Conservation assessment of the critically endangered frog Mantella aurantiaca in Madagascar

Abstract

Mantella aurantiaca is a small, bright orange, terrestrial amphibian that is endemic to the island of Madagascar. The species has attracted significant attention from herpetologists and captive breeders but relatively little effort has been given to its conservation in the wild. We surveyed 33 reported breeding localities of the species to determine sites of conservation importance and aspects of habitat use and seasonality. We found a total of 471 M. aurantiaca in 26 different localities, all of which were characterised by intact or degraded humid forest on sloping ground alongside temporary lentic ponds in narrow valleys. Additional monitoring at a single site revealed that adult M. aurantiaca predominantly used the ponds and surrounding humid forest habitat during the austral summer and moved upslope at the beginning of the austral winter. Effective conservation for this species should therefore include measures to safeguard both forest and aquatic habitat features. Although 62% of localities occurred in sites with a positive conservation status (provisional protected areas or Ramsar sites), there is currently heavy pressure from artisanal mining, logging and agriculture in these areas. Because a further 15% of sites occur on land due to be impacted by mining and an additional 23% were at sites without any biodiversity management, the future of M. aurantiaca in the wild is precarious. A species conservation strategy is therefore needed to produce a cohesive plan for the future which aims to secure as many sites as possible for conservation.