Assessment Results
Theloderma moloch
Assam Indonesian Treefrog, Black-spotted Frog
Order:
Anura
Family:
Rhacophoridae
Synonym(s):
Phrynoderma moloch, Rhacophorus moloch, Nyctixalus moloch
Assessed for:
India
on:
17 Sep 2020
by:
AArk/ASG India Assessment Workshop
Authors:
Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, Dr. Tutul Bortamuli, H.T. Lalremsanga, Prof. Sabitry Choudhury Bordoloi, Mohini Mohan Borah and Jayanta Roy
IUCN Global Red List:
Vulnerable (VU)
National Red List:
(not assessed)
Distribution:
Bhutan, China, India
Evolutionary Distinctiveness score:
32.67846601
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.] | Vulnerable (VU) | Listed as Vulnerable because its Extent of Occurrence is less than 20,000 km2, it is known from fewer than ten locations, and there is continuing decline in the extent and quality of its habitat in northeastern India. |
| 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? | No / unlikely | This species has a fragmented range in Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, India. It has now been rediscovered in China from Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon National Nature Reserve, Motuo County in Xizang Tibetan Autonomous Region (= Tibet - Li et al. 2016). Recent records have also found it in Lower Dibang Valley in Arunachal Pradesh in India (Roy et al. 2017). The species has been recorded from Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary and Mouling National Park in Assam, and Nameri National Park, Namdapha National Park and a community reserve forest in the Dibang River Basin (Jayanta Roy, pers. comm. September 2020) in Arunachal Pradesh. It is also found in Hmuifang Community Reserved Forest and Reiek Community Reserved Forest in Mizoram (H.T. Lalremsanga, pers. comm. September 2020). It probably occurs somewhat more widely, and might be present in Bhutan, although this requires confirmation. It has been recorded at elevations of 300-1,500 m asl. |
| 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 | |
| 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 species has been recorded from Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary and Mouling National Park in Assam, and Nameri National Park, as well as Namdapha National Park (Jayanta Roy, pers. comm. September 2020) in Arunachal Pradesh. |
| 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.)? | Unknown | |
| 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 and research are needed, in particular to determine geographic range, habitat occupancy, population size, threats, ecology and life history (India RLA/CNA workshop, September 2020). |
| 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 | Subsistence wood collection and logging are threats to the species' habitat, along with slash and burn cultivation agriculture, hydroelectric mega dams (Jayanta Roy and Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). In Arunachal Pradesh, there are many large hydroelectric power plants in the planning or early development phase, for example, Dibang and Etalin are two of the largest with a 3000 MW capacity. These projects require the construction of large dams that will result in habitat loss, and will remove water from the surrounding rivers and streams, substantially changing the hydrology of the region (India RLA/CNA workshop, September 2020). It has only been recorded from undisturbed forest in India (Jayanta Roy, pers. comm. September 2020) and is unlikely to be adaptable to disturbed habitats (India RLA/CNA workshop, 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? | Unknown | It is very rare in India, with 8 individuals of this species recorded from Arunachal Pradesh during 2011-2020 (Jayanta Roy, pers. comm. September 2020). Inferred decline due to clearance of its forest habitats (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 | |
| 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 | There is no common analog |
| 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 | This is a very rare species. |
| 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? | No / unlikely | |
| 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, Dr. Tutul Bortamuli, H.T. Lalremsanga, Prof. Sabitry Choudhury Bordoloi, Mohini Mohan Borah and Jayanta Roy 2020. Conservation Needs Assessment for Theloderma moloch, India
(AArk/ASG India Assessment Workshop).
https://www.conservationneeds.org/assessment/5722
Accessed 13 May 2024
