A new species of dragon lizard was discovered from the valleys Eastern Tibet, PR China, which provides further information about the biogeography of the river system in the region. As the direct result of continental collision, the Tibetan Plateau and its surrounding regions provide an ideal system to investigate how complex geographic events affect the evolution of living organisms. However, because of...

A new species of the agamid genus Japalura is described based on 15 specimens from the upper Lancang (Mekong) Valley of eastern Tibet, PR China. Populations of the new species, Japalura vela sp. nov., were previously recognized as J. flaviceps. The new species is morphologically most similar to J. batangensis, J. micangshanensis, J. variegata, and J. zhaoermii, but is distinguished from the...

In this paper, a new species of nematode helminth parasite is described: Cosmocerca leytensis. In addition, this paper represents the first descriptive list of parasites found in the gecko, Cytodactylus gubuaot, which is known to reside only on the Leyte Island of the Philippines. Although C. leytensis is the 30th species within the genus, it is the first to be found from...

Cosmocerca leytensis sp. nov. (Ascaridida, Cosmocercidae) from the large intestine of Cyrtodactylus gubaot (Squamata: Gekkonidae) collected on Leyte Island, Philippines is described and illustrated. Cosmocerca leytensis sp. nov. is the 30th species assigned to the genus, the 4th from the Oriental region, and the first from the Philippine Islands. The new species is most similar to those species possessing 4 pairs of...

Recent investigations into the species diversity of false geckos (genus Pseudogekko Taylor) have revealed several cryptic species, highlighting the need for a more thorough understanding of diversity within this enigmatic genus of endemic Philippine geckos. Newly available genetic data reveal that two of the four currently recognized species are complexes of mul- tiple deeply divergent evolutionary lineages. In this paper we evaluate...

This is the third in a series featuring the recent OU graduates who are members of the Siler Lab.  In their own words, they will highlight the experiences they had with us as students, volunteers and/or employees.  Begin the series here with Rachel Flanagan. I started working in Dr. Cameron Siler’s herpetology lab as my honors thesis project my senior year.  While I had...

This is the second in a series featuring the recent OU graduates who are members of the Siler Lab.  In their own words, they will highlight the experiences they had with us as students, volunteers and/or employees.  The first entry, by Rachel Flanagan, is available here and the third in the series, by Matt De Ruyter is available here. In January 2015, I began volunteering in...

This is the first in a series featuring the recent OU graduates who are members of the Siler Lab.  In their own words, they will highlight the experiences they had with us as students, volunteers and/or employees. The second featurette is available here. I started volunteering in the herpetology department at the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History during my junior year at...

The Siler Lab is attending the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles (SSAR) annual meeting in Lawrence, KS on July 30-Aug. 2, 2015.  See below for titles and abstracts: Preliminary screening of natural history collections for historical presence of amphibian infection disease in Oklahoma by Rachel L. Flanagan, Jessa L. Watters, Cameron D. Siler Amphibian populations are declining all over...

Kai Wang, recent graduate of Washington State University, will be joining the Siler Lab in July 2015 as a Master’s Student.  Prior to his arrival here in Oklahoma, Kai spent time in the field in China and Tibet. Kai was in western Yunnan Province (specifically Tenchong and Husa) in China, from April 15-25 doing an independent research study on a species of Tylotriton newt....

Field work by the Siler Lab and sponsored by the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation continued in April 2015, with visits to the following sites (see photos here).  A summary of the animals collected at each site are visible below (Table 1). April 10-12: McGee Creek WMA, Stringtown WMA, Hugo WMA (Jessa Watters, Elyse Freitas, Rachel Flanagan, Dylan Lindauer, Matt DeRuyter) April 17-19: Cookson Hills WMA and vicinity of...