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Prof.
Name: Krystal Tolley
Location: D3 Lab 339 Auckland Park Kingsway Campus
Zoology Academic Staff听 Staff Members
Contact Details:
Tel: +27(0)11 559 2457
Email:听ktolley@uj.ac.za
About Krystal Tolley
Professor Tolley is a herpetologist who uses genetics and ecology to study African reptiles and amphibians. Research focusses on the biogeography and phylogenetics of African herpetofauna, particularly chameleons and snakes. She is a keen field biologist who carries out biodiversity surveys to improve foundational knowledge on reptiles and amphibians. She also is involved in conservation of species through several IUCN Red Listing specialist groups. Ongoing research projects include:
- Adaptation of chameleons to transformed habitats at the macro and micro evolutionary levels.
- Phylogenetics and biogeography of vipers
- Phylogenetics and biogeography of elapids
- Assessing phylogenetic diversity and EDGE indicators for South African reptiles and amphibians
- Long-term monitoring of threatened amphibians
Teaching: Conservation Genetics
Recent publications:
2025
Adair MG, Tolley KA, van Vuuren BJ, da Silva JM. 2025. . PeerJ 13:e18811. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.18811
Barends JM, Stanton-Jones WK, Alexander GJ, Tolley KA. 2025. . Journal of Zoology. Early View. https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.70032
Cowan O, Conradie W, Keates C, Telford NS, Petford M, Egan V, Tolley KA. 2025. . Journal for Nature Conservation 84, 126790.
Datta-Roy A, Brandley MC, Austin CC, Bauer AM, Harris DJ, Carranza S, Ukuwela KDB, De Silva A, Tolley KA, Karanth KP, Chaitanya R, Sil M. 2025. . Journal of Biogeography 52:767鈥�779.
Tolley KA, Alexander GJ. Into Africa: The biogeography of the genus Python in Africa. Frontiers of Biogeography 18, e146955. https://doi.org/10.21425/fob.18.146955
Tolley KA, Alexander GJ, Winder IC, Dobson C, Hall C, Barlow A, McBride E, Reissig J, Trape J.-F., Nagy ZT, W眉ster C, W眉ster W. In press. Phylogeny and species delimitation in an iconic snake genus: the African mambas (Serpentes: Elapidae: Dendroaspis). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society
Tolley KA, Main DC, Dube KM, van Vuuren BJ, da Silva JM. In press. Ecological factors promote convergent evolution and ecological speciation in dwarf chameleons (Bradypodion). Zoosystematics and Evolution.
2024
Barends JM, Tolley KA. 2024. . African Zoology 59(3).
Barends JM, Petford MA, Tolley KA. 2024. . Current Zoology, zoae076.
Bayliss J, Bittencourt-Silva GB, Branch WR, Bruessow C, Collins S, Congdon C, Conradie W, Curran M, Daniels S, Darbyshire I, Farooq H, Fishpool L, Grantham G, Magombo Z, Matimele H, Monadjem A, Monteiro J, Osborne J, Saunders J, Smith P, Spottiswoode CN, Taylor P, Timberlake J, Tolley KA, Tovela E, Platts PJ. 2024. . Scientific Reports 14, Article听number:听5971. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-54671-z
Becker F, Alexander GJ, Tolley KA. 2024. . Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 197, 108104.
Clark TK, Alexander GJ, Tolley KA. 2024. . African Zoology 59(1), 26-38. https://10.1080/15627020.2024.2311077
Clements H, Do Linh San E, Hempson G, Linden B, Maritz B, Monadjem A, Reynolds C, Siebert F, Stevens N, Biggs R, De Vos A, Blanchard R, Esler K, Hamann M, Loft T, Reyers B, Selomane O, Skowno A, Tshoke T, Abdoulaye D, Aebischer T, Aguirre-Guti茅rrez J, Alexander G, Ali A, Allan D, Amoako E, Angedakin S, Aruna E, Avenant N, Badjedjea G, Bakayoko A, Bamba-kaya A, Bates M, Bates P, Belmain S, Bennitt E, Bradley J, Brewster C, Brown M, Brown M, Bryja J, Butynski T, Carvalho F, Channing A, Chapman C, Cohen C, Cords M, Cramer J, Cronk N, Cunneyworth P, Dalerum F, Danquah E, Davies-Mostert H, de Blocq A, De Jong Y, Demos T, Denys C, Djagoun C, Doherty-Bone