Reptiles of the municipality of Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais state, Brazil

Abstract

The Atlantic Forest of the state of Minas Gerais, as well as the remnants of this domain in the rest of Brazil, suffers a marked reduction in size and anthropogenic alteration. This habitat degradation is directly reflected in the decrease of species richness within these natural environments. In this sense, the inventory of extant species is necessary to understand the species composition of regions under threat. Despite the great richness of existing reptile species in Minas Gerais, the level of knowledge about the fauna in this state is considered unsatisfactory and very fragmented. The aim of this study was to record the composition of the reptile fauna of the municipality of Juiz de Fora through the revision of specimens housed at the Herpetological Collection of the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (CHUFJF-Reptiles) and published papers. Better documentation of the reptilian fauna for the region not only expands the knowledge of the herpetofauna of Minas Gerais, but also contributes to regional conservation planning, such as "Biota Minas" program in the states of the Minas Gerais, Brazil. A total of 41 reptile species (two freshwater turtles, two amphisbaenians, 13 lizards and 24 snakes) belonging to 12 families were recorded. We highlight the record of the freshwater turtle Hydromedusa maximiliani, which is considered a species sensitive to anthropogenic impact and currently is seen only in protected areas in Juiz de Fora, as well as Ecpleopus gaudichaudii, Enyalius brasiliensis, Heterodactylus imbricatus, Placosoma glabellum and Micrurus corallinus, that are dependent on well-preserved forest areas. The reptile composition is more similar to Viçosa and other surrounding regions, despite the presence of many species that are not shared between these locations. This fact demonstrates the importance of the collection in terms of representativeness of the local and regional fauna as well as providing a valuable source of information for future studies of Brazilian herpetofauna in general.