An updated list of the Mexican herpetofauna: with a summary of historical and contemporary studies

Abstract

The growth in our knowledge of the diversity of the herpetofauna of Mexico has occurred over the period of approximately 445 years from the work of Francisco Hernández to that of a broad multinational array of present-day herpetologists. The work of this huge group of people has established Mexico as one of the most significant centers of herpetofaunal biodiversity in the world. This status is the result of a complex orography, in addition to diverse habitats and environments and the biogeographic history of Mexico. The current herpetofauna consists of 1,421 native and introduced species, allocated to 220 genera, and 61 families. This figure is comprised of 1,405 native species and 16 non-native species (as of April 2023). The non-native species include two anurans, 13 squamates, and one turtle. The level of endemism is very high, presently lying at 63%, with this level expected to increase with time. Species richness varies among the 32 federal entities in the country, from a low of 50 in Tlaxcala to a high of 492 in Oaxaca. Amphibian species richness by state-level can be envisioned as comprising three levels of low, medium, and high, with the lowest levels occurring in the Peninsula of Baja California, a group of seven states in north-central and central Mexico, and a group of three states in the Yucatan Peninsula, with the highest levels occupying the southern states of Guerrero, Puebla, Veracruz, Oaxaca, and Chiapas, and the medium level in the remaining states of the country. Reptile species richness also can be allocated to three categories, with the lowest level occupying Baja California Sur, a group of central states, and the states of the Yucatan Peninsula, and the highest level found in a cluster of the states of Veracruz, Guerrero, Oaxaca, and Chiapas. Knowledge of the Mexican herpetofauna will continue to grow with additional studies on systematics, conservation, and the construction of checklists at various levels.

Dissimilarity among Species and Higher Taxa of Amphibians in a Hotspot of Biodiversity and Endemism in the Neotropics

“…Amphibians are the most threatened class of terrestrial vertebrates in terms of conservation [1,3], and according to Alroy [39], at the global level, the extinction of amphibians has accelerated since the 1980s and 1990s, with between 28 and 201 species going extinct and a current extinction probability for frogs of 66.1% [40]. Unfortunately, globally, Mesoamerica has the second highest probability of frogs going extinct, at 17.74%, with the main causes being deforestation, the introduction and expansion of the distribution of exotic species and the presence of the fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis [3,39,40].…”

“…In Mexico, the class Amphibia has a high global richness level, ranking fifth in the world in terms of diversity, with 430 species, of which 70% (300 species) are endemic to the country [1]. Mexico has the second most plethodontid species globally, with 132 species, of which 81% are endemic to the country [1].…”

“…In Mexico, the class Amphibia has a high global richness level, ranking fifth in the world in terms of diversity, with 430 species, of which 70% (300 species) are endemic to the country [1]. Mexico has the second most plethodontid species globally, with 132 species, of which 81% are endemic to the country [1]. At the national level, the state of Oaxaca has the greatest diversity of Amphibia, registering 38 genera (32 anurans, 5 caudates and 1 Gymnophiona) and 158 species (109 anurans, 47 caudates and 2 caecilians) [2].…”

Herpetofauna of the “El Mineral De Nuestra Señora De La Candelaria” Reserve: A Biological Treasure in Sinaloa, Mexico

“…These characteristics hold profound significance for Mexico and its fauna in terms of biodiversity, endemism, and conservation (Wilson et al, 2010). In this regard, Mexico ranks as one of the top countries worldwide, with approximately 1 421 species recorded in total (Flores-Villela & García-Vázquez, 2014;Parra-Olea et al, 2014;Ramírez-Bautista et al, 2023). This number has steadly increased due to new descriptions in both groups (e.g., López-Luna et al, 2018;Jiménez-Arcos et al, 2019;Arenas-Moreno et al, 2021;Ramirez-Bautista et al, 2023).…”

“…Herpetofaunal studies have identified Sinaloa as one of the ten most speciesdiverse states, with a total of 170 species, including 44 amphibians and 126 reptiles (Lemos-Espinal & Smith, 2020;Loc-Barragán et al, 2020;Castro-Bastidas & Serrano-Serrano, 2022;Lara-Resendiz & Jacobo-González, 2022;Aguirre-Zazueta et al, 2023b;Devitt et al, 2023;Grünwald et al, 2023;Payan-Cazares et al, 2023). These numbers represent approximately 12% of Mexico's herpetofauna, with 10.2% being amphibians and 12.9% reptiles according to Ramírez-Bautista et al (2023).…”