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Philautus hallidayi by Tim Halliday ISSN 1026-0269

FROGLOGNewsletter of the Declining AmphibianPopulations Task Force

August 2005, Number 70

The Future ofthe DecliningAmphibianPopulationsTask Force

(DAPTF)

Part IIDAPTF at the 5

thWorld Congress of

Herpetology (WCH5), Stellenbosch,S. Africa

The development of the DAPTF hasbeen closely linked with that of theWCH; it was at WCH1 in 1987 that theamphibian community first becameaware that amphibian declines are aglobal phenomenon. WCH5 inStellenbosch, maintained the traditionof well-organised conferences againsta background of splendid socialevents, for which we thank ErnstBaard and his team.

The conference opened with aplenary talk by Simon Stuart of theWorld Conservation Union (IUCN),who reviewed the results of the GlobalAmphibian Assessment (GAA) and setout how it will continue to operatebetween now and 2010. This wasfollowed by a day-long symposium onamphibian declines, organised by theDAPTF, in which speakers addresseda number of aspects of amphibiandeclines such as pesticides and otherchemical stressors, diseases,

parasites and the role of captivebreeding in amphibian conservation.(Abstracts from this symposium canbe obtained from the DAPTF office.Please contact Tim Halliday att.r.halliday@open.ac.uk).

WCH5 provided us with a vitalopportunity to discuss the futureobjectives and continuing role of theDAPTF in investigating the causes ofglobal amphibian decline. We werevery heartened by the many peoplewho expressed the wish that theDAPTF should continue its current

work, especially its Seed Grantprogramme and Froglog. Therefore,

we intend to continue our currentoperations until June 2006. Lookingbeyond that date, we are discussing apartnership with two initiatives that arefocused on updating the GAA andimplementing conservation actions.The nature and objectives of thispartnership are currently being

explored and we are hoping toannounce the details after a summitmeeting on amphibian conservationand policy issues to be held inWashington DC in September.

The purpose of this meeting isto create a strategic action plan knownas the ACAP the AmphibianConservation Action Plan. This ActionPlan will be used to prioritizeamphibian research and conservationpriorities and develop a budget andfund-raising strategy for theirimmediate implementation. At

present, we envisage that the DAPTFwill continue to provide the scientificexpertise that will inform conservationaction. We also hope to continue andexpand our Working Group network,Seed Grant and Rapid Responseprogrammes and the production ofFroglog, to represent the entirepartnership. For further informationplease contact Jeanne McKay atdaptf@open.ac.uk or Don Church atdon.church@conservation.org

Tim Halliday and Jeanne McKay

Harlequin frogsback? Somethoughts andspeculations

By Stefan Ltters, Enrique LaMarca, Ronald W. Gagliardo, Celsa

J. Searis and Michael Veith

Amphibian extinction is a globalphenomenon (cf. Stuart et al. 2004). TheNeotropical harlequin frogs, genusAtelopus (Bufonidae), have sufferedfrom such drastic extinction trendsprobably more seriously than any otherlarge amphibian genus (Ltters et al.2004; La Marca et al. 2005). According

to the 2002-2004 Global AmphibianAssessment by IUCN, ConservationInternational and NatureServe, 84% ofthe 77 described Atelopus are at risk ofextinction with three species alreadyextinct(http://www.globalamphibians.org). Inaddition, most of the more than 35

undescribed species have undergone acomparable trend (La Marca et al.2005). Extinction trends occur in thecore area of the genus distribution(Central America and northern Andes ofSouth America plus adjacent areas),whereas the few taxa ( 20specimens including juveniles in Juneand July 2004 (Manzanilla & La Marca2004; unpubl. data). (2) A.

mucubajiensis from AndeanVenezuela, last seen in March 1994(Ltters, 1996), was rediscovered

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within its known range: one adultfemale with eggs in September 2004(Barrio 2004). (3) Atelopus sp. 32(cf. La Marca et al. 2005) from AndeanVenezuela, last seen in October 1995(Garca-Prez, 2005), wasrediscovered at one of its two knownlocalities: in total 20 tadpoles inFebruary and December 2004 (Garca-Prez 2005). (4)A.varius from CentralAmerica, in Costa Rica last seen in1996 and still present in Panama(http://www.globalamphibians.org),was rediscovered at a previouslyunknown Costa Rican locality withinthe known geographical range: threespecimens including one subadult inDecember 2003 (unpubl. data).

