Taxonomic identity of two populations of Scinax Wagler, 1830 (Hylinae: Scinaxini) related to the Scinax duartei species complex.

• Grant number: 23/00302-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: May 01, 2023
• End date: April 30, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Taxonomy of Recent Groups
• Principal Investigator: Célio Fernando Baptista Haddad
• Grantee: Larah de Oliveira Campos
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The genus Scinax contains 129 species divided in two clades: the S. catharinae clade and the S. ruber clade. The S. ruber clade harbors the S. duartei species complex, that comprises four treefrog species endemic of Brazil. Two of these species, S. duartei and S. caldarum, are morphologically very similar species that have never been compared directly in taxonomic works. The lack of a diagnoses and definition of these two species leads to wrong assumptions of its actual distributions and makes unfeasible to recognize cryptic diversity hidden under the names S. duartei and S. caldarum. Two populations related to S. duartei and S. caldarum were reported as being morphologically and acoustically divergent from the topotypical populations of these species: the population of Serra da Bocaina and the population of Campos do Jordão. Despite this, up to date, any taxonomic works have ever been made in order to identify these populations. This project is the first taxonomy study aiming to: 1) recharacterize the topotypical populations of S. duartei and S. caldarum, in order to 2) generate a morphological and acoustical diagnosis between them for 3) identify the populations of Serra da Bocaina and Campos do Jordão which are related to the S. duartei complex.