Molecular and Morphological Evidence Reveals a New Species in the Phyllomedusa hypochondrialis Group (Hylidae, Phyllomedusinae) from the Atlantic Forest of the Highlands of Southern Brazil

Abstract

The taxonomic status of a disjunctive population of Phyllomedusa from southern Brazil was diagnosed using molecular, chromosomal, and morphological approaches, which resulted in the recognition of a new species of the P. hypochondrialis group. Here, we describe P. rustica sp. n. from the Atlantic Forest biome, found in natural highland grassland formations on a plateau in the south of Brazil. Phylogenetic inferences placed P. rustica sp. n. in a subclade that includes P. rhodei + all the highland species of the clade. Chromosomal morphology is conservative, supporting the inference of homologies among the karyotypes of the species of this genus. Phyllomedusa rustica is apparently restricted to its type-locality, and we discuss the potential impact on the strategies applied to the conservation of the natural grassland formations found within the Brazilian Atlantic Forest biome in southern Brazil. We suggest that conservation strategies should be modified to guarantee the preservation of this species.

Non-random distribution of microsatellite motifs and (TTAGGG)n repeats in the monkey frog Pithecopus rusticus (Anura, Phyllomedusidae) karyotype

“…Tissue samples were obtained from 6 males specimens of Pithecopus rusticus paratypes collected during the fieldwork, between 2009 and 2012, that led to the original description of the species (Lucas et al, 2010;Bruschi et al, 2014a). Vouchers are deposited in Coleção de Anfíbios da Universidade Comunitária da Região de Chapecó (UNO-CHAPECÓ), Santa Catarina States, Brazil under numbers CAUC0763, CAUC13356, CAUC0766, CAUC0768, CAUC0770 and CAUC0771.…”

“…The monkey frog, Pithecopus rusticus, is an amphibian species endemic to the grasslands of the Araucaria Plateau, in the Atlantic Forest domain of southern Brazil (Bruschi et al, 2014a). This species is currently known only from a small population found at the type locality, in the municipality of Água Doce, in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil (Lucas et al, 2010;Bruschi et al, 2014a).…”

“…The monkey frog, Pithecopus rusticus, is an amphibian species endemic to the grasslands of the Araucaria Plateau, in the Atlantic Forest domain of southern Brazil (Bruschi et al, 2014a). This species is currently known only from a small population found at the type locality, in the municipality of Água Doce, in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil (Lucas et al, 2010;Bruschi et al, 2014a). The genus Pithecopus (Cope, 1866; recently resurrected from the genus Phyllomedusa by Duellman et al, 2016) has 11 recognized species (Frost, 2019), all of which have highly conserved karyotypes, in terms of both the diploid number (2n=26) and chromosome morphology (Barth et al, 2009;Bruschi et al, 2012;Bruschi et al, 2014b).…”

“…The genus Pithecopus (Cope, 1866; recently resurrected from the genus Phyllomedusa by Duellman et al, 2016) has 11 recognized species (Frost, 2019), all of which have highly conserved karyotypes, in terms of both the diploid number (2n=26) and chromosome morphology (Barth et al, 2009;Bruschi et al, 2012;Bruschi et al, 2014b). The closest phylogenetically related species to P. rusticus are P. ayeaye, P. megacephalus, P. centralis, and P. oreades (Bruschi et al, 2014a), which are all found on the plateaus and highland areas of the Cerrado savannas of central Brazil (Faivovich et al, 2010;Bruschi et al, 2014a).…”

Anurans of a remnant forest in Urussanga, Santa Catarina, southern of Brazil

“…Most previous research has been concentrated in the western part of the state (Bastiani et al 2012;Bastiani & Lucas 2013;Lingnau 2009;Lucas & Fortes 2008;Lucas & Garcia 2011;Lucas & Marocco 2011) and near the central coast (Garcia 1996;Garcia & Vinciprova 1998;Garcia et al 2003;Kwet 2006). A new species was recently described, as well, from the state (Bruschi et al 2014).…”