Known sites for all four specieshave been constantly monitored withdifferent intensities and methods (LaMarca & Ltters 1997; Barrio 2004;Manzanilla & La Marca 2004; Garca-Prez 2005; unpubl. data) and without

success until recently. The question ishow to interpret the recent findings ofapparently reproducing populations ofspecies against the background ofamphibian extinction?

Due to the limited number ofdata and the different quality ofmonitoring efforts, detailed analysescannot be performed. Therefore wehere discuss some hypotheticalconsiderations.

A. Intensified searching:Harlequin frogs are famous becauseof the bright colors of many of the

species, slow clown-like movementand diurnal activity (see Ltters 1996).The sad situation of many harlequinfrogs from Costa Rica south to Peru(e.g. La Marca & Reinthaler 1991;Pounds & Crump 1994; La Marca &Ltters 1997; Lips 1999; Ron et al.2003; Manzanilla & La Marca 2004;Rueda-Almonacid et al. 2004; LaMarca et al. 2005; Ltters et al. 2005)certainly has increased peoplesattention. Taking Andean Venezuelaas an example, in the early 1990spopulations of all taxa weresporadically monitored (La Marca &

Ltters 1997). We are currently awareof recent additional monitoring effortsincluding public local manpower bydifferent parties (e.g. Barrio 2004;Garca-Prez 2005; unpubl. data).

Also the fact that A. crucigerand A. varius were rediscovered atnew sites within their known rangesmay suggest that we are now lookingharder for harlequin frogs anddiscover surviving populations inremote places, previously overlooked.

The attraction ofAtelopus (as apossible flagship for amphibian

protection) is also reflected by generalconservation measures, as forexample the Iniciativa Atelopus by

Conservation International with thegoal to protect Andean amphibiansincluding harlequin frogs(http://www.andescbc.org/atelopus/). B. Species survival: Bd is oneof the most important causes to beresponsible for, or at least involved inextinction trends in harlequin frogs (LaMarca et al. 2005). Of the populationsof the four species rediscovered, onlyA. varius was positively tested for Bd(two of three specimens; unpubl.data). There are no data showing thepresence or absence of Bd in theother three species, althoughspecimens ofA. crucigerandAtelopussp. 32 are suspected to be free ofBd(unpubl. data). We will not rule out thatthe newly found population of A.cruciger and A. sp. 32 have neverbeen infected with Bdbut at least weare aware of the presence of Bd inother populations of A. cruciger(Bonaccorso et al. 2003; unpubl.

data). The single recently caughtspecimen ofA. mucubajiensis died incaptivity shortly after it was found,although this was probably not due toBd (C.L. Barrio A., pers. comm.).Nevertheless, conspecific individualscollected several years ago in thesame general area were Bd-infected(unpubl. data).

Recently, Retallick et al. (2004)reported that remnant populations ofthe Australian Taudactyluseungellensis (Myobatrachidae) thatsuffered drastic declines perhaps due

to Bd, now persist in the wild withstable, endemic Bd-infections.All of this information leads up

to several questions. Do the Atelopusspecimens found maybe representsurvivors? Can some harlequin frogsexist with Bd or clear the infection?Has Bdevolved less deadly strains?

