Head in the clouds: a new dwarf frog species of the Physalaemus signifer clade (Leptodactylidae, Leiuperinae) from the top of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

Author(s)

Leal, Fernando ^[1] ; Zornosa-Torres, Camila ^{[2, 3]} ; Augusto-Alves, Guilherme ^{[2, 3]} ; Dena, Simone ^{[2, 4]} ; Pezzuti, Tiago Leite ^[1] ; Leite, Felipe ^[5] ; Lourenco, Luciana Bolsoni ^[6] ; Garcia, Paulo ^[1] ; Toledo, Luis Felipe ^{[2, 4]}

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Fed Minas Gerais, Inst Ciencias Biol, Dept Zool, Lab Herpetol, Belo Horizonte, MG - Brazil

^[2] Univ Estadual Campinas, Inst Biol, Dept Biol Anim, Lab Hist Nat Anfibios Brasileiros LaHNAB, Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[3] Univ Estadual Campinas, Inst Biol, Programa Posgrad Ecol, Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[4] Univ Estadual Campinas, Inst Biol, Museu Diversidade Biol, Fonoteca Neotrop Jacques Vielliard FNJV, Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[5] Univ Fed Vicosa, Inst Ciencias Biol & Saude, Sagarana Lab, Campus Florestal, Florestal, MG - Brazil

^[6] Univ Estadual Campinas, Inst Biol, Dept Biol Estrutural & Func, Lab Estudos Cromossom, Campinas, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF TAXONOMY; v. 764, p. 119-151, AUG 19 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

In an elevational gradient, the mountain top generally presents a reduced species diversity. However, it is there where we often find microendemic and quite often still undescribed species. That prediction is very common in underexplored Neotropical mountains, like those of the Caparao National Park - a protected area that includes the highest peak of the Atlantic Forest, a megadiverse domain. Up in its top, we found a dwarf frog of the genus Physalaemus (Anura, Leptodactylidae, Leiuperinae), belonging to the P. signifer clade. After an integrative (morphological, bioacoustical, and genetic) analysis, we were able to describe it as a new species and found it to be sister to P. maculiventris. Due to its very restricted distribution at a site with extreme environmental conditions (which includes fires and frosts) and current instability in national environmental policy, we suggest this to be classified as an endangered species. A brief description of its natural history and the description of the species itself will now enable its proper conservation status categorization and the future planning for conservation actions. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 16/25358-3 - The chytrid fungus: from its origins to its consequences
• Grantee: Luis Felipe de Toledo Ramos Pereira
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 19/03170-0 - Acoustic, seismic and visual signaling: investigating the multimodal communication of neotropical anurans
• Grantee: Guilherme Augusto Alves
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 11/09239-0 - Phylogenetic analysis and study of sex and B chromosomes of Physalaemus (Anura, Leiuperidae): a contribution to the analysis of the karyological evolution in the genus
• Grantee: Luciana Bolsoni Lourenço
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 19/18335-5 - Passive air transportation of an amphibian lethal pathogen in high elevation sites: practical applications for protected areas conservation in the State of São Paulo
• Grantee: Luis Felipe de Toledo Ramos Pereira
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Regular Research Grants