Grégory Deso

AHPAM (Association Herpétologique de Provence Alpes Méditerranée) · Vaucluse - France

DNA analysis of the faeces of wild animals is a major step towards our understanding of the dietary requirements of cryptic and sometimes threatened species. The presence of digested and liquefied matter undetectable to the naked eye can be identified and used to detect the presence of plant resources. Validating the consumption of plant material i...

The Western Three-toed Skink (Chalcides striatus) is a viviparous species found in arid Mediterranean climates. Using artificial shelters, we captured five pregnant females (snout vent length = 139.2 ± 7.9 mm [SD], 131 to 150 mm; total length = 286.0 ± 9.6 mm, 275 to 292 mm [N = 3, two females with damaged tails]); body mass 15.72 ± 3.89 g, 11.55 t...

The conservation of a species is dependent on a comprehensive understanding of its ecology. Considered to live exclusively in rocky environments, the European Leaf-toed Gecko (Euleptes europaea) has in fact been observed in the past and more recently in vegetated and wooded habitats in various locations throughout its range. This preference for alt...

The gecko Tarentola mauritanica is rapidly expanding its range on the Ile du Levant (France). This species is a competitor of other small gecko species, especially Euleptes europaea, which may be displaced if they are not able to find suitable refuges that exclude T. mauritanica. As part of compensatory measures, including the creation of habitats...

The Mediterranean House Gecko, Hemidactylus turcicus (Linnaeus, 1758) is a small lizard (SVL 5 – 6 cm) belonging to the family Gekkonidae, rarely reaching 13 cm in total length. This species is widely distributed in the Mediterranean regions of Europe and neighbouring islands. The diet of H. turcicus is still relatively unknown in its natural habit...

We undertook an inventory of a northern viper (Vipera berus) population that contains the highest proportions of melanistic vipers in western Europe. An initial estimate 25 years ago suggested a melanism rate of 52% among 62 individuals. Current expectations for climate change suggest a potentially negative influence of rising temperatures on the m...

Zdunek, P., Meier, G., Deso, G. 2023. Attempted cannibalism by adult smooth snakes Coronella austriaca in France and Switzerland. The Herpetological Bulletin 166: 27-28.

La couleuvre de Montpellier vit souvent à proximité de l'homme et fait l'objet de nombreux dossiers réglementaires autorisant sa destruction ou sa relocalisation. Ces dernières années, les alertes sur la raréfaction des serpents dans le monde ont conduit à reconsidérer le statut de la couleuvre de Montpellier qui, en Provence, est classée NT (Quasi...

The Montpellier snake is a large protected species found in the Mediterranean regions of southern France, classified Near Threatened in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Knowledge of its spatial ecology is currently very fragmentary. For the first time in France, we regularly monitored six individuals by radiotracking in an artificial wastelan...

In this study, we aimed to understand the contemporary and ancient colonization routes of the Moorish gecko, Tarentola mauritanica, using simple sequence repeats. By analyzing the genetic diversity of populations in different regions, we found that Morocco is the genetic diversity hotspot for the species, followed by the Iberian Peninsula. However,...

Proving that a species of snake is a scavenger is important not only for our knowledge of its ecology, but also for the role it could play in nature. Few animals in the world are able to tolerate the proliferation of bacteria present in carrion. We used a bait (rat) that had degraded considerably over time to prove that the western Montpellier snak...

A male Phelsuma inexpectata (Manapany day gecko) on Pandanus utilis (common screw pine). The species is facing multiple threats, including invasive alien species. Drone imagery will contribute to increased detection for its monitoring, along with the spread of other invasive geckos. See article https://doi.org/10.1111/btp.13240 (Photo credit: Marku...

Species monitoring can be strongly limited by terrain accessibility, impeding our understanding of species ecology and thus challenging their conservation. This is particularly true for species living in the canopy, on cliffs or in dense vegetation. Remote sensing imagery may fill this gap by offering a cost‐effective monitoring approach allowing t...

In this study, we aimed to understand the contemporary and ancient colonization routes of the Moorish gecko, Tarentola mauritanica , using simple sequence repeats (SSRs). By analyzing the genetic diversity of populations in different regions, we found that Morocco is the genetic diversity hotspot for the species, followed by the Iberian Peninsula....

