Representation of women in science drops substantially at each career stage, from early student to senior investigator. Disparities in opportunities for women to contribute to research metrics, such as distinguished speaker events and authorship, have been reported in many fields in the U.S.A. and Europe. However, whether female representation in scientific contributions differs in other regions, such as Latin America, is not well understood. In this study, in order to determine whether female authorship is influenced by gender or institutional location of the last (senior) author or by subfield within ecology, we gathered author information from 6849 articles in ten ecological and zoological journals that publish research articles either in or out of Latin America. We found that female authorship has risen marginally since 2002 (27 to 31%), and varies among Latin American countries, but not between Latin America and other regions. Last author gender predicted female co-authorship across all journals and regions, as research groups led by women published with over 60% female co-authors whereas those led by men published with less than 20% female co-authors. Our findings suggest that implicit biases and stereotype threats that women face in male-led laboratories could be sources of female withdrawal and leaky pipelines in ecology and zoology. Accordingly, we encourage every PI to self-evaluate their lifetime percentage of female co-authors. Female role models and cultural shifts–especially by male senior authors–are crucial for female retention and unbiased participation in science.

Comparative landscape genetics has uncovered high levels of variability in which landscape factors affect connectivity among species and regions. However, the relative importance of species traits versus environmental variation for predicting landscape patterns of connectivity is unresolved. We provide evidence from a landscape genetics study of two sister taxa of frogs, the Oregon spotted frog (Rana pretiosa) and the Columbia spotted frog (Rana luteiventris) in Oregon and Idaho, USA. Rana pretiosa is relatively more dependent on moisture for dispersal than R. luteiventris, so if species traits influence connectivity, we predicted that connectivity among R. pretiosa populations would be more positively associated with moisture than R. luteiventris. However, if environmental differences are important drivers of gene flow, we predicted that connectivity would be more positively related to moisture in arid regions. We tested these predictions using eight microsatellite loci and gravity models in two R. pretiosa regions and four R. luteiventris regions (n = 1,168 frogs). In R. pretiosa, but not R. luteiventris, connectivity was positively related to mean annual precipitation, supporting our first prediction. In contrast, connectivity was not more positively related to moisture in more arid regions. Various temperature metrics were important predictors for both species and in all regions, but the directionality of their effects varied. Therefore, the pattern of variation in drivers of connectivity was consistent with predictions based on species traits rather than on environmental variation.

The bocagei clade is a species complex of dendrobatid frogs evidenced from recent molecular systematic studies. This lineage is endemic to the eastern Andean slopes and adjacent Amazonian lowlands in southern Colombia, Ecuador and northern Peru. Herein, we analyze the taxonomy of the bocagei clade by means of qualitative and quantitative morphological characters and call parameters. We recognize and provide accounts for six species: Hyloxalus bocagei, H. faciopunctulatus, H. maculosus, H. sauli and two new species. We also provide phylogeographic data. We formally assign the name of Hyloxalus bocagei only to populations from the surroundings of Volcán Reventador (Provincia Napo, Ecuador). Additionally, we describe the tadpoles of Hyloxalus bocagei, H. maculosus, and two new species, plus vocalizations of H. bocagei, H. maculosus, H. sauli, and two new species. Morphological variation was estimated from 16 morphometric characters using multivariate analysis. Adults of the two new species were indistinguishable using quantitative and qualitatively morphological characters. Nevertheless, molecular data, call parameters (dominant frequency, note repetition rate), and tadpole morphology supported the recognition of these two species as cryptic taxa. A current phylogenetic tree using molecular characters of five species of the bocagei clade is also provided including the maximum likelihood (ML) phylogeny and a chronogram of the group. Our phylogeny confirms the close relationship of members of the bocagei clade with Andean relatives of Hyloxalus and recurrent dispersal events from the Andes to the Amazon Basin in the late Miocene (< 10 MYA). Our data also corroborate that the sister lineage of bocagei clade includes the Andean H. subpunctatus clade. We anticipate that further detailed morphological and molecular data will be necessary to reveal the existence of additional cryptic species within the bocagei clade.

The outbreak and transmission of disease-causing pathogens are contributing to the unprecedented rate of biodiversity decline. Recent advances in genomics have coalesced into powerful tools to monitor, detect, and reconstruct the role of pathogens impacting wildlife populations. Wildlife researchers are thus uniquely positioned to merge ecological and evolutionary studies with genomic technologies to exploit unprecedented "Big Data" tools in disease research; however, many researchers lack the training and expertise required to use these computationally intensive methodologies. To address this disparity, the inaugural "Genomics of Disease in Wildlife" workshop assembled early to mid-career professionals with expertise across scientific disciplines (e.g., genomics, wildlife biology, veterinary sciences, and conservation management) for training in the application of genomic tools to wildlife disease research. A horizon scanning-like exercise, an activity to identify forthcoming trends and challenges, performed by the workshop participants identified and discussed 5 themes considered to be the most pressing to the application of genomics in wildlife disease research: 1) "Improving communication, " 2) "Methodological and analytical advancements, " 3) "Translation into practice, " 4) "Integrating landscape ecology and genomics, " and 5) "Emerging new questions. " Wide-ranging solutions from the horizon scan were international in scope, itemized both deficiencies and strengths in wildlife genomic initiatives, promoted the use of genomic technologies to unite wildlife and human disease research, and advocated best practices for optimal use of genomic tools in wildlife disease projects. The results offer a glimpse of the potential revolution in human and wildlife disease research possible through multi-disciplinary collaborations at local, regional, and global scales.