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Bornschein MR, Nadaline J, Ribeiro LF, Sandretti-Silva G, Rivas MFF, Guerra BDM, Teixeira L. An estimate of the area of occupancy and population size of Brachycephalus tridactylus (Anura: Brachycephalidae) to reassess its conservation status, with a proposal for conservation measures. PeerJ 2022; 9:e12687. [PMID: 35036161 PMCID: PMC8710056 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.12687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2021] [Accepted: 12/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Background We are experiencing a global crisis in conservation, which has led to the prioritization of targets, such as nations, regions, and animal groups, which are necessary while resources are disputed. Brazil is a priority not only because of its megadiversity, high rates of endemism, and frequent descriptions of new species but also because of its high levels of deforestation. Among the species groups prioritized for conservation is the anurans (Amphibia: Anura), the population of which is severely declining. One group of anurans is the genus Brachycephalus, which includes 37 endemic species in the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest. Some of these species have highly restricted distributions (<100 ha). Thirty new species have been described since 2000, and 55.3% of all species are threatened with extinction. Brachycephalus tridactylus was only recently described and remains restricted to its type locality. Because of its reduced geographical distribution (0.41 km2), it has been proposed to be considered as Vulnerable. The objective of this study is to reevaluate the conservation status of Brachycephalus tridactylus and propose conservation measures. Methods We searched for new populations during 2016–2020, evaluated in loco impacts and potential impacts on the species’ population, and performed an analysis of the density of this population and estimated its size. International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) criteria were used to assess the conservation status of the species. Results We recorded the species in seven new localities (from 715–1,140 m above sea level) in the state of São Paulo up to 33 km from the type locality of the species (in state of Paraná). We estimated the area of occupancy as 148.44 km2, densities as one calling male per 4.05 m2 and 130.00 m2, and a total population size of 4,429,722 adult individuals. Based on our finding, we proposed three lines of management: (1) formation of fire brigades, (2) management of residents’ mules in the conservation unit and surrounding areas, and (3) management of degraded areas. We recommend changing the species’ conservation status from Vulnerable to Endangered because of its fragmented distribution and decline in the area of occupancy and in the quality of its habitat. Our results have expanded the species previous geographic distribution and delimited areas without previous records. Our estimates of population density and size are in accordance with those verified for congeners. The conservation of this species benefits the environments and other species that inhabit them, being, therefore, strategic for receiving conservation actions that will spread throughout the ecosystem.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcos R Bornschein
- Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista, São Vicente, São Paulo, Brazil.,Mater Natura-Instituto de Estudos Ambientais, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
| | - Júnior Nadaline
- Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
| | | | | | | | - Bruno de Morais Guerra
- Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista, São Vicente, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Larissa Teixeira
- Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista, São Vicente, São Paulo, Brazil
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Lyra ML, Monteiro JPC, Rancilhac L, Irisarri I, Künzel S, Sanchez E, Condez TH, Rojas-Padilla O, Solé M, Toledo LF, Haddad CFB, Vences M. Initial Phylotranscriptomic Confirmation of Homoplastic Evolution of the Conspicuous Coloration and Bufoniform Morphology of Pumpkin-Toadlets in the Genus Brachycephalus. Toxins (Basel) 2021; 13:816. [PMID: 34822600 PMCID: PMC8620806 DOI: 10.3390/toxins13110816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Revised: 11/12/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
The genus Brachycephalus is a fascinating group of miniaturized anurans from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, comprising the conspicuous, brightly colored pumpkin-toadlets and the cryptic flea-toads. Pumpkin-toadlets are known to contain tetrodotoxins and therefore, their bright colors may perform an aposematic function. Previous studies based on a limited number of mitochondrial and nuclear-encoded markers supported the existence of two clades containing species of pumpkin-toadlet phenotype, but deep nodes remained largely unresolved or conflicting between data sets. We use new RNAseq data of 17 individuals from nine Brachycephalus species to infer their evolutionary relationships from a phylogenomic perspective. Analyses of almost 5300 nuclear-encoded ortholog protein-coding genes and full mitochondrial genomes confirmed the existence of two separate pumpkin-toadlet clades, suggesting the convergent evolution (or multiple reversals) of the bufoniform morphology, conspicuous coloration, and probably toxicity. In addition, the study of the mitochondrial gene order revealed that three species (B. hermogenesi, B. pitanga, and B. rotenbergae) display translocations of different tRNAs (NCY and CYA) from the WANCY tRNA cluster to a position between the genes ATP6 and COIII, showing a new mitochondrial gene order arrangement for vertebrates. The newly clarified phylogeny suggests that Brachycephalus has the potential to become a promising model taxon to understand the evolution of coloration, body plan and toxicity. Given that toxicity information is available for only few species of Brachycephalus, without data for any flea-toad species, we also emphasize the need for a wider screening of toxicity across species, together with more in-depth functional and ecological study of their phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariana L. Lyra
- Instituto de Biociências, Departamento de Biodiversidade (Campus Rio Claro), Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Avenida 24A, N 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro 13506-900, SP, Brazil; (M.L.L.); (J.P.C.M.); (C.F.B.H.)
| | - Juliane P. C. Monteiro
- Instituto de Biociências, Departamento de Biodiversidade (Campus Rio Claro), Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Avenida 24A, N 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro 13506-900, SP, Brazil; (M.L.L.); (J.P.C.M.); (C.F.B.H.)
| | - Loïs Rancilhac
- Zoological Institute, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany; (L.R.); (E.S.)