T, Drouilly M, du Toit J, Ehlers Smith D, Ehlers Smith Y, Eiseb S, Fashing P, Ferguson A, Fern谩ndez-Garc铆a J, Finckh M, Fischer C, Gandiwa E, Gaubert P, Gaugris G, Gibbs D, Gilchrist J, Gil Sanchez J, Githitho A, Goodman P, Granjon L, Grobler JP, Gumbi B, Gvo啪d铆k V, Harvey J, Hauptfleisch M, Hayder F, E Hema, Herbst M, Houngb茅dji M, Huntley B, Hutterer R, Ivande S, Jackson K, Jongsma G, Juste J, Kadjo B, Kaleme P, Kamugisha E, Kaplin B, Kato H, Kiffner C, Kimuyu D, Kityo R, Kouam茅 N鈥橤, Kouete M, le Roux A, Lee A, L枚tter M, Lykke AM, MacFadyen D, Macharia G, Madikiza Z, Mahlaba T, Mallon D, Mamba D, Mande C, Marchant R, Maritz R, Markotter W, McIntyre T, Measey J, Mekonnen A, Meller P, Melville H, Mganga K, Mills M, Minnie L, Didier Missoup A, Mohammad A, Moinde N, Fils Moise B, Monterroso P, Moore J, Musila S, Nago, SGA, Namoto M, Niang F, Nicolas V, Nkenku J, Nkrumah E, Nono GL, Norbert M, Nowak K, Obitte B, Okoni-Williams A, Onongo J, O’Riain MJ, Osinubi S, Parker D, Parrini F, Peel M, Penner J, Pietersen D, Plumptre A, Ponsonby D, Porembski S, Power RJ, Radloff FGT, Rambau R, Ramesh T, Richards L, R枚del M-O, Rollinson D, Rovero F, Saleh F, Schmiedel U, Schoeman MC, Scholte P, Serfass T, Shapiro JT, Shema S, Siebert SJ, Slingsby J, Sliwa A, Smit-Robinson H, Sogbohossou E, Somers M, Spawls S, Streicher J, Swanepoel L, Tanshi I, Taylor P, Taylor W, te Beest M, Telfer P, Thompson D, Tobi E, Tolley KA, Turner A, Twine W, Van Cakenberghe V, Van de Perre F, van der Merwe H, van Niekerk C, van Wyk P, Venter J, Verburgt L, Veron G, Vetter S, Vorontsova M, Wagner T, Webala P, Weber N, Weier S, White P, Whitecross M, Wigley B, Willems F, Winterbach C, Woodhouse G, Child M. 2024. . Scientific Data 11:191. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-023-02832-6
Dubiner S, Aguilar R, Anderson RO, Arenas Moreno DM, Avila LJ5, Boada-Viteri E, Castillo M, Chapple DG, Chukwuka CO, Cree A, Cruz FB, Colli GR, Das I, Delaugerre M-J, Du W-G, Dyugmedzhiev A, Doan TM, Escudero P5, Farquhar J, Gainsbury AM, Grey BS, Grimm-Seyfarth A, Hare KM, Henle K, Ibarg眉engoyt铆a N, Itescu Y, Jamison S, Jimenez-Robles O, Labra A, Laspiur A, Liang T, Ludgate JL, Luiselli L, Mart铆n J, Matthews G, Medina M, M茅ndez-de-la-Cruz FR Miles DB, Miranda-Calle AB, Monks JM, Morando M, Moreno Azocar DL, Murali G, Pafilis P, P茅rez-Cembranos A, P茅rez-Mellado V, Peters R, Pizzatto L, Pincheira-Donoso D, Schwarz R, Shermeister B, Shine R, Theisinger O, Theisinger W, Tolley KA, Torres-Carvajal O, Valdecantos S, Van Damme R, Vitt LJ, Wapstra E, While G, Levin E, Meiri S. 2024. . Global Ecology and Biogeography, e13808. https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.13808
Herrel A, Taft JM, Main DC, da Silva JM, Tolley KA. 2024. . Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 143(3), blae003.
Keren-Rotem T, Main DC, Barocas A, Donaire-Barroso D, Haddas-Sasson M, Vila C, Shaharabany T, Wolf L, Tolley KA, Geffen E. 2024. . Royal Society Open Science 11, 231554. doi.org/10.1098/rsos.231554
Lindken T, Anderson CV, Ariano-S谩nchez D, Barki G, Biggs C, Bowles P, Chaitanya R, Cronin DT, J盲hnig S, Jeschke JM, Kennerley RJ, Lacher, Jr. TE, Luedtke JA, Liu C, Long B, Mallon D, Martin GM, Meiri S, Pasachnik SA, Reynoso VH, Stanford CVB, Stephenson PJ, Tolley KA, Torres-Carvajal O, Waldien DL, Woinarski JCZ, Evans T. 2024. ? Global Change Biology 30, 1 鈥� 18.听 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.17107
Main DC, Taft JM, Geneva AJ, van Vuuren BJ, Tolley KA. 2024. . PeerJ 12:e17076. DOI 10.7717/peerj.17076
Petford MA, Herrel A, Alexander GJ, Tolley KA. 2024. . Urban Ecosystems 27, 577 鈥� 589. doi.org/10.1007/s11252-023-01474-1
Tolley KA, Alexander GJ. 2024. ? African Journal of Herpetology 73(1), 126 – 129. doi: 10.1080/21564574.2024.2325359
Tolley KA, Weeber J. 2024. . African Herp News 85, 21 鈥� 30.
