2Evolutionary Biology Unit, South Australian Museum, North Terrace Adelaide 5000, South Australia, Australia
Photographs by the senior author.
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IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • VOL15, NO 4 • DEC 2008 189TABLE OF CONTENTS
T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S
F E A T U R E A R T I C L E S
Chasing Bullsnakes (Pituophis catenifer sayi) in Wisconsin: On the Road to Understanding the Ecology and Conservation of the Midwest’s Giant Serpent ...................... Joshua M. Kapfer 190
The Shared History of Treeboas (Corallus grenadensis) and Humans on Grenada: A Hypothetical Excursion ............................................................................................................................Robert W. Henderson 198
R E S E A R C H A R T I C L E S
The Texas Horned Lizard in Central and Western Texas ....................... Emily Henry, Jason Brewer, Krista Mougey, and Gad Perry 204 The Knight Anole (Anolis equestris) in Florida
.............................................Brian J. Camposano, Kenneth L. Krysko, Kevin M. Enge, Ellen M. Donlan, and Michael Granatosky 212
C O N S E R V A T I O N A L E R T
World’s Mammals in Crisis ............................................................................................................................................................. 220 More Than Mammals ...................................................................................................................................................................... 223 The “Dow Jones Index” of Biodiversity ........................................................................................................................................... 225
H U S B A N D R Y
Captive Care of the Central Netted Dragon ....................................................................................................... Shannon Plummer 226
P R O F I L E
Kraig Adler: A Lifetime Promoting Herpetology ................................................................................................ Michael L. Treglia 234
C O M M E N T A R Y
The Turtles Have Been Watching Me ........................................................................................................................ Eric Gangloff 238
B O O K R E V I E W
Threatened Amphibians of the World edited by S.N. Stuart, M. Hoffmann, J.S. Chanson, N.A. Cox, R. Berridge, P. Ramani, and B.E. Young .............................................................................................................. Robert Powell 243
CONSERVATION RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Conservation Research Reports ................................. 245 NATURAL HISTORY RESEARCH REPORTS: Summaries of Published Reports on Natural History ................................. 247 NEWBRIEFS ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 248 EDITORIAL INFORMATION ..................................................................................................................................................... 251 FOCUS ON CONSERVATION: A Project You Can Support ............................................................................................... 252
Front Cover. Shannon Plummer.Totat et velleseque audant mo estibus inveliquo velique rerchil erspienimus, quos accullabo. Ilibus aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum fugiatis maionsequat eumque moditia erere nonsedis ma sectiatur ma derrovitae voluptam, as quos accullabo.
Back Cover. Michael KernTotat et velleseque audant mo
estibus inveliquo velique rerchil erspienimus, quos accullabo. Ilibus
aut dolor apicto invere pe dolum fugiatis maionsequat eumque
moditia erere nonsedis ma sectia-tur ma derrovitae voluptam, as
IRC
F
REPTILES & AMPHIBIANSC O N S E R V AT I O N A N D N AT U R A L H I S T O R Y
Predation can substantially influence biotic communities and is therefore an important aspect of the natural his-
tory of both predator and prey (Sih et al. 1985). Predation is rarely observed and often is inferred through the examination of digestive tract contents of predators. This unfortunately entails the collection and sacrifice of animals from the wild, which can be perceived as unethical if not part of a larger project. However, the collection and dissection of predators found dead on roads is an ethical practice for obtaining infor-mation on prey utilized by the predator. The Sand Goanna, Varanus gouldii (Gray 1838) (Fig. 1), is a large varanid indigenous to most of the more arid regions of continental Australia and the dry savannahs of southern New Guinea (Cogger 2014). Herein we report on the stom-ach contents of a Sand Goanna found dead on a dirt road (Fig. 2) in the Mid North region of South Australia. At 1910 h on 15 October 2017, the senior author found a male Sand Goanna dead (Fig. 3) on Salford Road (33°55’44”S, 139°17’01”E; elev. 189 m asl; datum: WGS84).
