The sand-dune lizard Liolaemus multimaculatus is an Endangered species endemic to the Pampean coastal dunes of Argentina. To inform the development of a future Action Plan for this species, we investigated the demography and conservation status of all remaining populations, and we suggest management actions appropriate to local needs. We used population viability analysis to assess extinction risk in three inbreeding scenarios and estimate the minimum viable population and the minimum area requirement. To assess the current status of each local population, we used information related to population size, human pressure and connectivity. The results were then used to set and prioritize conservation management actions at local level. Our models indicated that populations of > 2,400 individuals would be viable in the long term and that inbreeding depression has a strong effect on extinction risk. The southern patches of coastal dune contain the largest populations of sand-dune lizards, and they are also better connected and less threatened. We suggest land protection as the priority management action for populations larger than the minimum viable population, whereas habitat recovery, when possible, should be the priority for patches of coastal dune smaller than the minimum area requirement. Supplementation with a small number of individuals could stabilize unviable populations but should be considered only in certain situations.The long-term conservation of the sand-dune lizard will be feasible only if a conservation action plan is developed and implemented.

Talampaya National Park (TNP) was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, together with Ischigualasto Provincial Park in 2000, but there is no list with updated information from reptiles and amphibians eighteen years after its creation. Therefore, we listed a complete inventory of the herpetofauna of TNP with the information obtained from bibliography, data from Argentina National Parks Administration (ranger reports and the species listed in their database) and fieldwork using pitfall traps, active search transects and pictures/material collected in the site. We confirm the occurrence of 35 species of herpetofauna in the TNP, including 29 reptiles and 6 amphibians. Some species found in TNP are of great value because their national conservation status is vulnerable (Chelonoidis chilensis, Liolaemus anomalus, Liolaemus riojanus) or even endangered (Boa constrictor occidentalis). Therefore, priority areas for conservation of these species should be proposed inside the park.

Chigger mites of the genus Hannemania Oudemans 1911 (Acari: Leeuwenhoekiidae) are subcutaneous parasites of amphibians. To date, 28 species have been reported from the Americas and Oceania. In Argentina, only six species have been recorded: H. achalai Alzuet & Mauri 1987, H. argentina Lahille 1927, H. edwardsi Sambon 1928, H. hobdayi Sambon 1928, H. minor Alzuet & Mauri 1987 and, H. samboni Ewing 1931. Those species were recorded parasitizing frogs of the genera Bufo Garsault (Bufonidae), Hypsiboas Wagler (Hylidae), Leptodactylus Fitzinger (Leptodactylidae), Nannophryne Günther (Bufonidae), Odontophrynus Reinhardt & Lütken (Odontophrynidae) and, Pleurodema Tschudi (Leptodactylidae). Most of these records are from the northern, northeastern and Andean regions in Argentina. In Argentinean Patagonia, the Meseta de Somuncurá is a protected natural area of great biological interest due to the strong endemism of fauna and flora (at least 14 endemic species). Only, H. hobdayi and H. samboni have been described from Argentinean Patagonia. The endemic Laguna Raimunda frog, Atelognathus reverberii (Cei) (Anura: Batrachylidae), is an endangered species with a distribution in the semi-permanent volcanic clay lagoons of Meseta de Somuncurá. The ecological characteristics of A. reverberii populations make it vulnerable to habitat degradation and parasitic diseases. This study aimed to describe a potentially new species of Hannemania collected as a parasite of A. reverberii in Meseta de Somuncurá, Río Negro, Argentina. A sample of 11 mites was cleared in lactophenol solution, slide-mounted in Hoyer’s medium, and observed using an optical microscope with Phase contrast and DIC. The mites have a palpal formula that differs from those of the previously described Hannemania species from Argentina and the rest of South America. They also differ from the related species in the number of eupathidia on the genu of leg I (σ) and the number and arrangement of dorsal opisthosomal setae. We consider that the species morphological differences and geographic isolation are sufficient to propose a novel species of the genus Hannemania. Herein, we present the first record of Hannemania parasitizing A. reverberii. As this amphibian is considered endangered, this novel species of Hannemania is probably threatened. This study contributes to the knowledge of this parasitic mite. In future studies, it will be necessary to consider molecular data of Argentinian Hannemania species to achieve a better understanding of the systematics of the genus.

The White-rumped Sandpiper (Calidris fuscicollis) (Vieillot 1819) is one of the longest migrating birds that breeds in the high Arctic in Alaska and Canada and spends the post-breeding period in South America. This bird is a frequent vagrant visitor of Islas Georgias del Sur/South Georgia and the South Shetland islands. Here we provide the first record for the White-rumped Sandpiper at the Continental Antarctica. The individual was observed the 2 February 2019 at Esperanza/Hope Bay (63° 23′ 56″ S, 56° 59′ 06″ W), the north of the Antarctic Peninsula, in an ice-free rockery close to a melt-water-run-off area. At the moment of the observation, the temperature was above 0 °C and the wind calm. However, strong winds from the north-west and west directions were registered during the last week of January 2019 at Esperanza Station (peak 65 knots) and at the Drake Passage (peak 49 knots) which might explain the presence of the White-rumped Sandpiper individual at Hope Bay. Our report contributes to list the non-native species observed in Antarctica. One plausible explanation could be related to changes in migratory routes of flying birds.