Anuran Fauna of the High-Elevation Areas of the Parque Nacional Da Serra Dos Órgãos (Parnaso), Southeastern Brazil

Abstract

There is a lack of knowledge regarding the diversity of anurans in high-elevation areas of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. In order to improve the knowledge about the diversity of this group in this kind of environment, we present a list of anuran amphibians recorded in high-elevation areas (above 1,200 m) of the Parque Nacional da Serra dos Órgãos (PARNASO), in southeastern Brazil. The list was compiled based on primary data (from fieldwork) and on secondary data (from surveys of institutional collections). Twenty-eight species belonging to seven families were recorded: Brachycephalidae (6 species), Bufonidae (3 spp.), Cycloramphidae (4 spp.), Hemiphractidae (5 spp.), Hylidae (8 spp.), Hylodidae (1 sp.), and Odontophrynidae (1 sp.). According to the IUCN Red List, eight of those species are classified as "Data Deficient" and two species have not been assessed yet (i.e., Dendrophryniscus organensis and Fritziana sp. nov.). Ten species are classified as "Least Concern" but with populations in decline, although six of them (Bokermannohyla carvalhoi, B. circumdata, Ischnocnema parva, Proceratophrys appendiculata, Scinax albicans and Zachaenus parvulus) were frequently found during fieldwork at PARNASO and seem to be locally abundant. The other eight species classified as "Least Concern" have stable populations. We add three species to the list of anurans endemic to the high-elevation areas of Serra dos Órgãos (Cycloramphus organensis, D. organensis, and Fritziana sp. nov.), raising to 14 the number of endemic taxa in the area.

Lost and found: Frogs in a biodiversity hotspot rediscovered with environmental DNA

“…Based on literature reports for species diversity and known species ranges, we defined a list of 161 amphibian species that could be detected in our aquatic eDNA samples and known to occur either presently or historically at each sampling site (Almeida, Gasparini, & Peloso, 2011; Folly et al., 2016; Garey, Provete, Martins, Haddad, & Rossa‐Feres, 2014; Heyer, Rand, Cruz, Peixoto, & Nelson, 1990; Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade ‐ ICMBio, 2008, 2014; Pimenta, Cruz, & Caramaschi, 2014) (Data set S1). We constructed a reference database of the 12S rRNA mitochondrial sequences as complete as possible, to assure appropriate taxonomic assignment to sequences recovered in environmental samples.…”

“…Based on literature reports for species diversity and known species ranges, we defined a list of 161 amphibian species that could be detected in our aquatic eDNA samples and known to occur either presently or historically at each sampling site (Almeida, Gasparini, & Peloso, 2011;Folly et al, 2016 2017). We amplified the 12s rRNA mitochondrial fragment using the primers MVZ59 (5′-ATAGCACGTAAAAYGCTDAGATG-3′) (Graybeal, 1997); tVal (5′-TGTAAGCGARAGGCTTTKGTTAAGCT-3′) (Wiens, Fetzner, Parkinson, & Reeder, 2005); 12SA-L (5′-AAA CTGGGATTAGATACCCCACTAT-3′) (Palumbi, Martin, McMillan, Stice, & Grabowski, 1991); 12SF-H (5′-CTTGGCTCGTAGTTC CCTGGCG-3′) (Goebel, Donnelly, & Atz, 1999); 12S-H978 (5′-CTTA CCRTGTTACGACTTRCCT-3′) and 12S L148 (5′-ATGCAAGYMT CMGCRYCCCNGTGA-3′) (Walker, Lyra, & Haddad, 2018), following previously published amplification conditions (Faivovich et al, 2004;Walker et al, 2018).…”

“…Based on literature reports for species diversity and known species ranges, we defined a list of 161 amphibian species that could be detected in our aquatic eDNA samples and known to occur either presently or historically at each sampling site (Almeida, Gasparini, & Peloso, 2011;Folly et al, 2016 were not available, we obtained tissues from the same species from nearby localities. In the few cases where tissues for target species…”

Assessing the importance of reproductive modes for the evaluation of altitudinal distribution patterns in tropical frogs

“…(or 1100–1200 m a.s.l. in its southernmost portion), the Serra do Mar forests present a marked decrease in canopy height and mosses and epiphytes become increasingly abundant (Folly et al, 2016; Koehler et al, 2002). At the highest altitudes in the Serra do Mar, forests give way to open physiognomies (upper montane grasslands, known as “campos de altitude” or Brazilian Páramos sensu Safford, 1999a).…”

Anuran species composition and density estimates from an Atlantic Forest area within the APA Serra da Mantiqueira, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil

“…Recent surveys have provided lists of amphibian species, mostly preliminary, for some high montane Atlantic Forest areas (i.e., above 1,000 m) in southeast Brazil (Cruz et al 2009, Siqueira et al 2011a,b, Garey et al 2014, Folly et al 2016, Lima et al 2021). These habitats are known for their high rates of endemism of anurans, particularly in portions of the Serra do Mar (Siqueira et al 2011b, Carvalho-e-Silva et al 2020 and Serra da Mantiqueira regions (Neves et al 2018.…”