Figueroa Alex, Low Martyn E Y, Lim Kelvin K P
165 Bedok South Road; Singapore 460165..
Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum; 2 Conservatory Drive; Singapore 117377.
Zootaxa. 2023 May 18;5287(1):1-378. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.5287.1.1.
Given Singapore's location at the confluence of important maritime trading routes, and that it was established as a British East India Company trading post in 1819, it is unsurprising that Singapore has become one of the centres of natural history collecting and research in Southeast Asia. Despite its small size, Singapore is home to a diverse herpetofauna assemblage and boasts a rich herpetological history. The first systematic studies of Singapore's herpetofauna (within the Linnaean binomial framework) date back to Stamford Raffles and the naturalists hired by him who first came to the island in 1819. Specimens that were collected during and after this time were deposited in museums worldwide. Over time, 39 species from Singapore were described as new to science. Due to the entrepôt nature of Singapore with its associated purchasing and trading of specimens (both alive and dead), poor record-keeping, and human introductions, numerous extraneous species from outside of Singapore were reported to occur on the island. Such issues have left a complicated legacy of ambiguous records and taxonomic complications concerning the identity of Singapore's species-rich herpetofauna, many of which were only resolved in the past 30-40 years. By compiling a comprehensive collection of records and publications relating to the herpetofauna of Singapore, we construct an updated and more accurate listing of the herpetofauna of Singapore. Our investigation culminated in the evaluation of 309 species, in which we compiled a final species checklist recognising 166 species (149 native and 17 non-native established species). Among the 149 native species are two caecilians, 24 frogs, one crocodilian, 13 turtles (three visitors), 34 lizards, and 75 snakes. Of the 17 non-native species are five frogs, four turtles, six lizards, and two snakes. The remaining 143 species represent species to be excluded from Singapore's herpetofauna species checklist. For each of the 309 species examined, we provide species accounts and explanatory annotations. Furthermore, we discuss Singapore's herpetofauna from a historical and conservation perspective. Immediate deforestation and nationwide urbanisation following colonisation completely eliminated many species from throughout much of the country and restricted them to small, degraded forest patches. We hope this publication highlights the importance of publishing observations and serves as a valuable resource to future researchers, naturalists, biological consultants, and policy makers in initiating studies on species ecology, distribution, status, and promoting conservation efforts to safeguard Singapore's herpetofauna.
鉴于新加坡位于重要海上贸易航线的交汇处，且于1819年被设立为英国东印度公司的贸易站，新加坡成为东南亚自然历史采集与研究中心之一也就不足为奇了。尽管面积狭小，但新加坡拥有多样化的爬行动物和两栖动物群落，且有着丰富的爬行动物学历史。对新加坡爬行动物和两栖动物的首次系统研究（在林奈双名法框架内）可追溯到斯坦福·莱佛士以及他于1819年首次来到该岛时雇佣的博物学家。在此期间及之后收集的标本被存放在世界各地的博物馆中。随着时间的推移，来自新加坡的39个物种被描述为科学上新发现的物种。由于新加坡的转口贸易性质及其相关的标本买卖（包括活体和死体）、记录保存不善以及人为引入，有大量来自新加坡境外的外来物种被报告在该岛上出现。这些问题给新加坡物种丰富的爬行动物和两栖动物的身份留下了复杂的、记录模糊且分类学复杂的遗留问题，其中许多问题直到过去30 - 40年才得以解决。通过汇编与新加坡爬行动物和两栖动物相关的记录和出版物的全面集合，我们构建了一份更新的、更准确的新加坡爬行动物和两栖动物名录。我们的调查最终评估了309个物种，在此过程中我们编制了一份最终物种清单，确认了166个物种（149个本地物种和17个已定居的非本地物种）。在149个本地物种中，有两种蚓螈、24种蛙、一种鳄鱼、13种龟（三种为外来物种）、34种蜥蜴和75种蛇。在17个非本地物种中，有5种蛙、4种龟、6种蜥蜴和2种蛇。其余143个物种代表应从新加坡爬行动物和两栖动物物种清单中排除的物种。对于所研究的309个物种中的每一个，我们都提供了物种描述和解释性注释。此外，我们从历史和保护的角度讨论了新加坡的爬行动物和两栖动物。殖民化后紧接着的森林砍伐和全国范围的城市化使该国许多地区的许多物种完全消失，并将它们限制在小块退化的森林区域。我们希望这份出版物能凸显发表观察结果的重要性，并为未来的研究人员、博物学家、生物顾问和政策制定者在开展物种生态、分布、现状研究以及推动保护工作以保护新加坡的爬行动物和两栖动物方面提供宝贵的资源。
