Assessment Results
Isthmohyla angustilineata
Narrow-lined Treefrog
Order:
Anura
Family:
Hylidae
Synonym(s):
Hyla angustilineata
Assessed for:
Costa Rica
on:
17 Apr 2020
by:
AArk/ASG Assessment Workshop
IUCN Global Red List:
Critically Endangered (CR)
National Red List:
(not assessed)
Distribution:
Costa Rica, Panama
Evolutionary Distinctiveness score:
14.8585331
William E. Duellman © 2010 Division of Herpetology, University of Kansas (1 of 4)
Recommended Conservation Actions:
Additional Comments:
In view of the threat of chytridiomycosis and habitat loss, ex-situ populations might need to be established.
| Question # | Short Name | Question Text | Response | Comments |
| 1 | Extinction risk | Current IUCN Red List category. [Data obtained from the IUCN Red List.] | Critically Endangered (CR) | |
| 2 | Possibly extinct | Is there a strong possibility that this species might be extinct in the wild? | No / unlikely | |
| 3 | Phylogenetic significance | The taxon’s Evolutionary Distinctiveness (ED) score, as generated by the ZSL EDGE program. (These data are not editable by Assessors). | ED value < 20 | |
| 4 | Protected habitat | Is a population of at least 50% of the individuals of the taxon included within a well-managed or reliably protected area or areas? | Unknown | This species occurs in the Cordillera de Tilarán, Cordillera Central, and Cordillera de Talamanca of Costa Rica. The current known range of this species falls entirely within protected areas: BRAULIO CARRILLO, CORD.VOLC.CENTRAL, ARENAL-MONTERVERDE |
| 5 | Habitat for reintroduction, conservation translocation or supplementation | Does enough well-managed and reliably protected habitat exist, either within or outside of currently protected areas that is suitable for conservation translocation, including population restoration or conservation introduction? | Yes / probably | BRAULIO CARRILLO, TAPANTI-MACIZO CERRO DE LA MUERTE, CORD.VOLC.CENTRAL, ARENAL-MONTERVERDE |
| 6 | Previous reintroductions | Have reintroduction or translocation attempts been made in the past for this species? | No | |
| 7 | In situ conservation activities | Are any in situ conservation actions currently in place for this species? (Only required if a Red List Assessment has not been completed, or if new actions have been implemented since the last Red List Assessment. (Information from the Conservation Actions section of the Red List assessment should be reviewed and considered when answering this question.). | Yes / probably | Comprehensive management of the protected areas where in inhabits. In Cerro Chompipe (Costa Rica), the species is potentially threatened by expanding human settlements, changing land use, and destruction by all terrain vehicles in parts of the national park (V. Acosta pers. comm. September 2019). A monitoring program is ongoing in Monteverde (A. González pers. comm. September 2019). |
| 8 | In situ conservation activities | Are additional in situ conservation actions required to help conserve this species in the wild (e.g. habitat restoration and/or protection, control of invasive species, national legislation etc.)? | Yes / probably | Improved management is needed within protected areas to prevent illegal activities from destroying montane forest. In Costa Rica, an extension of the Alto de Roble protected area should be established in order to safeguard habitat for this species along with enforced protection (Costa Rica Red List Assessment Workshop September 2019). |
| 9 | In situ research | Is additional in situ research required to better understand the species, e.g. distribution, population trends, natural history etc.? | Yes | Further survey work is required to determine the population status and trends of this species. |
| 10 | Threat mitigation | Are the threats facing the taxon, including any new and emerging threats not considered in the IUCN Red List, potentially reversible? | Threats unknown | The reasons for the apparent population decline of this species are not known with certainty, though it is likely to be due to chytridiomycosis, perhaps in association with climate change. The species is still being recorded at some sites, but in much lower numbers than historically (Costa Rica Red List Assessment Workshop September 2019). In Cerro Chompipe (Costa Rica), the species is potentially threatened by expanding human settlements, changing land use, and destruction by all terrain vehicles in parts of the national park (V. Acosta pers. comm. September 2019). |
| 11 | Over-collection from the wild | Is the taxon suffering from collection within its natural range, either for food, for the pet trade or for any other reason, which threatens the species’ continued persistence in the wild? | No / unlikely | |
