Henrique B. BrazInstituto Butantan | butanan · Laboratório de Ecologia e Evolução - LEEV
Henrique B. Braz
PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow at the Instituto Butantan
About
45
Publications
21,624
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432
Citations
Citations since 2017
Introduction
I am interested in the natural history and evolution of squamate reptiles. My current research focuses on the evolution of viviparity, reproductive cycles, developmental plasticity, and life history.
Additional affiliations
September 2015 - March 2017
September 2013 - present
August 2009 - August 2013
Education
July 2009 - August 2013
July 2007 - July 2009
January 2001 - June 2005
Publications
Publications (45)
Fossorial snakes have attracted little scientific attention in studies of natural history, despite their relevance to capture the range of evolutionary-ecological strategies of snakes. In this study, we examined 62 preserved specimens of Phalotris lativittatus (a member of the fossorial and poorly studied Elapomorphini tribe) to obtain information...
A biologia reprodutiva de serpentes compreende diversos tópicos como modos reprodutivos, ciclos reprodutivos, fecundidade (tamanho da ninhada, tamanho dos filhotes, massa relativa da ninhada e frequência reprodutiva), idade e tamanho na maturidade, dimorfismo sexual, sistemas de acasalamento e comportamentos reprodutivos como corte e cuidado parent...
Viviparity has evolved at least 115 times in squamates and these multiple origins have raised a series of functional and evolutionary questions. Ideally, testing evolutionary hypotheses on squamate viviparity requires focusing on closely related taxa that exhibit both reproductive modes. South American water snakes of the tribe Hydropsini (genera H...
The evolution of viviparity requires eggshell thinning to bring together the maternal uterus and extraembryonic membranes to form placentae for physiological exchanges. Eggshell thinning likely involves reduced activity of the uterine glands that secrete it. We tested these hypotheses by comparing the uterine and eggshell structure and histochemist...
Knowledge of reproductive biology is essential to understand the intrinsic traits of any species and to elaborate effective
conservation strategies, particularly for threatened species. Despite recent advances, knowledge on the reproductive biology of snakes
remains deficient for most species, especially for tropical fossorial taxa. Apostolepis gab...
Females of many squamates maintain viable sperm in their reproductive tract after insemination. This 'female sperm storage' (FSS) has several advantages and clear implications for squamate evolution by dramatically influencing life histories, mating systems, and sexual selection and conflict. In this chapter, we summarize the literature on the anat...
Changes in the body temperature (Tb) of reproductive females are well documented in squamate reptiles. However, the direction of these changes varies among species. Pregnant females may exhibit a lower or higher (and less variable) Tb than nonpregnant females. In some species, pregnancy has no detectable effect on female Tb. In this study, we compa...
Studies on reproductive biology have largely contributed to the understanding of snake ecology. However, detailed reproductive data are scarce for many groups, particularly blind snakes. Here, we describe the reproductive biology of Trilepida koppesi (Leptotyphlopidae), a widely distributed species in the savannas of south-central Brazil. We descri...
In many snakes, males engage in agonistic interactions (male–male combat) apparently to establish dominant–subordinate relationships to gain priority access to reproductive females. In the Neotropical genus Bothrops Wagler, 1824 (∼45 species), male–male combat has been recorded only in three species of the monophyletic Bothrops atrox group. However...
Here, we provide information on reproductive timing, litter size, relative litter mass, and offspring morphology of T. strigatus from Brazil.
Here, I provide information on a food item and reproduction of Helicops gomesi.
Reproductive traits vary widely within and among snake species, and are influenced by a range of factors. However, additional studies are needed on several species, especially on tropical snake faunas, to fully understand the patterns of reproductive variation in snakes. Here, we characterized the reproductive biology of B. jararacussu from southea...
Here, we report on the first record of egg-laying and relative clutch mass (RCM) of the species and provide evidence that female reproductive season is longer than previously shown.
Here, we report on another instance of nest-site that suggests that female P. glabellum also lay eggs in communal nests.
Accurate and detailed species distribution maps are fundamental for documenting and interpreting biological diversity. For snakes, an ecologically diverse group of reptiles, syntheses and detailed data on distribution patterns remain scarce. We present the first comprehensive collection of detailed, voucher-based, point-locality, range maps for all...
Micrurus corallinus is a medium-sized, semifossorial elapid
snake (up to 950 mm SVL) found mostly in Atlantic forest areas in
southeastern South America (Marques 1996. Amphibia-Reptilia
17:277–285). Female reproduction is highly seasonal, with
oviposition occurring in mid wet season (December–January;
Marques 1996, op. cit.). Apart from clutch size...
We present an updated map and a list of individual geo-referenced records for Neotropical water snakes in the genus Hydrops Wagler, 1830 (Serpentes, Colubridae, Dipsadinae, Hidropsini) in South America. Our database also includes new records of H. triangularis from southern Peru (extending the known geographic distribution of this species) and nort...
The processes of follicular development, ovulation, egg capture, and egg transport vary among vertebrates. Therefore, analysis of the reproductive tract of several lineages is needed for understanding the evolutionary changes of the reproductive system. In turtles, the ovulated eggs are released into the coelomic cavity and taken up by one of the t...
Enyalius perditus is a semi-arboreal lizard species whose reproduction is poorly known. Here, we combine information obtained from preserved and live specimens to describe the reproductive timing (vitellogenesis, gravid-ity, and egg-laying) and fecundity (clutch size, egg size, and relative clutch mass) in females of E. perditus. Female reproductio...
