Annotated checklist of the diplura (Hexapoda: Entognatha) of California.

The first checklist of California dipluran taxa is presented with annotations. New state and county records are reported, as well as new taxa in the process of being described. California has a remarkable dipluran fauna with about 8% of global richness. California hosts 63 species in 5 families, with 51 of those species endemic to the State, and half of these endemics limited to single locales. The genera Nanojapyx, Hecajapyx, and Holjapyx are all primarily restricted to California. Two species are understood to be exotic, and six dubious taxa are removed from the State checklist. Counties in the central Coastal Ranges have the highest diversity of diplurans; this may indicate sampling bias. Caves and mines harbor unique and endemic dipluran species, and subterranean habitats should be better inventoried. Only four California taxa exhibit obvious troglomorphy and may be true cave obligates. In general, the North American dipluran fauna is still under-inventoried. Since many taxa are morphologically uniform but genetically diverse, genetic analyses should be incorporated into future taxonomic descriptions. Natural Heritage Program conservation status ranks were recommended. 

Updated checklist of the ice-crawlers (Insecta: Grylloblattodea: Grylloblattidae) of North America, with notes on their natural history, biogeography and conservation.

We provide an updated checklist and comprehensive distributional record of Grylloblatta (Grylloblattodea: Grylloblattidae) in North America. These distribution records are based upon a thorough review of the literature, as well as unpublished data of the authors and colleagues. Thirteen species of Grylloblatta are currently described, with up to 16 additional taxa awaiting formal description. Distributional data shows that endemism of Grylloblatta is high and geographic range size is typically small: the median geographical area of 13 species and six putative species is 179 km2. It is clear that there is a general lack of knowledge of species range limits and local population sizes; for example, three Grylloblatta species are known from just a single locality and less than 15 specimens each. Conservation status ranks are suggested in order to update the IUCN Red List and national Natural Heritage Network Database. Finally, we describe the natural history and seasonality of Grylloblatta, discuss their unique biogeography, and provide recommendations for future surveys of grylloblattid species by highlighting known distributional gaps.

Coprophagy in a cave-adapted salamander; the importance of bat guano examined through nutritional and stable isotope analyses.

During a two year population ecology study in a cave environment, 15 Eurycea (= Typhlotriton) spelaea were observed ingesting bat guano. Furthermore, E. spelaea capture numbers increased significantly during the time that grey bats (Myotis grisescens) deposited fresh guano. We investigated the hypothesis that this behaviour was not incidental to the capture of invertebrate prey, but a diet switch to an energy-rich detritus in an oligotrophic environment. Stable isotope assays determined that guano may be assimilated into salamander muscle tissue, and nutritional analyses revealed that guano is a comparable food source to potential invertebrate prey items. This is the first report of coprophagy in a salamander and in any amphibian for reasons other than intestinal inoculation. Because many temperate subterranean environments are often energy poor and this limitation is thought to select for increased diet breadth, we predict that coprophagy may be common in subterranean vertebrates where it is not currently recognized.