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Aim To utilize comprehensive geographical sampling and a new, multilocus dataset to re-examine the biogeography of spotted stream frogs (Hylarana signata complex) throughout Southeast Asia. To compare patterns of diversification among stream frog populations on land-bridge islands and oceanic islands and to re-evaluate a previous ‘dual-invasion’ hypothesis for the origins of endemic Philippine taxa. Location Southeast Asia, Sundaland, and the Philippines. Methods...

Establishment of conservation priorities for primates is a particular concern in the island archipelagos of Southeast Asia, where rates of habitat destruction are among the highest in the world. Conservation programs require knowledge of taxonomic diversity to ensure success. The Philippine tarsier is a flagship species that promotes environmental awareness and a thriving ecotourism economy in the Philippines. However, assessment of its...

The genus Hologerrhum is one of four endemic snake genera found only in the Philippines. Because there were no male specimens of H. philippinum in collections, taxonomists thought this might have been an all-female, parthenogenetic species which could reproduce without the presence of a male. During recent fieldwork in the northern Philippines, an adult male H. philippinum was collected in mixed primary-...

Recent studies of forest lizards in Southeast Asia have revealed both physical and genetic differences within this family. These lizards are currently being threatened by the deforestation that is occurring in the region. Lizards in the Philippines are particularly vulnerable, as 84% of the lizard species there are found nowhere else on the planet. Though the threats faced by these lizards are...

Long celebrated for its spectacular landscapes and strikingly high levels of endemic biodiversity, the Philippines has been studied intensively by biogeographers for two centuries. Concentration of so many endemic land vertebrates into a small area and shared patterns of distribution in many unrelated forms has inspired a search for common mechanisms of production, partitioning, and maintenance of life in the archipelago. In...

We provide a phylogenetic and population genetic evaluation of the illegal pet and bush meat trade of monitor lizards in the Philippines. We use a molecular dataset assembled from vouchered samples with known localities throughout the country, as a reference for statistical phylogenetic, population genetic, and DNA barcoding analyses of genetic material obtained during a three year survey of the Manila pet...

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Approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) is rapidly gaining popularity in population genetics. One example, msBayes, infers the distribution of divergence times among pairs of taxa, allowing phylogeographers to test hypotheses about historical auses of diversification in co-distributed groups of organisms. Using msBayes, we infer the distribution of divergence times among 22 pairs of populations of vertebrates distributed across the Philippine Archipelago. Our objective...

We provide the first report on the herpetological biodiversity (amphibians and reptiles) of the northern Sierra Madre Mountain Range (Cagayan and Isabela provinces), northeast Luzon Island, Philippines. New data from extensive previously unpublished surveys in the Municipalities of Gonzaga, Gattaran, Lasam, Santa Ana, and Baggao (Cagayan Province), as well as fieldwork in the Municipalities of Cabagan, San Mariano, and Palanan (Isabela Province),...

Living amphibians exhibit a diversity of ecologies, life histories, and species-rich lineages that offers opportunities for studies of adaptive radiation. We characterize a diverse clade of frogs (Kaloula, Microhylidae) in the Philippine island archipelago as an example of an adaptive radiation into three primary habitat specialists or ecotypes. We use a novel phylogenetic estimate for this clade to evaluate the tempo of...