Abstract

PERCINO-DANIEL, Ruth; CRUZ-OCANA, Erika; POZO-VENTURA, Wilber  and  VELAZQUEZ-VELAZQUEZ, Ernesto. Diversity of the reptiles in two microbasins from the río Grijalva, Chiapas, Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodiv. [online]. 2013, vol.84, n.3, pp.938-948. ISSN 2007-8706.  https://doi.org/10.7550/rmb.32460.

The dry forest is an ecosystem with a relatively high species diversity. It is also one of the most threatened habitats. The objective of this study was to evaluate the reptile diversity in 2 microbasins of dry forest from the Grijalva hydrological basin: Copainalá and Bombaná. We sampled 19 sites, 9 for Copainalá and 10 for Bombaná. At each site we laid out 2 transects along which we registered species of reptiles. In total, we recorded 36 reptile species: 28 in Copainalá and 23 in Bombaná, representing approximately 80% of the expected richness in the area. The species diversity and abundance patterns were similar in both microbasins. Among the more abundant species there were: Basiliscus vittatus, Sceloporus variabilis, Norops unilobatus and Sphaerodactylus glaucus. The complementarity of species between both zones was 58%. The most common microhabitat utilized by reptiles in these areas was terrestrial, including: leaf-litter, on rocks and on the ground. Among the species we registered, 11 present some conservation status. Our results also suggest that this region could function as a biological conservation corridor for reptiles between other near protected natural areas.

Keywords : herpetofauna; tropical deciduous forest; seasonal tropical dry forest; Chiapas central depression; microhabitat.