Short Communications

On communal egg-laying of the tiger keelback (Rhabdophis tigrinus) (Reptilia, Colubridae) in the Far East of Russia

Authors: Kidov A. A., Ivolga R. A., Ivanov A. A.

The paper presents the case of discovery of 60 eggs of the tiger keelback (Rhabdophis tigrinus) in the vicinity of the Dunay settlement (Primorsky Krai, Russian Federation) under a wooden railway sleeper on July 27, 2022. The authors suggest that it was a collective clutch of eggs from three females. Incubation in artificial conditions, from the discovery of this collective clutch to the release of juveniles from the eggs, lasted 17–20 days. Given the synchronicity of the hatching of young snakes, it is assumed that the eggs were laid by different females almost simultaneously.

Captive breeding of the Caspian lizard (Darevskia caspica) (Reptilia, Lacertidae)

Authors: Kidov A. A., Ivanov A. A., Erashkin V. O., Kondratova T. E.

The Caspian lizard (Darevskia caspica) is a recently described endemic of the Hyrcanian forests of Northern Iran. The paper presents new data on the reproductive biology of D. caspica obtained in laboratory conditions. Breeding females have a body length of 53.4– 64.4 mm and a mass of 2.96–3.60 g. Females produce from one to three clutches per season, each of which contains 1–6 eggs. The length of these eggs is 10.35–13.95 mm, width 6.19–7.59 mm, and weight 0.27–0.45 g.

Distribution and protection state of Coronella austriaca (Reptilia: Serpentes: Colubridae) in Kazakhstan

Authors: Akhmedenov K. M., Bakiev A. G.

The smooth snake (Coronella austriaca Laurenti, 1768) was known in Kazakhstan from literary sources and reptile collections by few findings within the boundaries of the modern Aktobe region in 1871–1956. The paper gives the coordinates and dates of the 2019–2022 findings in the West Kazakhstan region, where this species has not been met before.

New findings of the Aesculapian skidder Zamenis longissimus (Laurenti, 1768) (Colubridae, Reptilia) in the Republic of Adygea

Authors: Khrabrov I. E., Sadykov R. K., Shapovalov M. I.

Data on new findings of the Aesculapian skidder Zamenis longissimus (Laurenti, 1768) in the Republic of Adygea, specifying the northern border of the species’ habitat, are given. Z. longissimus should be considered a naturally rare species throughout the entire part of its distribution in the Republic of Adygea. Apparently, the direct destruction of these snakes by humans is the main threat to the species in the region.

Winter activity record of two lizard species in Egypt

Authors: Milto K. D.

Two Acanthodactylus boskianus and three Mesalina guttulata were recorded on the surface at day time, 12 January 2022 in the South Eastern Desert, Red Sea Governorate, Egypt. The weather was clear full day, in the middle of the day the air temperature reached +24⁰C. Lizards not only actively moved, but also demonstrated foraging behavior. This is the first documented record of winter activity of lacertids in Egypt.

On findings of colour anomalies in the moor frog Rana arvalis Nilsson, 1842 (Ranidae, Amphibia) in the Moscow region

Authors: Katz A. V.

Information on two findings of colour anomalies in the moor frog, Rana arvalis, in the Moscow region is prerented. In one case, the colour anomaly in a frog found in Shchelkovo District was probably the result of a decrease in the number of iridophores. This anomaly corresponds to none of the colour morph of R. arvalis described previously. The second finding was made in Volokolamsk District, and the colour anomaly was expressed in a strongly pronounced spotted pattern, which is unusual for this species.

On the northern border of the range of Darevskia pontica (Lantz et Cyrén, 1918) (Sauria: Lacertidae)

Authors: Doronin I. V., Smirnova N. G.

New findings of Darevskia pontica at the northern border of its habitat, in the Kuban-Azov lowland within the administrative boundaries of the Krasnodar and Rostov regions, are presented and discussed. The species was found in the Rostov region for the first time. It is proposed to include D. pontica into the regional Red Data Book of the Rostov region.

New data on some Russian herpetologists. Communication 4

Authors: Doronin I. V.

Previously unknown biographic and bibliographic data about Peter V. Nesterov are provided. The main part of information was found in the Central State Historical Archive of Saint Petersburg.

Amphibians of the Orenburg State Nature Reserve (Russia)

Authors: Gorelov R. A., Bakiev A. G.

Literary information about the batrachofauna of the Orenburg nature reserve is incomplete and contradictory. Data on the specific composition and abundance of amphibians in the Orenburg Nature State Reserve at its five cluster territories by the results of our 2015–2020 inventory are presented. The previously published materials about amphibians on the cluster territories “Talovskaya Steppe”, “Burtinskaya Steppe” and “Aytuarskaya Steppe” have been supplemented.

A new record of the Bogdanov's thin-toed gecko, Tenuidactylus bogdanovi (Sauria, Gekkonidae), in South Kazakhstan

Authors: Chirikova M. A., Amirekul K. A.

In the Shymkent city (South Kazakhstan) in 2019 and 2021 several specimens of Bogdanov's thin-toed gecko (Tenuidactylus bogdanovi) were found. The find was located 129 km north of the nearest known location in the Tashkent city in Uzbekistan. The repeated finding of Bogdanov's gecko in Shymkent confirms the eligibility of including this species in the list of herpetofauna of Kazakhstan.

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