All is not lost: Herpetofaunal “extinctions” in the Fiji Islands

Pacific Science
By: , and 

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Abstract

Invasive mammals are implicated in the decline or extinction of numerous insular vertebrate species worldwide, yet rediscoveries of supposedly extinct vertebrates occur regularly. In particular, recent records of secretive amphibian and reptile taxa in the Fiji Islands show that earlier claimed extirpations of Fijian wildlife were erroneous. We add to this growing body of evidence by documenting the Fiji barred treeskink Emoia trossula (Squamata: Scincidae) from Vanua Levu island, Fiji, where it was widely considered extirpated. Regional literature, coupled with this new record, emphasizes the conservation importance of remote forest blocks in Fiji as refugia against nonnative predatory mammals. Moreover, a clear need exists for additional survey work in Fiji to document the contemporary distribution of endemic and endangered herpetofaunal species across the archipelago.

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Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title All is not lost: Herpetofaunal “extinctions” in the Fiji Islands
Series title Pacific Science
DOI 10.2984/72.3.3
Volume 72
Issue 3
Year Published 2018
Language English
Publisher University of Hawai'i Press
Contributing office(s) Western Ecological Research Center
Description 8 p.
First page 321
Last page 328
Country Fiji
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