José António Lemos Barão-Nóbrega

• PhD in Biological Sciences
• Terrestrial Research Manager at Operation Wallacea

Although nesting ecology is well studied in several crocodilian species, it is not known how nest attendance influences physiology and body condition of nesting females. In this study, we describe body condition and serum biochemical values of nesting female, non-nesting female and male spectacled caiman (Caiman crocodilus) and black caiman (Melano...

Observations on: 1) long distance movement by a juvenile crocodile between two aguadas (temporary lake sustained by rainfall) in Calakmul's Biosphere Reserve (CBR); 2) diet and feeding behaviour of an adult crocodile in CBR

Although nesting ecology is well studied in crocodilians, there is little information on the diet and feeding habits of nesting females. During the annual dry season (November - December) of 2012, we studied the diet of female spectacled caiman (Caiman crocodilus) attending nests (n = 33) and far from nests (n = 16) in Piagaçu-Purus Sustainable Dev...

We provide a list of amphibians and reptiles of the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve in the southern half of the Mexican Yucatan, in the state of Campeche. The study area was sampled through opportunistic, transect and pitfall trap surveys conducted for three successive years. These surveys resulted in a total of 2,359 amphibian and reptile encounters, b...

Predation is one of the major causes of crocodilian egg mortality. Many studies have suggested that opening nests, handling eggs, and capturing attending females may increase predation rates, but the influence of such activities on nest predation has not been quantified. For that reason, we studied the impacts of different research activities on ne...

Standardized monitoring strategies are often used to study spatial and temporal ecological patterns and trends. Such approaches are applied for many study taxa, including bats (Mammalia, Chiroptera). However, local characteristics of individual field sites, including species assemblages, terrain, climatic factors, and presence or lack of landscape...

Ectoparasites are common on herpetofauna and can cause skin lesions, thermoregulatory complications,and hinder growth. Herein we present records from the literature and new data from the Calakmul Biosphere Reserveon ectoparasites of herpetofauna in the subclasses Acari (mites and ticks) and Hirudinea (leeches) from the MexicanYucatan Peninsula. Our...

Syntopic species share the same habitat in time and space. Thus, although some species might have completely coincident spatial distributions on a relatively broad scale, most are syntopic only in certain locations. Four species of caimans (Crocodylia: Alligatoridae) occur throughout the Amazon basin, but they are rarely found living in syntopy. In...

When backcrosses are fertile, interbreeding between endangered taxa can lead to the admixture of gene pools under threat. One such case pertains to the Mesoamerican crocodile Crocodylus moreletii, a species which shows strong signatures of both recent hybridisation and historic intogression with the American crocodile C. acutus across large parts o...

The herpetofauna occurring in the Selva Maya is one of the richest assemblages in the Americas. We herein provide an updated list of herpetofauna species for the Calakmul region, located in the southern Yucatán Peninsula, Campeche, Mexico. This species list was compiled considering the results of herpetological surveys conducted between 2015-2019 i...

En el sureste de México, norte de Guatemala y noreste de Belice se encuentra la Selva Maya, un bosque trinacional considerado el macizo forestal tropical más extenso en Mesoamérica, con más de 30,000 km2 bajo alguna categoría de protección. En la Selva Maya el agua se acumula en pequeños reservorios conocidos como “aguadas”. Se ha documentado que l...

Estimates of animal abundance provide essential information for population ecological studies. However, the recording of individuals in the field can be challenging, and accurate estimates require analytical techniques which account for imperfect detection. Here, we quantify local abundances and overall population size of Morelet's crocodiles (Croc...

A biologia reprodutiva em crocodilianos envolve todos os processos ecológicos incluindo o acasalamento, a nidificação, a incubação dos ovos, a eclosão dos filhotes e, em alguns casos, o cuidado parental destes. Diferente do que acontece com a espécie de crocodiliano mais aparentada que habita a região sudeste dos Estados Unidos (ELSEY et al., 2008)...

https://ssarherps.org/herpetological-review-pdfs/

https://ssarherps.org/herpetological-review-pdfs/

https://ssarherps.org/herpetological-review-pdfs/

1. Crocodilians represent one of the oldest extant vertebrate lineages. They have co-existed with humans throughout the Amazon basin for thousands of years, often having a strong cultural and economic influence on people's lives. Shifts in the socioeconomic and political reality of the Amazon basin during the last century have led crocodilian popul...

Assignment of Morelet's crocodile Crocodylus moreletii individuals into size groups or classes based on ecological and morphological similarities has not yet been associated with species-specific ontogeny related changes. Age or size of first reproductive behavior is not precisely known for C. moreletii, but differences in allometric patterns and r...

