Aim: Animal body size is recurrently associated with climate. Bergmann's rule proposes that larger endotherms inhabit higher latitudes because higher latitudes are generally colder, and larger body sizes promote heat conservation. However, body size variation of ectotherms has been associated with other climatic variables as anurans in drier environments reach larger sizes for water conservation. We tested whether body size variation of anuran amphibians can be explained by the heat conservation or water conservation hypotheses.Location: Brazilian Atlantic Forest.Taxon: Anuran amphibians. Methods:We selected anurans from different phylogenetic groups. The size was defined by snout-vent length (SVL) and stoutness. We implemented spatial regressions including morphological dimensions and variables describing temperature and water availability.Results: Only Haddadus binotatus had SVL size negatively associated with temperature, in accordance with the heat conservation hypothesis (HCH). Itapotihyla langsdorffii had SVL positively associated with temperature, contrary to the HCH.Cycloramphus eleutherodactylus had SVL negatively associated with potential evapotranspiration, in accordance with the water conservation hypothesis (WCH). Thoropa miliaris+T. taophora and Ischnocnema guentheri showed no associations between SVL and climate. Stoutness was poorly associated with climate, with a negative relationship found only in Rhinella crucifer+R. ornata in accordance with the WCH. Main conclusions:The heat conservation and water conservation hypotheses do not offer general explanations for the body size variation in anurans from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Natural history, functional and ecological traits are more likely to affect anuran body size and they should be considered in posterior analyses.

The genus Chinavia Orian has a great diversity of species, being distributed in the Nearctic, Neotropical and Afrotropical regions (Rolston 1983; Schwertner & Grazia 2007, Grazia & Schwertner 2017). The genus is included in the subfamily Pentatominae, tribe Nezarini, whose individuals retain their green coloration after death, average size between 9 and 19 mm, and considered polyphagous (Rolston 1983; Schwertner et al. 2002; Rider 2020). Some species of Chinavia are recorded as important crop pests in different countries (e.g. Matesco et al. 2007; Herbert & Toews 2012), and those species are better known regarding distribution, ecology and other biological aspects. However, the great majority of species is known only for the adult morphology, and there are still problems concerning the correct identification of the species due to their wide distribution. 

Body size of organisms is often associated with physiological demands and habitat structure. Several theories and models have been proposed to explain body size trends across geographical space and evolutionary time. It is proposed that herbivores are larger due to their more voluminous digestive system, allowing a longer retention time of the digested material. Simultaneously, for carnivores, it is expected that the bigger the prey, the larger the predator. Additionally, some body size trends have been attributed to climatic variation across space and habitat structure. Bergmann's Rule proposes that larger endotherms inhabit colder areas, once a larger body size promotes better heat retention due to reduced surface/volume ratio. Similarly, aquatic endotherms are larger than expected, due to analogous physiological demands to endotherms living in colder environments. Here we tested whether body size of the Mustelidae clade can be explained by diet, habitat structure or environmental temperature. We performed phylogenetic regressions to assess the relationships between body size and the aforementioned predictors in 53 species of Mustelidae. We found that neither diet nor temperature were related to body size evolution. However, habitat was related to body size, with semi aquatic species being.Mechanisms involving thermal inertia, predation pressure, better quality resources close to water and bone density are hypotheses that suggest larger body sizes evolution in semi-aquatic vertebrates. We highlight the importance of considering widely accepted ecological traits for large groups, at lower taxonomic levels, in order to expand our understanding of the maintenance of these standards on different scales.

Body size of organisms is often associated with physiological demands and habitat structure. Several theories and models have been proposed to explain body size trends across geographical space and evolutionary time. It is proposed that herbivores are larger due to their more voluminous digestive system, allowing a longer retention time of the digested material. Simultaneously, for carnivores, it is expected that the bigger the prey, the larger the predator. Additionally, some body size trends have been attributed to climatic variation across space and habitat structure. Bergmann's Rule proposes that larger endotherms inhabit colder areas, once a larger body size promotes better heat retention due to reduced surface/volume ratio. Similarly, aquatic endotherms are larger than expected, due to analogous physiological demands to endotherms living in colder environments. Here we tested whether body size of the Mustelidae clade can be explained by diet, habitat structure or environmental temperature. We performed phylogenetic regressions to assess the relationships between body size and the aforementioned predictors in 53 species of Mustelidae. We found that neither diet nor temperature were related to body size evolution. However, habitat was related to body size, with semi aquatic species being. Mechanisms involving thermal inertia, predation pressure, better quality resources close to water and bone density are hypotheses that suggest larger body sizes evolution in semi-aquatic vertebrates. We highlight the importance of considering widely accepted ecological traits for large groups, at lower taxonomic levels, in order to expand our understanding of the maintenance of these standards on different scales.