Pithecopus ayeaye

Last updated

Pithecopus ayeaye
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura
Family: Hylidae
Genus: Pithecopus
Species:
P. ayeaye
Binomial name
Pithecopus ayeaye
B. Lutz, 1966 [2]
Synonyms [3]
  • Phyllomedusa ayeaye(B. Lutz, 1966)

Pithecopus ayeaye, also known as the reticulated leaf frog [4] and reticulate leaf frog, is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is endemic to Brazil. [1] [3] P. ayeaye is found in the transition zone between cerrado (tropical woodland-savanna) and Atlantic semi-deciduous forest, [5] laying its eggs on leaves above streams or pools so the tadpoles, when hatched, fall into the water below. This species is under threat from habitat loss resulting from mining activity and fires, and is also affected by pollution from mining and pesticides. Its restricted range is likely to make it particularly vulnerable to these threats. [1]

Contents

Description

Pithecopus ayeaye is a medium-sized frog that can grow between 28.7 mm to 40 mm long and weigh from 1.89 g to 7.5 g. [6] [2] The dorsal side is a bright green color, and the sides of its body and appendages have a distinctive network of black lines with circular reddish to orange spots. The ventral side is a black to gray color. [2] Tadpoles have long, oval bodies with flattened sides. The end of the tail arcs upwards. Their heads, with large eyes, and bodies are longer than their tails. Their dorsal surface is dark, while their ventral surface is a light gray color. [2]

Habitat

The reticulated leaf frog is native to South America and lives in the Espinhaco, Mantiqueira, and Canastra mountain ranges located in Brazil. [7] The topography includes mountains with rivers running between them. Streams run through the semideciduous forests, which provide water, shade, and protection. [8]

Call

Male frogs produce multiple calls that for specific information or one call that conveys different information. The advertisement call is used to get the attention of females and warn other males who are nearby. The release call is also used when males try to mate with other males or when they are fighting. [8] One study found that at a breeding site, most males use short notes when beginning their calls. As more males join in, they use more complex calls, making short and long notes. [8]

Reproduction

The breeding season is from October to January. Males sit on vegetation beside a stream and call to females. Most P. ayeaye breed on nights with sufficient rainfall to increase the likelihood that fertilization will occur. The tadpoles hatch during November to December. They mature from October to May, and fully mature by June. [9] Female P. ayeaye prefer to deposit their eggs on plants in the families Melastomataceae and Solanaceae. The leaves of those plants have trichomes on them which keep the eggs from drying out and adhering to the leaf. [6]

Threats

Pithecopus ayeaye is currently under threat due to habitat loss. Human-related threats include mining for materials in Brazil, fires that ravage the landscape, and pollution from industries and military operations. The pollutants in the water causes a decline in the population. [1] Ecotourism and urbanization also affect the breeding areas of this species. Non-human threats include climate change and erosion, which causes streams to be filled with sediment. [4]

Conservation status

The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies the reticulated leaf frog as critically endangered. However, the latest assessment of the species was done on January 7, 2009 and published in 2016. [1] Since then, P. ayeaye was found in other locations in Brazil and is no longer declared critically endangered by the Brazilian List of Endangered Species in 2014. [4]

Conservation efforts

While currently no specific conservation measures target this colourful amphibian, its occurrence in protected areas, such as the Parque Nacional da Serra da Canastra in the state of Minas Gerais and Parque Estadual das Furnas do Bom Jesus in the state of São Paulo, may provide it with some level of protection. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hylidae</span> Family of frogs

Hylidae is a wide-ranging family of frogs commonly referred to as "tree frogs and their allies". However, the hylids include a diversity of frog species, many of which do not live in trees, but are terrestrial or semiaquatic.

<i>Phyllomedusa burmeisteri</i> Species of amphibian

Phyllomedusa burmeisteri, also known as Burmeister's leaf frog and common walking leaf frog, is a species of frog native to the Atlantic Forest biome in Brazil.