Motivation
We generated a novel database of Neotropical snakes (one of the world's richest herpetofauna) combining the most comprehensive, manually compiled distribution dataset with publicly available data. We assess, for the first time, the diversity patterns for all Neotropical snakes as well as sampling density and sampling biases.
Main types...
Unlike many snakes (including ophiophagous ones) that swallow their prey head first, the ophiophagous snakes of the genus Erythrolamprus swallow their prey tail first. This behaviour is hypothesized to occur as a consequence of the force exerted forward by the prey to escape during handling behaviour. Here, we test this hypothesis by offering, in l...
Annual and daily activity patterns of Dipsas bucephala from southeastern Brazil were characterized respectively from the instituto Butantan (são paulo, Brazil) collection data over a 21-year period and from individuals video-monitored in laboratory continuously. D. bucephala was more frequently collected in summer (second half of the rainy and warm...
This study evaluates the mortality and average survival rates of captive female Philodryas olfersii and Philodryas patagoniensis snakes maintained for venom production. Also, two factors likely to reduce captive survival were studied – body condition at admission and seasonality. Mortality peaks occurred during the second month in captivity. More t...
Data on life history traits (fecundity, egg size, relative clutch mass, hatchling size) of the snake Phalotris lativittatus are reported. This is the first record of such data for this rare endemic species of the Brazilian Cerrado biome. Fecundity is low, but relative clutch mass is high for the species, as well as for other fossorial squamates.
Questions
Question (1)
Hi all,
I’m trying to test for interspecific differences (7 species) in some morphological traits.
I was able to group the species in two ecological categories (using mean values for each species) and test for differences using phylANOVA in R. However, I am more interested in the differences between each species (i.e. with post hoc test). I’ve found some interesting interspecific differences using conventional two-way ANOVA (with species and reproductive status as factors), but I would like to check it with a phylogenetic ANOVA too.
Best,
Henrique
Projects
Projects (3)
No Brasil existem basicamente duas linhagens de espécies de coral-verdadeira, conforme o padrão de coloração, grupo de anéis pretos padronizados em mônades (BRM) e o grupo de anéis pretos em tríades (BRT). As espécies de cobra coral estão distribuídas em diversos biomas e consequentemente estão expostas a diferentes condições climáticas. Existe a hipótese que em alguns grupos de serpentes ocorra uma forte conservação ancestral das estratégias reprodutivas, mesmo que as espécies deste grupo estejam em regiões climaticamente diferentes. Entretanto, outros trabalhos apontam que as espécies ectotérmicas podem ser fortemente influenciadas pelas condições climáticas, ou seja, estas iriam alterar as condições morfofisiológicas e reprodutivas; conforme as condições ambientais existentes no meio. Desta forma, o propósito deste trabalho é investigar as diferenças nas estratégias reprodutivas existentes no gênero Micrurus, nas linhagens BRM e BRT, comparando espécies distribuídas em diferentes biomas e ao mesmo tempo, próximas filogeneticamente. Para tanto, serão analisados os ciclos reprodutivos de machos e fêmeas, os períodos de ocorrência dos eventos reprodutivos (e.g., espermatogênese, hipertrofia do segmento sexual renal (SSR), vitelogênese, oviposição, padrões de maturidade sexual) e as estratégias reprodutivas existentes em cada espécie. Análises histológicas e histoquímicas serão empregadas para avaliar a existência da estratégia de estocagem dos espermatozoides (machos e fêmeas), o período da espermatogênese, natureza química das secreções do oviduto e do SSR. Averiguando assim, com uma abordagem comparativa, a hipótese da influência climática agir mais intensamente no ciclo reprodutivo nas corais-verdadeiras, ao invés de existir uma conservação das estratégias reprodutivas./
Coral Snakes can be divided into two clades based on the color pattern, black ring arranged in monads (BRM) and black ring in triads (BRT). This species are distributed in several biomes and consequently they are exposed to different climatic conditions. It is hypothesized that in some groups of snakes a strong ancestral conservation of reproductive strategies occurs even though the species of this group are in climatically different regions. However, other studies indicate that the ectothermic species can be strongly influenced by the climatic conditions, that is, they would alter the morphophysiological and reproductive period, according to environmental conditions in the field. In this way, the purpose of this work is to investigate the differences in the reproductive strategies existing in the genus Micrurus, in the BRM and BRT clades, comparing species distributed in different biomes. We will analyze the reproductive cycles, the occurrence of periods of reproductive events (e.g., spermatogenesis, sexual renal hypertrophy segment (SSK), vitelogenesis, oviposition patterns of sexual maturity), and reproductive strategies existing in each species. Histological and histochemical techniques will be used to evaluate the existence of the strategy of sperm storage (males and females), the period of spermatogenesis, histochemical nature of oviduct and SSR secretions. Thus, with a comparative approach, the hypothesis of climatic influence acts more intensely on the reproductive cycle in true corals, rather than on the conservation of reproductive strategies
(1) To characterize and reconstruct the evolution of reproductive modes of water snakes, (2) To describe the uterine and eggshell changes associated with the evolution of viviparity, (3) To identify the selective pressures favoring the origin of viviparity.
Basically to analyze the reproductive biology and behaviour related to Enyalius lizards, in order to elucidate the reproductive cycle associated with morphological and ecological parameters of the species.