C. Population response tofavourable environmental conditions:Although scientists andconservationists may have searchedharder forAtelopus, they have doneso for years before the rediscoveries.So the question arises why four

species were more or lesssynchronously rediscovered and onlynow, although they must havepersisted all the time? An explanationcould be that they had experienced analmost synchronous population boostafter a long period of persistence inlow numbers. In searching forplausible null-models for long-termdevelopment of amphibianpopulations, Alford & Richards (1999)demonstrated that, on average,amphibian populations tend to steadilydecrease. However, one or two years

of successful reproduction that onlyoccasionally lead to a strong increase

in population size are sufficient forlong-term persistence.Thus, presumably favourableenvironmental conditions (maybeclimate) prior to our recent findingscould have synchronously andpositively affected Atelopuspopulations in a way that they havebecome more visible now.

On the other hand, Atelopusspecies lay hundreds of eggs (Ltters,1996). How to explain the fewspecimens found only in each of thefour species (except in A. cruciger)?Does this mean that these (andprobably other) species in the pastwere weakened so heavily that theycannot recover properly?

Despite the speculativecharacter of these scenarios andconsiderations, the recent findings offour live and reproducing Atelopusspecies, along with two previouslyunknown species in Colombia and

Ecuador (J.V. Rueda and L.A.Coloma, pers. comm.), demonstratethat, although this genus is no longera significant component of theNeotropical amphibian fauna, it is nottoo late to save at least someharlequin frogs from extinction. Urgentand effective conservation programsare needed to help the rediscoveredand newly discovered species tosurvive. While population monitoringwill be important, in some cases suchas withA. varius in Costa Rica, certainspecies may be at such risk that

during the time a conventionalmonitoring study is being done, wemay see the species cross the line toextinction (unpubl. data). For thisreason, we should consideremergency extractions of small groupsof specimens for the purpose offorming captive assurance colonies(i.e. ex situconservation). More effortshould also be made in theinvestigation of the biology andpathogenicity of Bd itself. In addition,these findings should motivatescientists and conservationists tocontinue and intensify their search

efforts (also involving local people) forother harlequin frogs and to includethem in conservation and rescueprograms.

Acknowledgements

The authors thank the followingcolleagues for sharing ideas and fordiscussions leading to this note: CsarL. Barrio, Federico Bolaos, DonChurch, Luis A. Coloma, Juan ElasGarca, Karen R. Lips, JsusManzanilla, J. Alan Pounds, RobertPuschendorf, Jos Vicente Rueda,Rainer Schulte, Simon N. Stuart.

Research on Atelopus is based uponwork supported by the National

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Science Foundation under grant DEB-0130273 to Bruce E. Young (under theproject R.A.N.A.;http.//rana.biologia.ucr.ac.cr).

ReferencesAlford, R.A. & Richards, S.J. (1999)Global amphibian declines: a problemin applied ecology. Annual Review ofEcology and Systematics, 30, 133-165.

Barrio-Amors, C.-L. (2004) Atelopusmucubajiensis still survives in theAndes of Venezuela. Preliminaryreport. Froglog,66, 2-3.

Bonaccorso, E., Guayasamin, J.M.,Mndez, D. & R. Speare. (2003):Chytridiomycosis as a possible causeof population declines in Atelopuscruciger (Anura: Bufonidae).Herpetological Review, 34, 331-334.

Garca-Prez, J.E. (2005) Survival ofan undescribed Atelopus from theVenezuelan Andes. Froglog, 68, 2-3.

Lips, K.R. (1999) Mass mortality of theanuran fauna at an upland site inPanama. Conservation Biology, 13,117-125.

Lips, K., Reeve, J. D. & Witters, L.R.(2003) Ecological traits predictingamphibian population declines inCentral America. ConservationBiology, 17, 1078-1088.

La Marca, E. & H.P. Reinthaler (1991)Population changes in Atelopusspecies of the Cordillera de Mrida.Herpetological Review, 22, 125-128.

La Marca, E. & Ltters, S. (1997)Population declines in VenezuelanAtelopus (Amphibia: Anura:Bufonidae). Herpetologia Bonnensis(ed. by W. Bhme, W. Bischoff and T.Ziegler), pp. 207-213. SocietasEuropeae Herpetologica, Bonn.

