Occasional herpetofaunal introductions into and from the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, Brazil.

Abstract

Invasive species are on the rise. It is a global problem and early detections of alien species may be the key to control and eradicate potentially invasive popula tions. Thus, we gathered information of amphibian and reptile species that were introduced to or from the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, in the northeast of Brazil. We found that at least one lizard species, Tropidurus hispidus (Spix, 1825), may be recently establishing a population in Fernando de Noronha main island, and the endemic skink from Fernando de Noronha, Trachylepis atlantica (Schmidt, 1945), may be establishing a breeding population in Recife, mainland Brazil. Ad ditional cases of accidental or intentional transport of amphibians and reptiles to or from the archipelago that apparently did not lead to the establishment of allo chthonous populations have also been detected and are reported herein. We sug gest stronger surveillance at the ports of the archipelago to prevent further inva sions or evasions