<i>Phyllomedusa bicolor</i> Species of amphibian

Phyllomedusa bicolor, the giant leaf frog, bicolor tree-frog, giant monkey frog, or waxy-monkey treefrog, is a species of leaf frog. It can be found in the Amazon basin of Brazil, Colombia (Amazonas), Bolivia, and Peru, and can also be found in the Guianan Region of Venezuela and the Guianas, and in Cerrado of the state of Maranhão in Brazil.

<i>Phyllomedusa sauvagii</i> Species of amphibian

Phyllomedusa sauvagii, the waxy monkey leaf frog or waxy monkey tree frog, is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil. This species is arboreal, living in the vegetation of the Gran Chaco.

<i>Agalychnis lemur</i> Species of amphibian

Agalychnis lemur, the lemur leaf frog or lemur frog, is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is found in Costa Rica, Panama, and adjacent northwestern Colombia. It is classed as Critically Endangered and threatened by the fungal disease chytridiomycosis.

<i>Phyllomedusa boliviana</i> Species of frog

Phyllomedusa boliviana is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil. It has been observed between 200 and 1800 meters above sea level.

<i>Phyllomedusa distincta</i> Species of frog

Phyllomedusa distincta is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae, endemic to Brazil. It has been observed as high as 1000 meters above sea level.

Callimedusa duellmani is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is endemic to Peru and is only known from its type locality near Balzapata, upper Chiriaco River, in the Department of Amazonas. The specific name duellmani honors William E. Duellman, an American herpetologist. Common name purple and orange leaf frog has been proposed for it.

<i>Phyllomedusa iheringii</i> Species of frog

Phyllomedusa iheringii is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is found in southernmost Brazil and Uruguay. The specific name iheringii honors Hermann von Ihering, a German-Brazilian zoologist. However, common name southern walking leaf frog has been proposed for it.

<i>Pithecopus oreades</i> Species of frog

Pithecopus oreades is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is endemic to Brazil and is known from the states of Goiás and Minas Gerais as well as from the Federal District.

<i>Pithecopus rohdei</i> Species of frog

Pithecopus rohdei, also known as Rohde's leaf frog, Rohde's frog, and Mertens' leaf frog, is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. The species was previously placed in the genus Phyllomedusa. The species is endemic to southeastern Brazil and occurs at elevations up to 1000 meters above sea level.

<i>Phyllomedusa tetraploidea</i> Species of frog

Phyllomedusa tetraploidea is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is found in northern Argentina, extreme southeastern Paraguay, and southern Brazil. It occurs in rainforest on herbaceous vegetation near swamps at elevations of 400–1,000 m (1,300–3,300 ft) above sea level. It also occurs in secondary forest and pastures. The eggs are deposited in leaf nests above the water in permanent forest pools; the tadpoles develop in the pools. It is a common species in Brazil and Argentina. Habitat loss caused by agricultural activities is a threat to it. It is present in several protected areas.

<i>Phyllomedusa trinitatis</i> Species of frog

Phyllomedusa trinitatis is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. It is found in Venezuela and the island of Trinidad.

<i>Pseudis bolbodactyla</i> Species of frog

Pseudis bolbodactyla is a species of frog in the family Hylidae. It is endemic to southern Brazil and occurs in Minas Gerais, southern Goiás, southern Bahia, and northern Espírito Santo states. Although it is currently considered a valid species, it has also been treated as a subspecies of Pseudis paradoxa.

<i>Pithecopus</i> Genus of amphibians

Pithecopus is a genus of frogs in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae. Species of the genus Pithecopus are found in tropical South America east of the Andes, from southern Venezuela to northern Argentina. Resurrected from the synonymy of Phyllomedusa in 2016, it corresponds to the former Phyllomedusa hypochondrialis group. Its sister group is Callimedusa.

Pithecopus gonzagai is a species of frog in the family Hylidae, endemic to Brazil. It lives several states north of the Rio São Francisco.

<i>Pithecopus azureus</i> Species of amphibian

Pithecopus azureus is a species of frog in the subfamily Phyllomedusinae that lives in Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru.