| 12 | Population recovery | Is the known population of this species in the wild large enough to recover naturally, without ex situ intervention if threats are mitigated? | Unknown | In Costa Rica, the species has disappeared from Cerro Chompipe and Tapantí, and declined drastically in Monteverde, although a few individuals persisted until at least the late 1990s. This species was recorded in Cordillera Volcanica Central in May 2005, representing the first record of the species following the population crash (Nishida 2006). In 2013, it was documented in Monteverde after not being seen for many years (A. González pers. comm. September 2019), although people did not begin to actively search for it in Monteverde until around 2010 (G. Chaves pers. comm. September 2019). It was seen again in Monteverde in 2016, but was not observed during surveys in 2017–2019 (A. González pers. comm. September 2019). A verified photographic record exists of this species from 2012 in Cerro Dantas Wildlife Refuge (iNaturalist; J. Abarca pers. comm. September 2019); however subsequent surveys during 2014–2015 did not record the species in the area, despite a series of ten surveys (V. Acosta pers comm. September 2019). Surveys in Río Macho, Cordillera Talamanca between 2010-2012 (Acosta et al. 2015) and 2019 (G. Chaves pers. comm. September 2019) did not reveal any records. |
| 13 | Action plans | Does an Action Plan for the species already exist, or is one currently being developed? | No | |
| 14 | Biological distinctiveness | Does the taxon exhibit a distinctive reproductive mode, behaviour, aspect of morphology or physiology, within the Order to which it belongs (e.g. Anura, Passeriformes etc.)? | No aspect of biology known to be exceptional | |
| 15 | Cultural/socio-economic importance | Does the taxon have a special human cultural value (e.g. as a national or regional symbol, in a historic context, featuring in traditional stories) or economic value (e.g. food, traditional medicine, tourism) within its natural range or in a wider global context? | No | |
| 16 | Scientific importance | Is the species vital to current or planned research other than species-specific ecology/biology/conservation within the Order to which it belongs (e.g. Anura, Passeriformes etc.) e.g. human medicine, climate change, environmental pollutants and conservation science? | No research dependent on this species | |
| 17 | Ex situ research | Does conserving this species (or closely related species) in situ depend upon research that can be most easily carried out ex situ? | Yes | In view of the threat of chytridiomycosis and habitat loss, ex-situ populations might need to be established. |
| 18 | Ex situ conservation activities | Is any ex situ research or other ex situ conservation action currently in place for this species? (Information from the Conservation Actions section of the Red List assessment should be reviewed and considered when answering this question.) | No / unlikely | |
| 19 | Husbandry analog required | If an ex situ rescue program is recommended for this species, would an analog species be required to develop husbandry protocols first? | Yes / probably | Isthmohyla pseudopuma |
| 20 | Husbandry analog | Do the biological and ecological attributes of this species make it suitable for developing husbandry regimes for more threatened related species? i.e. could this species be used in captivity to help to develop husbandry and breeding protocols which could be used for a similar, but more endangered species at a later stage? | No | |
| 21 | Captive breeding | Has this species been successfully bred and/or maintained in captivity? | Not held in captivity to date | |
| 22 | Conservation education/ecotourism potential | Is the species especially diurnal, active or colourful, or is there an interesting or unusual aspect of its ecology that make it particularly suitable to be an educational ambassador for conservation of the species in the range country, either in zoos or aquariums or within ecotourism activities? | No | |
| 23 | Mandate | Is there an existing conservation mandate recommending the ex situ conservation of this taxon? | No | |
| 24 | Range State approval | If an ex situ initiative was proposed for this species, would it be supported (and approved) by the range State (either within the range State or out-of-country ex situ)? | Yes / probably | |
| 25 | Founder specimens | Are sufficient animals of the taxon available or potentially available (from wild or captive sources) to initiate an ex situ program, if one was recommended? | Unknown | Research into availability of founders needs to be prioritised. |
| 26 | Taxonomic status | Has a complete taxonomic analysis of the species in the wild been carried out, to fully understand the functional unit you wish to conserve (i.e. have species limits been determined)? | Yes |
Citation:
AArk/ASG Assessment Workshop. 2020. Conservation Needs Assessment for Isthmohyla angustilineata, Costa Rica.
https://www.conservationneeds.org/assessment/5120
Accessed 18 May 2024
