Assessment Results
Pithecopus centralis
Mato Grosso Leaf Frog
Order:
Anura
Family:
Hylidae
Synonym(s):
Phyllomedusa centralis
Assessed for:
Brazil
on:
16 Nov 2020
by:
AArk/ASG Brazil Assessment Workshop
Authors:
C. Strüssmann and R.A. Brandão
IUCN Global Red List:
Data Deficient (DD)
National Red List:
(not assessed)
Distribution:
Brazil
Evolutionary Distinctiveness score:
9.107362827
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.] | 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 | |
| 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 | Currently, almost all subpopulations of this species are within protected areas, mainly in the Parque Nacional da Chapada dos Guimarães. Subpopulations from other municipalities from eastern state of Mato Grosso, including Poxoréu, Barra do Garças (Parque Estadual da Serra Azul) and Nova Xavantina are being re-examined within the context of integrative taxonomy and their specific identity cannot yet be confirmed. |
| 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 Nacional da Chapada dos Guimarães and other nearby areas may also be targeted for these actions. |
| 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 | There is a project approved by CEPF (Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund) and implemented in Brazil by the IEB, where the main goals are to study conservation demands for reticulated flank species (P. centralis, P. ayeaye, P. oreades and P. megacephalus), locate new occurrences, review the species distribution, model areas of greater suitability, find new characteristics in the species, support the habitat conservation of the species with farm owners, and identify owners interested in creating particular protected areas in their proprierties (RPPNs). This project involves researchers from the universities UFMT, UFMG, UFSJ, UnB, UFPR (R.A. Brandão, pers. comm. 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.)? | Yes / probably | Avoid the degradation of streams where the species occurs and increase the number and size of protected areas where it is registered. An interesting case occurs in the Congonhas stream, the type locality of the species: located outside the National Park of Chapada dos Guimarães, this stream is routinely used as a place of offerings for religious entities. The offerings usually include candles – that often end up causing fires in the streamside fields – and several kinds of food items (fruits, vegetables, eggs, beans) that will end up in the water, but we do not know the impact of this to the tadpoles. Thus, public use of these sites needs to be better regulated. Because this locality is situated within the limits of a state protected area (APA Estadual Chapada dos Guimarães), there is also a need for integrated and shared management between the different (federal and state) environmental agencies. In addition, it is important to monitor the erosive processes or advancement of livestock in the species' habitats. Although these are not real threats to P. centralis, they do affect related species. |
| 9 | In situ research | Is additional in situ research required to better understand the species, e.g. distribution, population trends, natural history etc.? | Yes | R.A. Brandão and partners are investing considerable effort in locating new populations and delimiting the species. As it occurs in locations isolated by the relief, the evolution of the species is complex and cryptic species can be found. Much of the data on basic natural history of this species is well known and the researchers are also evaluating the genetic diversity of the species and the haplotypes that may exist. However, it is still necessary to study the biochemistry of the species' skin (potentially important source for new bioactive molecules), the impact of environmental change on the species (erosion, climate change), demographic data and population trends. As this species uses environments that are sensitive to changes in the rainfall regime (oligotrophic streams in rocky environments on the hillside of high areas), understanding and predicting how climate changes may act in the future is relevant to the conservation of the 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 are likely to be reversible in time frame to prevent further decline / extinction | The main threats of this species are: fire (severe and widespread threat, which can cause severe habitat alteration, including phosphatation in the streams by ashes - this threat is highly reversible and controllable); inappropriate public use (overall, it is a minor, punctual and highly reversible threat, however, it is a major threat at the type-locality of the species - Córrego Congonhas, Chapada dos Guimarães - which is situated within the state protected area APA Estadual Chapada dos Guimarães, a category which, although designed for environmental protection, allow some degree of human occupation); habitat loss due to human interventions in the hydrological cycle (at least one subpopulation was known to have been locally extinct, after the construction of the Manso reservoir for a hydroeclectric powerplant; smaller reservoirs are also constructed by private landowners at the headwaters of streams where P. centralis potentially could occur in the region); and climate change (current, future and irreversible threat). |
| 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? | Unknown | As a charismatic animal, rare and potentially important for the chemical industry, it is a possibility. It is necessary to evaluate. |
| 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 | The species apparently has relatively stable populations in streams where its occurrence is know. Despite having low densities, it is common to see tadpoles and other evidence of reproduction. The species can recover naturally if the environments continue to exist and with low impact of use. |
| 13 | Action plans | Does an Action Plan for the species already exist, or is one currently being developed? | No | It is necessary to include it in the National Action Plan "Plano de Açao Nacional para a Conservação das Espécies Ameaçadas da Ictiofauna, Herpetofauna e Primatas do Cerrado e Pantanal - CERPAN" |
| 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 | Understanding how Bd and contaminants act on this species is relevant. It is also important to establish studies focusing on the physiology of this species and its reproduction demands. The areas where the streams are located are not widely used for planting (shallow, poorly consolidated and poor soil), but the presence of cattle trampling these places is quite common. |
| 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 | Pithecopus oreades. This species is known of several widely distributed and healthy populations, as well as much better known from the point of view of its natural history. It is important to understand how these organisms reproduce. |
| 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? | Maintained but no successful breeding | Temporarily maintained in laboratory for taxonomic proposes. Tadpoles were kept until metamorphosis, fed with lettuce. After metamorphosis, one juvenile was fed with fruitflies (Drosophila) and died after a few weeks (R.A. Brandão, pers. comm. 2020). |
| 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 | Charismatic species, quite curious due its locomotion and inhabit very beautiful streams. It certainly has potential for education and ecotourism in nature. |
| 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 | Some subpopulations are still being evaluated for definition of taxonomic status, specifically the subpopulations of eastern Mato Grosso. |
Citation:
C. Strüssmann and R.A. Brandão 2020. Conservation Needs Assessment for Pithecopus centralis, Brazil
(AArk/ASG Brazil Assessment Workshop).
https://www.conservationneeds.org/assessment/6828
Accessed 21 May 2024