<i>Pithecopus rusticus</i> Species of amphibian

Pithecopus rusticus is a species of frog in the family Hylidae, endemic to Brazil. This frog has been observed 1330 meters above sea level.

<i>Pithecopus nordestinus</i> Species of amphibian

Pithecopus nordestinus is a species of frog in the family Hylidae, endemic to Brazil.

Phyllomedusa neildi is a species of frog in the family Hylidae endemic to Venezuela. Scientists know this frog solely from its type locality: Sierra de San Luís. This frog has been observed between 550 and 1150 meters above sea level.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Ulisses Caramaschi, Carlos Alberto Gonçalves da Cruz, Raphael Lima, Reuber Brandão (2016). "Pithecopus ayeaye". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T55839A107295713. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T55839A107295713.en . Retrieved 17 November 2021.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. 1 2 3 4 Lutz, Bertha (1966). "Pithecopus ayeaye, a new Brazilian hylid with vertical pupils and grasping feet". Copeia. 1966 (2): 236–240. doi:10.2307/1441130. JSTOR   1441130.
  3. 1 2 Frost, Darrel R. (2020). "Pithecopus ayeaye Lutz, 1966". Amphibian Species of the World: An Online Reference. Version 6.1. American Museum of Natural History. doi:10.5531/db.vz.0001 . Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 de Magalhães, Rafael Félix; Lemes, Priscila; Camargo, Arley; Oliveira, Ubirajara; Brandão, Reuber Albuquerque; Thomassen, Hans; Garcia, Paulo Christiano de Anchietta; Leite, Felipe Sá Fortes; Santos, Fabrício Rodrigues (2017-09-20). "Evolutionarily significant units of the critically endangered leaf frog Pithecopus ayeaye (Anura, Phyllomedusidae) are not effectively preserved by the Brazilian protected areas network". Ecology and Evolution. 7 (21): 8812–8828. doi:10.1002/ece3.3261. PMC   5689491 . PMID   29177033.
  5. ↑ Araujo, Cybele De Oliveira; Condez, Thais Helena; Haddad, Célio F. B. (2007-06-01). "Amphibia, Anura, Phyllomedusa ayeaye (B. Lutz, 1966): distribution extension, new state record, and geographic distribution map". Check List. 3 (2): 156. doi: 10.15560/3.2.156 .
  6. 1 2 Borges, Marilia M; Nali, Renato C; Fiorillo, Bruno F; Prado, Cynthia PA (30 August 2018). "Site fidelity, reproductive behavior and investment in the Brazilian reticulate leaf frog, Pithecopus ayeaye Lutz, 1966" (PDF). Herpetozoa. 31 (1/2): 61–68.
  7. ↑ Baêta, Délio; Caramaschi, Ulisses; Cruz, Carlos Alberto G.; Pombal, José P. (2009-09-10). "Phyllomedusa itacolomi Caramaschi, Cruz & Feio, 2006, a junior synonym of Phyllomedusa ayeaye (B. Lutz, 1966) (Hylidae, Phyllomedusinae)". Zootaxa. 2226 (1): 58–65. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.2226.1.5. ISSN   1175-5334.
  8. 1 2 3 Nali, Renato C.; Borges, Marília M.; Prado, Cynthia P.A. (August 2015). "Advertisement and release calls of Phyllomedusa ayeaye (Anura: Hylidae) with comments on the social context of emission". Zoologia (Curitiba). 32 (4): 263–269. doi: 10.1590/s1984-46702015000400001 . hdl: 11449/160810 . ISSN   1984-4689.
  9. ↑ de Oliveira, Francisco Fonseca Ribeiro (2017-03-27). "Mating behaviour, territoriality and natural history notes of Phyllomedusa ayeaye Lutz, 1966 (Hylidae: Phyllomedusinae) in south-eastern Brazil". Journal of Natural History. 51 (11–12): 657–675. doi:10.1080/00222933.2017.1296196. S2CID   216088896.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.