Dear readers, Acta Herpetologicais pleased to announce the opening of anew Special Issuededicated toDatapapers—short descriptive articles focusing on original herpetological datasets.
Datapapers are designed todocument datarelated to amphibian and reptile species and may include information on:
Geographic distribution
Morphological traits
Ecological parameters
Behavioral aspects and other relevant research areas.
The submission window will be open fromMay 10th to December 31st, 2025. Authors interested in submitting their work are required to format their manuscripts in accordance with the general guidelines available on the journal’s website (available HERE)as well as the specific instructions for datapapers(available HERE).
At the end of March 2025, a winter monitoring campaign focused on collecting data on amphibians was carried out in key sites of Friuli Venezia Giulia and Tuscany as part of ongoing research and monitoring projects. The fieldwork involved the collection of biological and biometric samples, such as stomach contents and biometric parameters, from multiple species of anurans and urodeles, with the aim of implementing studies on population genetics, health status, and trophic ecology.
Particularly relevant was the opportunity to collect data on Proteus anguinus, the only European cave-adapted amphibian species and a strict troglobiont endemic to the Dinaric Karst. This species, listed among the most strictly protected under both national and international legislation, is notoriously difficult to study due to its subterranean habitat and conservation sensitivity.
During the field activities, researchers successfully performed — for the first time on P. anguinus — the non-invasive stomach flushing technique. This method allows the collection of information on the latest foraging activities of species, enabling dietary analysis without causing harm to the animal.
This winter monitoring campaign also included the collection of data on surface-dwelling amphibians, which contributed to existing datasets from several projects and long-term monitoring programs aimed at assessing population status, genetic variability, and the study of the trophic niche of this species.
Can we agree with the Criterion E used to classify extinction risk by IUCN? Read here the opinion of some Italian herpetologists.
Title: Uncertain future and uncertain projections: assessing extinction risks in European salamanders from projected chytrid fungus invasion using IUCN Criterion E
In this article we performed a fine-scale analysis of the gut contents obtained from all Speleomantes species, including hybrids. Identifying prey with higher taxonomic resolution and considering their ecology, we were able to infer on potential foraging behaviour of these salamanders, paving the way for future studies to test these new hypotheses.
Title:
Inferring on Speleomantes Foraging Behavior from Gut Contents Examination
In this article we provided the data deriving from two monitoring scheme interesting four populations (three epigeous and one from artificial springs) of the Sette Fratelli cave salamander Speleomantes sarrabusensis.
Title: Species diversity and distribution of amphibians and reptiles in Sardinia, Italy
Authors: Roberto Cogoni, Milos Di Gregorio, Fabio Cianferoni, Enrico Lunghi
In this article we show an updated database on the distribution of herp species in Sardegna, with an analysis on the environmental variables that promote higher species abundance.
Title: Species diversity and distribution of amphibians and reptiles in Sardinia, Italy
Authors: Claudia Corti, Marta Biaggini, Valeria Nulchis, Roberto Cogoni, Ilaria Maria Cossu, Salvatore Frau, Manuela Mulargia, Enrico Lunghi, Lara Bassu
In this article we investigated the trophic niche of multiple populations of the Italian cave salamander, Speleomantes italicus, throughout a year. We found a discrepancy in the foraging activity of the populations located in different areas, and temporal and spatial variability in the body condition of individuals. Our study highlighted a remarkably high spatial and temporal divergence in the trophic habits of conspecific populations.
Title: The trophic niche of subterranean populations of Speleomantes italicus
Authors: Enrico Lunghi, Fabio Cianferoni, Claudia Corti, Yahui Zhao, Raoul Manenti, Gentile Francesco Ficetola and Giorgio Mancinelli
In this article we studied the trophic niche of two sympatric salamanders, the fire salamander Salamandra salamandra and the Italian cave salamander Speleomantes italicus. We found that the Italian cave salamander mostly consumed flying prey with a hard cuticle, while the fire salamander preferred worm-like and soft-bodied prey. We hypothesize that in our case, the two species of salamanders did not have to change their prey preference in order to avoid competition, but divergences in metabolism and behavioral traits likely worked as natural deterrent.
Title: The Trophic Niche of Two Sympatric Species of Salamanders (Plethodontidae and Salamandridae) from Italy
Authors: Enrico Lunghi, Claudia Corti, Marta Biaggini, Yahui Zhao and Fabio Cianferoni