Restriction site-Associated DNA sequencing (RADseq) has great potential for genome-wide systematics studies of non-model organisms. However, accurately assembling RADseq reads into orthologous loci remains a major challenge in the absence of a reference genome. Traditional assembly pipelines cluster putative orthologous sequences based on a user-de...

Herpetofauna monitoring can be strongly limited by terrain accessibility, impeding our understanding of species ecology and thus challenging their conservation. This is particularly true for species living in the canopy, on cliffs or in dense vegetation. Remote sensing imagery may fill this gap by offering a cost-effective monitoring approach allow...

The effective conservation of a species requires a thorough knowledge of its ecology. Long considered to live exclusively in rocky habitats, the European leaf-toed gecko (Euleptes europaea) has in fact been observed in vegetated and wooded habitats at several locations throughout its range. The tendency of this species to use these habitats seems t...

Résumé-Lors d'une sortie naturaliste dans une propriété privée dans le nord-ouest de l'île de La Réunion, une population abondante de Gecko de Bourbon Phelsuma borbonica a été trouvée dans une friche exotique. Nous proposons son suivi ainsi que la création d'une aire de conservation. Mots-clés : Phelsuma borbonica, distribution géographique, nouve...

In snakes, mean and maximal body sizes are influenced by habitats. Indeed, body size reflects the effects of food availability, climatic condition and longevity. Therefore, reporting unusual large body sizes across the distribution area of snake species provides useful information. We report a record size for the Southern Smooth Snake (Coronella gi...

Depuis la publication de la note Deso et al., 2022 ( Deso,G., Crouzet, A. & Bonnet, X. 2022. Food supplementation of the Montpellier snake Malpolon monspessulanus in the wild. The Herpetological Bulletin 160: 23–24), de nouvelles tentatives sur 4 individus différents dans deux localités différentes (Bédarrides ; Cavaillon) ont été entreprises en 20...

We report a case where two males of dark green snake (Hierophis viridiflavus) disturbed during a ritual combat split away, but shortly after, they were sighted fighting again. Disturbed for a second time, they were rapidly observed fighting for a third time. Mutual biting was not recorded in any round. No female was sighted in the vicinity. This su...

A clutch of 15 eggs was recorded in a large female Montpellier snake (snout-vent length SVL 100cm, total length 130cm). In France, this represents the maximal value recorded for the species, but little information is available on the fecundity of this species. Pre-laying and post-laying maternal mass was respectively of 579g and 379g. On average, t...

Summary-Taxonomic list of the herpetofauna in the Overseas France: VI Department of La Réunion. We present an updated taxonomic checklist of the Amphibians and "Reptiles" of the French department of Reunion Island located in the Mascarene archipelago, southwestern Indian Ocean. We synthesized information from the most recent publications. In additi...

The exact function and possible toxicity of most components of snake venoms have not been fully elucidated. Clinically, the identification of potentially toxic components does not automatically translate into a human health issue. Not all venomous snakes are equal in terms of health risk. For instance, several vipers have little medical significanc...

The effect of future climate change is poorly studied in the tropics, especially in mountainous areas, yet species living in these environments are predicted to be strongly affected. Newly available high‐resolution environmental data and statistical methods enable the development of forecasting models, but the uncertainty related to climate models...

Haemorrhage into the anterior chamber of the eye can be caused by several factors: notably physical trauma, metabolic disease or pathogens. We report the first suspected case of bilateral hyphaema in free ranging Vipera aspis aspis. In reptiles, emerging diseases are rapidly spreading worldwide. It is thus important to report new pathologies.

Deso et al. 2021 | Observation d'une Coronelle girondine albinos dans le cadre SOS serpent Abstract-An albino Southern smooth snake rescued through snake SOS-A snake previously identified as an albino corn snake (Pantherophis guttatus), presumably escaped from captivity, was found in a garden in Villeneuve (French department of Alpes-de-Hautes-Prov...

Narrow-ranging species are usually omitted from Species distribution models (SDMs) due to statistical constraints, while they are predicted to be particularly vulnerable to climate change. The recently available high-resolution environmental predictors, along with recently developed methods enable to increase the eligibility of narrow-ranging speci...

The effect of future climate change is poorly documented in the tropics, especially in mountainous areas. Yet, species living in these environments are predicted to be strongly affected. Newly available high-resolution environmental data and statistical methods enable the development of forecasting models. Nevertheless, the uncertainty related to c...