La Marca, E., K.R. Lips, S. Ltters, R.Puschendorf, R. Ibez, J.V. Rueda-Almonacid, R. Schulte, C. Marty, F.Castro, J. Manzanilla-Puppo, J.E.Garca-Prez, F. Bolaos, G. Chaves,J.A. Pounds, E. Toral & Young, B.E.(2005): Catastrophic populationdeclines and extinctions in Neotropicalharlequin frogs (Bufonidae: Atelopus).

Biotropica, 37, 190-201.Ltters, S. (1996) The Neotropicaltoad genusAtelopus. Vences & Glaw,Cologne.

Ltters, S., E. La Marca, S. Stuart, R.Gagliardo & Veith, M. (2004) A newdimension of global biodiversity loss?Herpetotropicos, 1, 29-31.

Ltters, S., R. Schulte, J.H. Crdova &M. Veith (2005): Conservationpriorities for harlequin frogs (Atelopusspp.) of Peru. - ORYX, Cambridge(UK), 39 (3): 343-346.

Manzanilla, J. & La Marca, E. (2004)Population status of the RanchoGrande harlequin toad (Atelopus

cruciger Lichtenstein & Martens,1856), a proposed criticallyendangered from the Venezuelancoastal range. Memoria de la

Fundacin la Salle de CienciasNaturales, 62, 5-29.

Pounds, J.A. & Crump, M.L. (1994)Amphibian declines and climatedisturbance: the case of the golden

toad and the harlequin frog.Conservation Biology, 8, 72-85.Pounds, J.A. & Puschendorf, R.(2004) Clouded futures. Nature, 427,107-109.

Retallick, R.W.R., H. McCallum & R.Speare (2004): Endemic infection ofthe amphibian chytrid fungus in a frogcommunity post-decline. PLoSBiology, 2, 1965-1971.

Rueda Almonacid, J.V., Lynch, J.D. &Amezquita, A. (2004) Libro Rojo delos anfibios de Colombia. Serie delibros rojos de especies amenazadasde Colombia. ConservacinInternacional Colombia, Instituto deCiencias Naturales UniversidadNacional de Colombia, Ministerio delMedio Ambiente, Bogot.

Stuart, S.N., Chanson, J.S., Cox, N.A.,Young, B.E., Rodrigues, A.S.L.,Fischman, D.L. & Waller, R.W. (2004)Status and trends of amphibiandeclines and extinctions worldwide.Science, 306, 1783-1786.

For more information please contact:loetters@uni-mainz.de;lamarca1@telcel.net.ve

An unexpectedhonour

By Jeanne McKay

A newly-described Sri Lankan frog hasbeen named after Tim Halliday and iscalled Philautus hallidayi (picturedabove and on the cover page). Thespecies description includes thefollowing:

"The species name, in the Latingenitive singular, is a patronymhonouring Timothy Richard Halliday

(b. England, 1945), since 1994International Director of the IUCN /SSC Task Force on DecliningAmphibian Populations (DAPTF),recognizing also his three decades ofresearch on amphibians and hisexceptional commitment to advancingour understanding of the globalamphibian decline crisis.'

Upon receiving the news, Timreplied; "This is a great honour for meand a nice way to acknowledge theDAPTF."

Meegaskumbura, M. & Manamendra-

Arachchi, K. (2005) Description ofeight new species of shrub frogs(Ranidae: Rhacophorinae: Philautus)

from Sri Lanka. Raffles Bull. Zool:Suppl. 12; 305-338.

Chytrid fungusinfects high-

altitude stream-dwelling Hylodes

magalhaesi(Leptodactylidae)

in the BrazilianAtlanticrainforest

By Ana Carolina O. Q. Carnaval,Lus Felipe Toledo, Clio. F. B.