Books:
Tolley KA, Conradie W, Pietersen DW, Weeber J, Burger M, Alexander GJ. 2023. . Suricata 10. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria.
Tolley KA, Herrel A. (Eds). 2013. The Biology of the Chameleons. 欧美福利100000 of California Press. 275 pp.
Tolley KA, Burger M. 2007. Chameleons of Southern Africa. Struik Publishers, Cape Town. 100 pp.
Popular science, technical articles, book chapters:
Skowno AL, Poole CJ, Raimondo DC, Sink KJ, Van Deventer H, Van Niekerk L, Harris LR, Smith-Adao LB, Tolley KA, Zengeya TA, Foden WB, Midgley GF, Driver A. 2019. . South African National Biodiversity Institute, an entity of the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, Pretoria.
Tolley KA, Alexander GJ. 2024. Reptiles in South Africa are under threat 鈥� but there鈥檚 good news听too.
Alexander GJ, Maritz B, Tolley KA. 2021. Red tape is choking biodiversity research in South Africa. What can be done about听it? The Conversation 7 October 2021. https://theconversation.com/red-tape-is-choking-biodiversity-research-in-south-africa-what-can-be-done-about-it-169189
Tolley KA. 2021. The Conversation: Malawi’s tiny Chapman鈥檚 chameleons are holding on for dear life. 3 August 2021. https://theconversation.com/malawis-tiny-chapmans-chameleons-are-holding-on-for-dear-life-153734
Tolley KA. 2020. Into Africa: Going Boldly to Places Herpetologists Have Not Gone Before. Herpetological Review 51(3), 648-650.
Tolley KA, Rebelo A. 2020. Citizen science makes a mark for African herpetology. African Herp News 75, 40-42.
Tolley KA. 2019. National Sensitive Species List for Reptiles and Amphibians. African Herp News 72, 6-8.
Jansen van Vuuren B, Visser J, Bishop J, Dalton D, Masehela T, von der Heyden S, Kotze A, Mwale M, Selier J, Tolley KA.听 2019. Chapter 2: Risks and impacts to genetic diversity, pressure and benefits. In National Biodiversity Assessment 2018 Technical Report Volume 7: Genetic Diversity. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria. Report Number:
Tolley KA, da Silva J, van Vuuren B.听 2019. Chapter 10: Risks, Benefits and Trends of Genetic Diversity. In National Biodiversity Assessment 2018 Technical Report Volume 1: Terrestrial Realm. Skowno AL, Raimondo DC, Poole CJ, Fizzotti B (eds). South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria.
Tolley KA, da Silva JM, Jansen van Vuuren B.听 2019. South African National Biodiversity Assessment 2018 Technical Report Volume 7: Genetic Diversity. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria.
Tolley KA, 艩m铆d J.听 2019. Chapter 4: Evaluating the status and trends of landscape level genetic diversity: a case study using South African reptiles, in National Biodiversity assessment 2018 Technical Report Volume 7: Genetic Diversity. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria. Report Number:
Tolley KA. 2018. How tiny toads seize the day 鈥� and the weather conditions 鈥� for听breeding. The Conversation, 1 May 2018.
Holness, S., Driver, A., Todd, S., Snaddon, K., Hamer, M., Raimondo, D., Daniels, F., Alexander, G., Bazelet, C., Bills, R., Bragg, C., Branch, B., Bruyns, P., Chakona, A., Child, M., Clarke, R.V., Coetzer, A., Coetzer, W., Colville, J., Conradie, W., Dean, R., Eardley, C., Ebrahim, I., Edge, D., Gaynor, D., Gear, S., Herbert, D., Kgatla, M., Lamula, K., Leballo, G., Lyle, R., Malatji, N., Mansell, M., Mecenero, S., Midgley, J., Mlambo, M., Mtshali, H., Simaika, J., Skowno, A., Staude, H., Tolley, K., Underhill, L., van der Colff, D., van Noort, S. and von Staden, L. 2016. Biodiversity and Ecological Impacts: Landscape Processes, Ecosystems and Species. In Scholes, R., Lochner, P., Schreiner, G., Snyman-Van der Walt, L. and de Jager, M. (eds.). 2016. Shale Gas Development in the Central Karoo: A Scientific Assessment of the Opportunities and Risks. CSIR/IU/021MH/EXP/2016/003/A, ISBN 978-0-7988-5631-7, Pretoria: CSIR. Available at http://seasgd.csir.co.za/scientific-assessment-chapters/
Tolley KA, Bowie RCK, Price BW, Measey GJ, Forest F. 2014. The shifting landscape of genes since the Pliocene: terrestrial phylogeography in the Greater Cape Floristic Region. pp. 142-163, In: Allsopp N, Colville JF, Verboom T. (Eds.) Ecology and Evolution of Fynbos Understanding Megadiversity. Oxford 欧美福利100000 Press.
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