Assessment Results
Question # | Short Name | Question Text | Response | Comments |
1 | Extinction risk | Current IUCN Red List category. [Data obtained from the IUCN Red List.] | Data Deficient (DD) | |
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? | Unknown | This species was previously only known from Medog County in Xizang Autonomous Region, China, between 1,200-2000 m asl, and from northern West Siang District, in Arunachal Pradesh, India. It is now also known from Dibang River Basin (Ahini Ango and Tiwarigaon) in Arunachal Pradesh in India between 938-1,484m as (Roy et al. 2018). It presumably occurs more widely in India but has specific habitat requirements. |
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? | Unknown | This species has very specific breeding requirements. It breeds by larval development, and eggs are attached to leaves overhanging the water and when they hatch they fall in the water below. It is only found in undisturbed areas (Jayanta Roy, pers. comm. September 2020). |
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 | The location in India is near the Dihang-Dibang Biosphere Reserve, although this is not within a protected area. It is found in Eaglenest Wildlife Santucary in Arunachal Pradesh (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). |
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.)? | ||
9 | In situ research | Is additional in situ research required to better understand the species, e.g. distribution, population trends, natural history etc.? | Yes | Research on its population size is needed. |
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 unlikely to be reversed in time to prevent further decline / extinction | Tourism and road construction might be the major threats to this species in China (J.T. Li and F. Xie pers. comm. June 2019). It is unlikely that this species will tolerate habitat disturbance. Livestock grazing and human disturbance for hunting, along with a forthcoming hydroelectric development are considered to be threats to the species in India (Jayanta Roy, pers. comm. September 2020). This species requires very specific habitat for breeding, which is under threat (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). |
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 | This is a common species in China, however in India, the species is very rare and requires a habitat specific. The species was not encountered beyond 1,484 m asl although there are suitable habitat and high altitude lakes: Mehao lake (at 1,800 m asl) in the Mehao Wildlife Sactuary (Jayanta Roy, pers. comm. September 2020). |
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 | This is the only Rhacophorid that does not make a foam nest, as far as we are aware, with eggs deposited on leaves overhanging water (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). |
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? | Yes | This is a very beautiful species. It is also the only Rhacophorid that does not make a foam nest, as far as we are aware, with eggs deposited on leaves overhanging water (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). t is the only species in South Asia which has a very pointed face. |
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)? | Yes |
Citation:
Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, Mohini Mohan Borah, Dr. Tutul Bortamuli, Prof. Sabitry Choudhury Bordoloi, Kaushik Deuti, H.T. Lalremsanga, Nikhil Modak, Jayanta Roy, Dr. Chatoan Tesia and Karthikeyan Vasudevan 2020. Conservation Needs Assessment for Rhacophorus translineatus, India
(AArk/ASG India Assessment Workshop).
https://www.conservationneeds.org/assessment/5711
Accessed 17 May 2024