Haddad, and Fbio B. Britto

Infections by the chytrid fungusBatrachochytrium dendrobatidis havebeen associated with well-documented instances of amphibianpopulation declines in several regionsof the world (Berger et al., 1998,1999). In South America, the diseasehas been diagnosed in Ecuador,Venezuela, Uruguay, Peru, andArgentina (see Herrera et al., 2005 fora review). Based on morphological,histological, and molecular data, wefound evidence of infection in Hylodesmagalhaesi, a high-altitude stream-dwelling leptodactylid endemic to theBrazilian Atlantic rainforest. In 2004,we collected five tadpoles withabnormal mouthparts, which showedtotal or partial loss of teeth, in theMunicipality of Camanducaia, State ofMinas Gerais (224519 S, 460841W, ca. 1500 m above sea level).

Infection by the chrytrid fungus wasconfirmed through Haematoxylin andEosin and Periodic Acid Schiffhistological preparations (Junqueiraand Junqueira, 1983), as well asAnnis et al.s (2004) specific DNA-based assay for of B. dendrobatidisidentification. This represents the firstrecord ofB. dendrobatidis in Brazil

Acknowledgements

Fundao de Amparo Pesquisa do Estado de So Paulo(FAPESP) supported work in C.Haddads herpetology laboratory

(Departamento de Zoologia,Universidade Estadual Paulista, RioClaro, So Paulo, Brazil, projectBIOTA, # 01/13341-3). The authorsalso thank Conselho Nacional deDesenvolvimento Cientfico eTecnolgico (CNPq), Coordenao deAperfeioamento de Pessoal de NvelSuperior (CAPES), and the NationalScience Foundation (proposal #0091511) for financial support.Genetic assays were carried out in theField Museum Pritzker Laboratory forMolecular Systematics and Evolution.

Eric O'Neill provided valuableassistance with the molecular work.

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References

Annis, S. L., F. P. Dastoor, H. Ziel, P.Daszak, and J. E. Longcore. 2004. ADNA-based assay identifiesBatrachochytrium dendrobatidis inamphibians. Journal of WildlifeDiseases40: 420-428.

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Berger, L., R. Speare, P. Daszak, D.E. Green, A. A. Cunningham, C. L.

Goggin, R. Slocombe, M. A. Ragan, A.D. Hyatt, K. R. McDonald, H. B.Hines, K. R. Lips, G. Marantelli, andH. Parkes. 1998. Chytridiomycosiscauses amphibian mortalityassociated with population declines inthe rain forests of Australia andCentral America. Proceedings of theNational Academy of Sciences95:9031-9036.

Berger, L., R. Speare, and A. D. Hyatt.1999. Chytrid fungi and amphibiandeclines: overview, implications andfuture directions. In: A. Campbell(Ed.). Declines and disappearances of

Australian frogs. EnvironmentAustralia: Canberra. Pp. 23-33.

Junqueira, L. C. U., and L. M. M.Junqueira. 1983. Tcnicas bsicas decitologia e histologia. Livraria Santos:So Paulo. 123p.

Speare, R., and L. Berger. 2000.Global distribution of chytridiomycosisin amphibians.online database available at:http://www.jcu.edu.au/school/phtm/PHTM/frogs/chyglob.htm.

Please contact: Felipe Toledo at:toledolf2@yahoo.com orAna CarolinaCarnaval at : carnaval@berkeley.edu

Art Exhibition

Two Cultures: Collection

On October 1st 2005, an Art/Scienceexhibition examining amphibiandeclines will open at the Hall Centerfor the Humanities in Lawrence,Kansas. This exhibition was conceivedby John Simmons, the Herpetology

Collections Manager at the KansasMuseum of Natural History and Dr.Marjorie Swann. In this exhibition,artist Tracy Hicks will focus on howscientific specimens are collected andpreserved in the field and themuseum, emphasizing how scientificspecimens become objects of culturalheritage when they are collected andpreserved.