The surrounding habitat is an ecotone between chenopod shrubland and mallee scrubland and was dominated by Red Mallee Trees (Eucalyptus oleosa), and the shrubs Bladder Saltbrush (Atriplex vesicaria), Bluebush (Maireana sedifolia), and Spiny Goosefoot (Rhagodia ulicina). The lizard was col-lected, measured, and dissected to examine its digestive tract contents. It had a snout-vent length, tail length, and body mass of 345 mm, 493 mm, and 769 g, respectively. The stom-ach contained the partly digested remains of an adult Painted Dragon, Ctenophorus pictus (Peters 1866), and a chick of the Mulga Parrot, Psephotellus varius Clark 1910. No scavenging insects (e.g., ants and beetles) were present, which indicated that the prey items were not carrion that had been scavenged by the lizard. To the best of our knowledge, neither C. pictus nor P. varius have been recorded as prey of V. gouldii. Sand Goannas are opportunistic predators that prey on a large variety of invertebrates and vertebrates, as well as car-rion (Pianka 1970; Shine 1986; Losos and Greene 1988; Thompson 1995). The considerable variation in the diet of
Fig. 1. The Sand Goanna (Varanus gouldii) is a large, relatively common lizard of the more arid regions of Australia. Note the large claws and powerful forelimbs that these lizards use for excavating prey from their burrows.
IRCF Reptiles & Amphibians ISSN 1098-6324
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this species is likely a reflection of prey availability. These lizards are active foragers and may travel great distances in search of prey, detecting them visually or by using olfactory cues (Pianka 1970; Thompson 1995). Painted Dragons are fast moving lizards that make use of shallow burrows (Cogger 2014), and the Sand Goanna most likely captured the Painted Dragon by excavating it from its burrow. Whether the Sand Goanna preyed upon the Mulga Parrot chick while it was still in its nest or whether it was found on the ground can-not be determined. Sand Goannas are primarily terrestrial (Pianka 1970), although they will prey on eggs and nest-lings of nests built near the ground (White 1952). Pianka (1970) recorded parts of two chicks of an unidentified bird as well as several species of arboreal lizards from the stom-achs of Sand Goannas. King (1978) also reported unidenti-
fied bird remains from Sand Goanna scats that were collected in South Australia, and Shine (1986) recorded an Emerald Dove, Chalcophaps indica (Linnaeus 1758), and another unidentified bird in the stomachs of these lizards. In addition, Thompson (1995) reported on a Sand Goanna that climbed into a shrub to forage. These observations suggest that under some conditions Sand Goannas may take prey in trees. This and other aspects of the natural history of Sand Goannas in South Australia warrant further empirical studies.
AcknowledgementsThis observation was made by the senior author while con-ducting field work as part of his doctoral research, which was partly funded in 2017 by a grant from the Royal Society of South Australia. Clearance for the research was granted by the Animal Welfare Committee of Flinders University (No.: E454/17) and the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources of the Government of South Australia (Permit No.: A23436-25).
Literature CitedCogger, H.G. 2014. Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia. 7th ed. CSIRO
Publishing, Collingwood, Victoria, Australia.
King, R.D. 1978. Temperature regulation in the Sand Goanna, Varanus gouldii (Gray). Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
Losos, J.B. and H.W. Greene. 1988. Ecological and evolutionary implications of diet in monitor lizards. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 35: 379–407.
Pianka, E.R. 1970. Notes on the biology of Varanus gouldii flavirufus. The Western Australian Naturalist 11: 141–144.
Shine, R. 1986. Food habits, habitats and reproductive biology of four sympatric species of varanid lizards in tropical Australia. Herpetologica 42: 346–360.
Sih, A., P. Crowley, M. McPeek, J. Petranka, and K. Strohmeier. 1985. Predation, competition, and prey communities: A review of field experiments. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 16: 269–311.
Thompson, G.G. 1995. Foraging patterns and behaviours, body postures and movement speed for goannas, Varanus gouldii (Reptilia: Varanidae), in a semi-urban environment. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia 78: 107–114.
White, S.R. 1952. Destruction of nestling birds by reptiles. Western Australian Naturalist 3: 119–120.
IRCF REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS • 26(2):132–133 • AUG 2019NORVAL ET AL.
Fig. 3. The road-killed Sand Goanna (Varanus gouldii) described herein as it was found on the dirt road.
Fig. 2. The position of the road-killed Sand Goanna (Varanus gouldii) described herein. Note the chenopod scrubland and mallee shrubland ecotone on both sides of the road.