Feeding interaction between the gold dust day gecko Phelsuma laticauda (Boettger, 1880) and the Manapany day gecko Phelsuma inexpectata Mertens, 1966 on flowers of exotic plants (Reunion Island). We report a nectarivory of the Gold dust day gecko and the Manapany day gecko on the exotic plant Strelitzia reginae. The nectar represent a food resource...

Title : A food behavior in question: a feeding behavior of the Reunion Paradise Flycatcher Terpsiphone bourbonnensis (P.L.S. Müller, 1776) in the flowers of Hubertia ambavilla Bory, 1804 on Reunion Island. Key words: Reunion Paradise Flycatcher, Terpsiphone bourbonnensis, Reunion Island.

On 20 April 2021, an adult individual of Epidalea calamita (Laurenti, 1768) was observed with anisocoria, during performing herpetological surveys in the Vaucluse department in the Travaillan commune (Fig. 1). The strongly dilated pupil shows mydriasis with a greyish protruding eye contour, reminiscent of a similar case recently described in Bufote...

Narrow-ranging species are usually omitted from Species distribution models (SDMs) due to statistical constraints, while they are predicted to be particularly vulnerable to climate change. The recently available high-resolution environmental predictors, along with recently developed methods enable to increase the eligibility of narrow-ranging speci...

Sympatry between the endemic Manapany day gecko Phelsuma inexpectata and the introduced P. Laticauda in Reunion Island: can they co-exist ? Abstract: The Manapany day gecko Phelsuma inexpectata is an endemic species from Reunion Island distributed along a narrow coastal band. It was classified as Critically Endangered as a result of its narrow di...

The wolfsnake of the genus Lycodon present in the Mascarene Islands has recently been referred to as L. capucinus in the literature, but this identification has never been formally confirmed by any morphological study. The taxonomy of the genus Lycodon is poorly resolved, and recent photographs suggest that this identification may be erroneous. Usi...

Introductions of animals and plants by humans permanently restructure the distribution ranges of species and the compositions of communities, a phenomenon which has been intensified in recent decades with globalization. However, it is often difficult to date these introductions or to identify the geographic origin of the introduced individuals. In...

Snakes, lizards and turtles: a food resource for humans always present in our memories? In the heart of the French countryside, recipes developed around the biggest snakes, ways to prepare Lizards identical to other countries are still in the minds of our elders. We also report here a testimony of consumption of the ocellated lizard and of an unexp...

Several biotopes populated with palmate newts (Lissotriton helveticus) and/or fire salamanders (Salamandra Salamandra) have been recorded in the area of Lacoste in the Petit Luberon (Vaucluse). The presence of the palmate newt is updated for the regional natural Park. Study of the geomorphological and ecological characteristics of habitats demonstr...

A herpetological inventory in the city of Cannes has allowed to record new localities of the Italian slow worm and the Mediterranean gecko. A discussion about their urban ecology and conservation issues is developed here.

The Indo-Pacific Slender Gecko Hemiphyllodactylus typus is distributed across the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Its ecological flexibility and vast distribution may raise concerns of a potential invasion in tropical and subtropical islands worldwide, but evidence of a recent spread is lacking. The identity of the species has also been questioned acros...

A presence / absence protocol to model the detection and occupation probabilities of temporary watercourses (“wadis”) sections by the Tyrrhenian Painted Frog was set up on the island of Port-Cros in 2018. Different sampling methods, by day and by night, conducted during four spring survey sessions, were compared. The influence of different habitat...

Résumé: après avoir subi il y a quelques années une réduction drastique, la population tamponnaise du Gecko vert de Manapany, Phelsuma inexpectata, doit faire face à une nouvelle menace : la colonisation du Gecko vert poussière d’or, Phelsuma laticauda, une espèce exotique envahissante généralement agressive envers les autres reptiles de même taill...

Le parc national de Port-Cros a confié une mission d'inventaire et de suivi des populations de Cistudes d'Europe présentent dans l'aire d'adhésion continentale du parc national.

All the team of winemakers are mobilized to create a vintage Ocellated lizard. No less than 15 winemakers have also signed a charter of commitment to the respect of the species and its habitat. The winery is planning 30 winemakers for the end of the year.