From the proposal:we now understand that thepractice of science is never purelyobjective. Both the questions

scientists ask and the ways in whichthey try to answer them are alwaysculturally determined; thus natural

history collections necessarily embodythe beliefs and ideals of the cultureswhich create and preserve suchgroups of physical objects. When it iscollected in the wild, a living organismis removed from its originalenvironment and re-contextualizedwithin a cultural realm where itstreatment and interpretation areshaped by ever-changing concepts ofhumanitys relationship to nature, thesocial and political dynamics ofscientific inquiry, and the ethics ofcollecting. The places chosen forexpeditions, the organisms collected,the way fieldwork is conducted, thepreservation technology employed,and the use of specimens in researchare thus all shaped by cultural forces.This project will allow audiences togain a better understanding of howscience and culture interact in theseprocesses of collecting.

To accomplish these goals, the most

significant collection of Asianamphibians from the Field Museum inChicago were mined and forty-onespecimens were selected to be castand correlated with New Worldspecimens from the KansasCollection. This project can beviewed online at:http://www.tracyhicks.com/Art/weblog.php. A catalogue will be producedincorporating comments collectedfrom the blog site. To add yourcomments to this project please sign-up to the blog and post comments.

The forty plus year history of TracyHicks art work has continuallyexamined correlations between whatwe both collectively and individuallyfind precious enough to preserve.

For further details please contactTracy Hicks at: tracy@tracyhicks.comor at: www.TracyHicks.com.

Books received

Sydney Ross Singer & SomaGrismaijer. (2005) Panic in Paradise.Invasive Species Hysteria and theHawaiian Coqui Frog War. ISCD

Press, Hawaii Press. (112 pp.)When populations of the Puerto Ricanfrog Eleutherodactylus coqui becameestablished on Hawaii it caused panicand hysteria among some sections ofthe public. This book gives a fullaccount of this story, exposing thefolly behind the hysterical response ofthe media and officialdom in Hawaii.

William E. Duellman. (2005) Cusco Amaznico. The Lives of Amphibiansand Reptiles in an AmazonianRainforest. Comstock Publishing,Ithaca, NY. (433 pp.)

Sure to become a classic inherpetological natural history, this

book describes in detail the 151species of amphibians and reptiles ofa small region of the Amazon basin insouth-eastern Peru which BillDuellman has been studying for morethan 30 years.

Tim Halliday

Froglog

Shorts

New Regional Working GroupChairs:

A warm welcome to our newWorking Group Chairs for:

Israel: Eldad ElronMexico: Luis ZambranoAustralia: Stephen RichardsPeru: Victor Morales

We would also like to thank thefollowing retiring Chairs for their hardwork and continued support: JoyHoffman (Israel), Michael J. Tyler

(Australia) and Antonio Salas (Peru).DONATIONS:

The DAPTF would like to thank Dr.Mike Lannoo for his generousdonation of half of the royaltiesobtained from the sale of his newvolume:

Status and Conservation of U.S.Amphibians. (2005) M. J. Lannoo(Ed.), University of California Press,Berkeley, California.

We also gratefullyacknowledge receipt of the followingdonations received prior to July 25,

2005: Minnesota HerpetologicalSociety and International AmphibianDay.

RANA and the US National ScienceFoundation grant DEB-0130273helped support the publication ofthis issue.

FROGLOG is the bi-monthlynewsletter of the DecliningAmphibian Populations TaskForce. Articles on any subject relevant tothe understanding of amphibiandeclines should be sent to: Jeanne

McKay, Editor, Department ofBiological Sciences, The OpenUniversity, Walton Hall, MiltonKeynes, MK7 6AA, U.K.Tel: +44 (0) 1908 - 652274.Fax: +44 (0) 1908 - 654167E-mail: daptf@open.ac.uk

Funding for FROGLOG isunderwritten by the DetroitZoological Institute, P.O. Box 39,Royal Oak, MI 48068-0039, USA

mailto:daptf@open.ac.ukmailto:daptf@open.ac.uk