| | - Iker Irisarri
- Institute for Microbiology and Genetics, Department of Applied Bioinformatics, University of Goettingen, Goldschmidtstr, 1, 37077 Göttingen, Germany;
| | - Sven Künzel
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, 24306 Plön, Germany;
| | - Eugenia Sanchez
- Zoological Institute, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany; (L.R.); (E.S.)
| | - Thais H. Condez
- Unidade Passos, Universidade do Estado de Minas Gerais (UEMG), Avenida Juca Stockler 1130, Passos 37900-106, MG, Brazil;
| | - Omar Rojas-Padilla
- Laboratório de Sistemática de Vertebrados, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Ipiranga 6681, Porto Alegre 90619-900, RS, Brazil;
| | - Mirco Solé
- Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz, Ilhéus 45662-900, BA, Brazil;
| | - Luís Felipe Toledo
- Laboratório de História Natural de Anfíbios Brasileiros (LaHNAB), Departamento de Biologia Animal, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Campinas 13083-862, SP, Brazil;
| | - Célio F. B. Haddad
- Instituto de Biociências, Departamento de Biodiversidade (Campus Rio Claro), Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Avenida 24A, N 1515, Bela Vista, Rio Claro 13506-900, SP, Brazil; (M.L.L.); (J.P.C.M.); (C.F.B.H.)
| | - Miguel Vences
- Zoological Institute, Technische Universität Braunschweig, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany; (L.R.); (E.S.)
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Santos MTT, Magalhães RF, Ferreira RB, Vittorazzi SE, Dias IR, Leite FSF, Lourenço LB, Santos FR, Haddad CFB, Garcia PCA. Systematic Revision of the Rare Bromeligenous Genus Crossodactylodes Cochran 1938 (Anura: Leptodactylidae: Paratelmatobiinae). HERPETOLOGICAL MONOGRAPHS 2020. [DOI: 10.1655/herpmonographs-d-19-00008.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Marcus Thadeu T. Santos
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Zoologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Caixa Postal 199, 13506-900, Rio Claro, SP, Brazil
| | - Rafael F. Magalhães
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Zoologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
| | - Rodrigo B. Ferreira
- Projeto Bromeligenous, Instituto Marcos Daniel, 29090-160, Vitória, ES, Brazil
| | - Stenio E. Vittorazzi
- Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade do Estado de Mato Grosso, 78300-000, Tangará da Serra, MT, Brazil
| | - Iuri R. Dias
- Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz, 45662-900, Ilhéus, BA, Brazil
| | - Felipe S. F. Leite
- Sagarana Lab, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Campus Florestal, 35690-000, Florestal, MG, Brazil
| | - Luciana B. Lourenço
- Departamento de Biologia Estrutural e Funcional, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, 13083-863, Campinas, SP, Brazil
| | - Fabrício R. Santos
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Zoologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
| | - Célio F. B. Haddad
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Zoologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Caixa Postal 199, 13506-900, Rio Claro, SP, Brazil
| | - Paulo C. A. Garcia
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Zoologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
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Climatic dynamics and topography control genetic variation in Atlantic Forest montane birds. Mol Phylogenet Evol 2020; 148:106812. [PMID: 32259655 DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2020.106812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2019] [Revised: 02/17/2020] [Accepted: 03/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Montane organisms responded to Quaternary climate change by tracking suitable habitat along elevational gradients. However, it is unclear whether these past climatic dynamics generated predictable patterns of genetic diversity in co-occurring montane taxa. To test if the genetic variation is associated with historical changes in the elevational distribution of montane habitats, we integrated paleoclimatic data and a model selection approach for testing the demographic history of five co-distributed bird species occurring in the southern Atlantic Forest sky islands. We found that changes in historical population sizes and current genetic diversity are attributable to habitat dynamics among time periods and the current elevational distribution of populations. Taxa with populations restricted to the more climatically dynamic southern mountain block (SMB) had, on average, a six-fold demographic expansion, whereas the populations from the northern mountain block (NMB) remained constant. In the current configuration of the southern Atlantic Forest montane habitats, populations in the SMB have more widespread elevational distributions, occur at lower elevations, and harbor higher levels of genetic diversity than NMB populations. Despite the apparent coupling of demographic and climatic oscillations, our data rejected simultaneous population structuring due to historical habitat fragmentation. Demographic modeling indicated that the species had different modes of differentiation, and varied in the timing of divergence and the degree of gene flow across mountain blocks. Our results suggest that the heterogeneous distribution of genetic variation in birds of the Atlantic Forest sky islands is associated with the interplay between topography and climate of distinct mountains, leading to predictable patterns of genetic diversity.
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Conservation Status of Brachycephalus Toadlets (Anura: Brachycephalidae) from the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest. DIVERSITY 2019. [DOI: 10.3390/d11090150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The number of described anurans has increased continuously, with many newly described species determined to be at risk. Most of these new species inhabit hotspots and are under threat of habitat loss, such as Brachycephalus, a genus of small toadlets that inhabits the litter of the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest. Of 36 known species, 22 were described in the last decade, but only 11 have been assessed according to the IUCN Red List categories, with just one currently listed as Critically Endangered. All available data on occurrence, distribution, density, and threats to Brachycephalus were reviewed. The species extent of occurrence was estimated using the Minimum Convex Polygon method for species with three or more records and by delimiting continuous areas within the altitudinal range of species with up to two records. These data were integrated to assess the conservation status according to the IUCN criteria. Six species have been evaluated as Critically Endangered, five as Endangered, 10 as Vulnerable, five as Least Concern, and 10 as Data Deficient. Deforestation was the most common threat to imperiled Brachycephalus species. The official recognition of these categories might be more readily adopted if the microendemic nature of their geographical distribution is taken into account.
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