Créée en août 2015, l'association vous présente ici certaines de ses actions marquantes Dont des suivis de populations de reptiles et d'amphibiens. AHPAM est une association vouée à la valorisation et à la protection des amphibiens et reptiles.

Recognition of an ocellated Lizard (Timon lepidus) on a five year span, thanks to the photo-identification. Thanks to the shape and the arrangement of its ocelli, an ocellated lizard was identified in 2012 as the same individual already photographed in 2007.

The genus Anguis is known to be mainly continental in the Mediterranean area, and accordingly it has never been recorded in Western Mediterranean islands. Here we report for the first time the presence of the slow worm in a Western Mediterranean island, the Ile Sainte-Marguerite from Lérins archipelago (southeastern France). The molecular analysis...

Establishment of a follow-up on the ocellated lizard (Timon lepidus) in vineyards of the Cascastel cooperative cellar. Accompaniment of winemakers to protect the Ocellated Lizard.

Are elevated sites’ occurrences of Ocellated lizard Timon lepidus (Daudin, 1802) sporadic events? A case study in the southeastern French Alps Species distribution knowledge is a major issue for conservation, especially in times drive by global changes. However, common assumptions and non-standardized distribution of sample or data set often resul...

Le Mimosa d'hiver Acacia dealbata Link, 1822, une menace pour le Lézard ocellé Timon lepidus (Daudin, 1802)? (Région Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur) par Grégory DESO Abstract-Winter mimosa Acacia dealbata Link, 1822, a menace for ocellated lizard Timon lepidus (Daudin, 1802) in the country Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur ? The ocellated Lizard Timon lepidus...

Records de taille chez la couleuvre vipérine Natrix maura (Linnaeus, 1758) en France. Une nouvelle mention dans les Alpes-de-Haute-Provence (04) par Grégory DESO Abstract-Length records for the viperine water snake, Natrix maura (Linnaeus, 1758), in France. New record in the department of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. One specimen of Natrix maura of 90...

“Païolive” is a karstic plateau covering approximately 15,000ha in the Mediterranean southern France. Canyons, an old oak forest established in a mega-lapies, grassy patches and scrubs in open areas named “Gras”, and the endokarst, together constitute an ecological unit that contributes to the touristic attractiveness of the region. A multidiscipli...

Un cas d'albinisme sur des têtards de Pélodyte ponctué, Pelodytes punctatus, dans le sud de la France, département du Var, est rapporté. Il semble qu'il s'agisse de la deuxième mention de Pélodyte albinos en France. Abstract-Discovery of a population of albino tadpoles of parsley frog Pelodytes punctatus (Daudin, 1802) in the French department of V...

Recent surveys on the ocellated lizard, Timon lepidus lepidus, populations along the French and Italian border allowed to update the species’ distribution and conservation status. Two populations connecting the two countries were discovered and several pathways between France and Italy are suspected. We also discuss the status of these populations...

Two new populations of agile frog Rana dalmatina Fitzinger in Bonaparte, 1838 were discovered in the Haute-Alpes, thus confirming the presence of this species in that department. These populations are located in the Avance valley, in the upper Durance River. This frog was recorded at unexpectedly high altitudes, unknown until now in France (1,200 m...

Abstract – Occurrence of a melanistic specimen of Chalcides striatus (Cuvier 1829) in the French department of Alpes-Maritimes. One melanistic specimen of Chalcides striatus was discovered in the French department of Alpes-Maritimes (06) at 940 meters asl.

Observation of an anthropophile commensal behaviour in the Sicilian Lizard Podarcis siculus campestris (De Betta, 1857) in Tuscany (Italy) – Some details on the diet and commensal behaviour of Sicilian Lizards in Tuscany, Italy.

Ce travail fait le point sur la systématique et la répartition mondiale de Hemidactylus parvimaculatus. Il propose un historique de ces descriptions dans le sud de l'Océan Indien, une discussion sur la période de son introduction dans les Mascareignes, et fournit de premières données sur son éco-logie et sa répartition à La Réunion. Summary – Hemid...

De nouvelles recherches effectuées dans la Haute vallée de la Durance (départements des Hautes-Alpes et des Alpes-de-Haute-Provence) permettent de préciser l'extension du Lézard ocellé au sein de l'arc alpin, aux marges de la distribution de l'espèce. Dix-neuf nouvelles populations sont rap-portées, ainsi que la confirmation de trois stations histo...