Although our knowledge on the population biology of the Morelet’s crocodile (Crocodylus moreletii) has been rapidly increasing over the last decades, only rudimentary information is currently available about populations from the Selva Maya, especially in Mexico. In the region of Calakmul (Campeche, Mexico), C. moreletii inhabits semi-temporary and...

Herpetofauna occurring in the Mayan jungle is one of the richest assemblages in the Americas. The Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (UNESCO World Heritage Site of Culture and Nature due to the forest of outstanding biodiversity) in Mexico contains 89 species, including some Yucatan endemics. Due to the lack of rivers and permanent waterbodies, species div...

The impact of microplastics on wildlife is a recent problem for which methods to evaluate exposure still need development. Being able to identify and quantify microplastics (particles < 5 mm) in the gastric contents of live crocodiles allows us to evaluate exposure, at both individual and population level, and also its contribution as transporter o...

Although our knowledge on the population biology of the Morelet's crocodile (Crocodylus moreletii) has been rapidly increasing over the last decades, only rudimentary information is currently available about populations from the Selva Maya. In the region of Calakmul (Campeche, Mexico), C. moreletii inhabit semi-temporary and therefore highly dynami...

Crocodilian hematology and serum/plasma biochemical values exhibit wide variation between and within species. These differences may be attributed to habitat, nutrition, sex, age, population dynamics, and many other environmental conditions. Reference ranges for physiological parameters have been reported for many reptiles, including several crocodi...

Location and general structure information on 101 waterbodies (aguadas) in the region of Calakmul (Calakmul Biosphere Reserve and Balam-Ku State Reserve) in Campeche, Mexico. This work is part of the PhD thesis of José António L. Barão-Nóbrega at University of Salford in collaboration with Operation Wallacea. For additional information please fol...

For the complete Herpetological Review section please follow this link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/4rea6u9ijy6200m/HR_Dec2018_Natural_History_Notes.pdf?dl=1

For the complete Herpetological Review section please follow this link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/4rea6u9ijy6200m/HR_Dec2018_Natural_History_Notes.pdf?dl=1

Although nesting ecology is well studied in several crocodilian species, it is not known how nest attendance influences physiology and body condition of nesting females. In this study, we describe body condition and serum biochemical values of nesting female, non-nesting female and male spectacled caiman (Caiman crocodilus) and black caiman (Melano...

Classification in the Morelet’s crocodile (Crocodylus moreletii) within size classes based on ecological and morphological similarities may not be associated with species' ontogeny related changes. Age or size of first reproductive behavior is not precisely known in C. moreletii, but changes in allometric patterns and relative cranial size between...

Crocodiles accomplish specific regulatory functions for the ecological balance. The objective of this study was to determine the population status of Crocodylus acutus and Crocodylus moreletii based on their distribution, density (encounter rates) and demographic structure (class sizes and sex ratio).

Although our knowledge on the population biology of the Morelet’s crocodile (Crocodylus moreletii) has been rapidly increasing over the last decades, only rudimentary information is currently available about populations from the Selva Maya. The existing outputs of this ongoing project represent the first layer of knowledge for C. moreletii populati...

Our ability to evaluate behaviour of wild vertebrates has experienced significant improvements over the last decades, allowing researchers to monitor and map detailed movement patterns, even for highly cryptic species. Schneider’s smooth-fronted caiman (Paleosuchus trigonatus) represents one of the least known crocodilian species within the Amazon...

Neotropical herpetofauna are rapidly declining, and understudied, despite them containing a large global assemblage. Tropical dry forest, such as that in the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (CBR) in Campeche acts as a cline between the dryer North of the Yucatán and the more humid Central America, and consequentially contains a large herpetofaunal commu...

The Calakmul Biosphere Reserve (CBR) is an UNESCO Mixed World Heritage Site of Nature and Culture of outstanding biodiversity and archaeological importance. The primary source of income for local communities is crop based agriculture and with a growing human population, forest encroachment is a concern. The only sources of water are lakes fed by ra...

A expansão urbana é a mais nova ameaça à biodiversidade na Amazônia Central brasileira, pois a especulação imobiliária acelera a fragmentação florestal, agrava a poluição dos corpos hídricos e gera impactos irreversíveis à biota. Manaus, a capital brasileira mais central no bioma Amazônia, abriga cerca de 2,4 milhões de habitantes e uma expressiva...

Predation is one of the major causes of crocodilian egg mortality. Many studies have suggested that opening nests, handling eggs, and capturing attending females may increase predation rates, but the influence of such activities on nest predation has not been quantified. For that reason, we studied the impacts of different research activities on ne...

All four crocodilian species that occur in Central Amazonia build their nests during the annual dry season. Some authors have already suggested that several aspects associated with nesting (e.g. egg production and laying, construction and maintenance of the nest, among others) may influence body condition of nesting females. However, for amazonian...