Anuran diversity in urban and rural zones of the Itacoatiara municipality, central Amazonia, Brazil

Marcelo Menin,Izomar Barbosa Melo,Rafaela Fernanda Batista Ferreira,Gustavo Yomar Hattori,Bruno Sampaio Sant’Anna,Marcelo Gordo

doi:10.1590/1809-4392201800284

Abstract

ABSTRACT Few studies in the Amazon region have evaluated anuran diversity in urban forest fragments or in areas with differing degrees of anthropogenic impact. We determined the composition and abundance of the anurofauna in urban and rural sites within the municipality of Itacoatiara in central Amazonia, Brazil. Specimens were sampled from January 2012 to May 2013 in 10 urban sites and five rural sites. A total of 1,538 anurans (930 in rural sites and 608 in urban sites) were recorded, belonging to 29 species in five families. Species richness was higher in rural sites, with 10 exclusive species. All species found in urban sites were also found in rural sites, however, species abundance varied considerably between the habitats. Sampling- and individual-based rarefaction curves showed a tendency toward stabilization of species richness only in the urban sites. We concluded that the anuran assemblages in the urban sites are depauperate due to the absence of many species associated to pristine terra firme or várzea and igapó forests. Habitat loss and quality degradation in urban landscapes are the main factors threatening amphibian diversity. The anuran assemblages in our study areas were similar to those recorded in other Amazonian habitats. Conservation measures involving anurans in this region should consider the preservation of habitat mosaics, including both pristine terra firme, várzea and igapó forests.

Highlights

Urban growth ranks as a serious threat to animal biodiversity, affecting the richness and abundance of many species (Delis et al 1996)
Twenty-nine species were found in the rural sites (Table 2), varying from nine to 15 species (Figure 2A), and from 74 to 393 individuals (Figure 2B)
Dendropsophus walfordi was the most abundant species, representing 17% of all specimens collected in the rural sites, followed by B. geographica (13%) and Leptodactylus podicipinus (13%)

Summary

Introduction

Urban growth ranks as a serious threat to animal biodiversity, affecting the richness and abundance of many species (Delis et al 1996). Brazil is home to an average 13% of the world’s biodiversity (Lewinsohn and Prado 2005), including the greatest amphibian richness, with 1,080 documented species (Segalla et al 2016). Part of this diversity is found in the Amazon region, the largest tropical forest on the planet, most of which remains relatively well preserved. In the Brazilian Amazon, 332 amphibian species, including 309 anurans have been recorded (Hoogmoed and Galatti 2017), these numbers may well be underestimates due to inconsistencies in the taxonomy of various amphibian groups (Avila-Pires et al 2007), and cryptic diversity (e.g. Funk et al 2012)

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion