein, we describe a new species of small, two-pored Amphisbaena from western Brazilian Amazonia. The new species can be distinguished from all congeners by the combination of the following characters: two precloaca...

The proteasome is a multicatalytic protease that is responsible for the degradation of the majority of intracellular proteins. Its role is correlated with several major regulatory pathways that are involved in cell cycle control, signaling, and antigen presentation, as well as in the removal of oxidatively damaged proteins. Although several proteas...

More than a century after its discovery by Ernest Garbe, and almost 80 years after its original description, we obtained a series of specimens of the earless gymnophthalmid Anotosaura collaris, the type species of the genus, up to now known only by a single specimen. On the basis of the material obtained at and close to the type locality we redescr...

More than a century after its discovery by Ernest Garbe, and almost 80 years after its original description, we obtained a series of specimens of the earless gymnophthalmid Anotosaura collaris, the type species of the genus, up to now known only by a single specimen. On the basis of the material obtained at and close to the type locality we redescr...

This work was carried out with the main objective of sampling the herpetofauna of a Cerrado site in the state of Piauí, Brazil, that is influenced by neighboring biomes and one of the least known regions of the domain. The herpetofauna of the different habitats present at Estação Ecológica de Uruçuí-Una (EEUU) was sampled intensively during three c...

Figure 5 caption to read as: FIGURE 5. Sulcate and asulcate faces of (A) left hemipenis of Bachia scaea sp. nov. (MZUSP 103414). and (B) right hemipenis of B . dorbignyi (MZUSP 97914). Scale bar=1mm.

A new species of Bachia of the B. dorbignyi group, Bachia scaea sp. nov., is described from the left bank of the upper Madeira River, at Rondônia state, at the western Brazilian Amazonia. The new species resembles morphologically B. dor-bignyi and B. peruana, and seems to be related with the former species based on molecular data (16S and c-mos seq...

Leposoma sinepollex sp. nov., a new species of the scincoides group, is described from a mountain region in the Atlantic Forest central corridor in state of Bahia, Brazil. The new species is characterized by elongate dorsal and lanceolate ventral scales arranged in diagonal rows, a single and smooth frontonasal, five supraoculars, absence of pollex...

We describe a new species of Atractus from Serra do Cipó, at the southeastern versant of Serra do Espinhaço, an inland mountain range nearly parallel to the Brazilian Atlantic coast. The new species is morphologically similar to A. paraguayensis and A. potschi with which it shares: 15 dorsal scale rows; white occipital region in juvenile specimens;...

A new dwarf species of Proceratophrys Miranda-Ribeiro, 1920 (Anura, Cycloramphidae) from the highlands Abstract A new species of Proceratophrys is described from the highlands of northeastern Brazil. Molecular and morphological data suggests that Proceratophrys redacta sp. nov. is sister to P. minuta, and related to P. schirchi and P. cristiceps. T...

Two new species of Gastrotheca are described from northeastern Minas Gerais and southern Bahia, in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. Data on morphology, calls, mitochondrial, and nuclear DNA are provided. Allied to G. fissipes and G. megacephala, the new taxa provide evidence for a higher diversity of species of Gastrotheca than previously thought at...