Assessment Results
Craugastor podiciferus
Cerro Utyum Robber Frog
Order:
Anura
Family:
Craugastoridae
Synonym(s):
Craugastor jota, Eleutherodactylus podiciferus, Eleutherodactylus podiciferus
Assessed for:
Costa Rica
on:
21 Feb 2020
by:
AArk/ASG Assessment Workshop
IUCN Global Red List:
Near Threatened (NT)
National Red List:
(not assessed)
Distribution:
Costa Rica, Panama
Evolutionary Distinctiveness score:
23.2207857
Recommended Conservation Actions:
Additional Comments:
| Question # | Short Name | Question Text | Response | Comments |
| 1 | Extinction risk | Current IUCN Red List category. [Data obtained from the IUCN Red List.] | Near Threatened (NT) | Listed as Near Threatened since although its extent of occurrence (EOO) is 10,772 km2 and there is ongoing decline in the extent and quality of its habitat in a limited portion of its range, thus making the species close to qualifying for Vulnerable, it remains generally abundant within a large part of its range and most of the collection records are from within well-managed protected areas within Costa Rica. As the area observed to be unaffected by threat is more than half the range the IUCN locations subcriterion is not applicable. |
| 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 - 50 | |
| 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? | Yes / probably | Cordillera Volcanica Central in Costa Rica and Cordillera Talamanca (Caribbean slopes) in Costa Rica and western Panama (Arias et al. 2019, E. Arias pers. comm. September 2019) Parque Internacional La Amistad, Braulio Carrillo, Tapantí, Volcán Poas, Volcán Barva, Río Macho, Parque Nacional Juan Castro Blanco. |
| 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 | Parque Internacional La Amistad, Braulio Carrillo, Tapantí, Volcán Poas, Volcán Barva, Río Macho, Parque Nacional Juan Castro Blanco. |
| 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 it inhabits |
| 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.)? | No / unlikely | |
| 9 | In situ research | Is additional in situ research required to better understand the species, e.g. distribution, population trends, natural history etc.? | Yes | More fieldwork is necessary to clarify its distribution, especially on the northern end of the Cordillera de Talamanca and in the adjacent zone between the Cordillera Volcánica Central and the Cordillera de Tilarán (Arias et al. 2019). Further research is needed into the potential impacts of the chytrid pathogen on 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? | Species is effectively protected | The majority of the population occurs in Costa Rica, where the species occurs only in several well-protected areas without any threats and it occurs in areas higher than where agricultural activities are taking place outside of protected areas (Costa Rica Workshop Red List Assessment Workshop 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? | Yes / probably | It is generally common and regularly recorded in Costa Rica (Arias et al. 2019, Costa Rica Red List Assessment Workshop September 2019) |
| 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? | No | |
| 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? | No / unlikely | |
| 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? | Yes / probably | |
| 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)? | No | Research into species validity needs to be prioritised. Taxonomic research is still required to fully delineate this species complex (Arias et al. 2019). |
Citation:
AArk/ASG Assessment Workshop. 2020. Conservation Needs Assessment for Craugastor podiciferus, Costa Rica.
https://www.conservationneeds.org/assessment/5284
Accessed 16 May 2024
