Assessment Results
Nanorana arunachalensis
Arunachal Cascade Frog
Order:
Anura
Family:
Dicroglossidae
Synonym(s):
Odorrana arunachalensis
Assessed for:
India
on:
22 Sep 2020
by:
AArk/ASG India Assessment Workshop
Authors:
Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, Basundhara Chettri, Dr. Tutul Bortamuli, Annemarie Ohler and Jayanta Roy
IUCN Global Red List:
Not Evaluated (NE)
National Red List:
(not assessed)
Distribution:
India
Evolutionary Distinctiveness score:
12
Recommended Conservation Actions:
Additional Comments:
| Question # | Short Name | Question Text | Response | Comments |
| 1 | Extinction risk | Current IUCN Red List category. [Data obtained from the IUCN Red List.] | Vulnerable (VU) | |
| 2 | Possibly extinct | Is there a strong possibility that this species might be extinct in the wild? | No / unlikely | |
| 3 | Phylogenetic significance | The taxon’s Evolutionary Distinctiveness (ED) score, as generated by the ZSL EDGE program. (These data are not editable by Assessors). | ED value < 20 | |
| 4 | Protected habitat | Is a population of at least 50% of the individuals of the taxon included within a well-managed or reliably protected area or areas? | No / unlikely | This cascade frog is known from Tamen Road in the outskirts of Ziro, and Pange and Tassi Budag in Talle Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Lower Subansiri District, in the state of Arunachal Pradesh in India (Saikia et al. 2017). This taxon is possibly present also in other river valleys of the same system (Saikia et al. 2017). It has also been found in the Dibang Valley in the Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary in 2018-2019 (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). It is probably widely distributed in other areas in Arunachal Pradesh (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020) It ranges between 1,400 and 2,500 m asl (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). |
| 5 | Habitat for reintroduction, conservation translocation or supplementation | Does enough well-managed and reliably protected habitat exist, either within or outside of currently protected areas that is suitable for conservation translocation, including population restoration or conservation introduction? | Unknown | |
| 6 | Previous reintroductions | Have reintroduction or translocation attempts been made in the past for this species? | No | |
| 7 | In situ conservation activities | Are any in situ conservation actions currently in place for this species? (Only required if a Red List Assessment has not been completed, or if new actions have been implemented since the last Red List Assessment. (Information from the Conservation Actions section of the Red List assessment should be reviewed and considered when answering this question.). | Yes / probably | It has been found in the Talle Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Lower Subansiri District, in the state of Arunachal Pradesh in India (Saikia et al. 2017) and in the Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). |
| 8 | In situ conservation activities | Are additional in situ conservation actions required to help conserve this species in the wild (e.g. habitat restoration and/or protection, control of invasive species, national legislation etc.)? | Yes / probably | |
| 9 | In situ research | Is additional in situ research required to better understand the species, e.g. distribution, population trends, natural history etc.? | Yes | Research on ecology is recommended (Saikia et al. 2017). |
| 10 | Threat mitigation | Are the threats facing the taxon, including any new and emerging threats not considered in the IUCN Red List, potentially reversible? | Threats unlikely to be reversed in time to prevent further decline / extinction | It has been observed in disturbed mixed forests on rocky bottom characterized by a thick layer of moss and ferns (Saikia et al. 2017). It is possibly threatened by over-collection during the breeding season (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). Logging is a significant threat, proposed hydroelectric projects, agriculture, road construction and stream deposition from mud during road construction are aso considered to be threats (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed and Annemarie Ohler, pers. comm. September 2020). Climate change is a likely future threat and may cause the drying up of its habitat (Prudhvi Raj Gunturu, pers. comm. September 2020). Bd is a potential threat to this species (India RLA/CNA workshop, September 2020). |
| 11 | Over-collection from the wild | Is the taxon suffering from collection within its natural range, either for food, for the pet trade or for any other reason, which threatens the species’ continued persistence in the wild? | No / unlikely | This species is collected in large amounts locally for food during the breeding season, using fishing nets (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). |
| 12 | Population recovery | Is the known population of this species in the wild large enough to recover naturally, without ex situ intervention if threats are mitigated? | Yes / probably | This is observed as a common species in the Dibang Valley (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). It is inferred to be declining due to over-harvesting and habitat loss. |
| 13 | Action plans | Does an Action Plan for the species already exist, or is one currently being developed? | No | |
| 14 | Biological distinctiveness | Does the taxon exhibit a distinctive reproductive mode, behaviour, aspect of morphology or physiology, within the Order to which it belongs (e.g. Anura, Passeriformes etc.)? | No aspect of biology known to be exceptional | |
| 15 | Cultural/socio-economic importance | Does the taxon have a special human cultural value (e.g. as a national or regional symbol, in a historic context, featuring in traditional stories) or economic value (e.g. food, traditional medicine, tourism) within its natural range or in a wider global context? | No | |
| 16 | Scientific importance | Is the species vital to current or planned research other than species-specific ecology/biology/conservation within the Order to which it belongs (e.g. Anura, Passeriformes etc.) e.g. human medicine, climate change, environmental pollutants and conservation science? | No research dependent on this species | |
| 17 | Ex situ research | Does conserving this species (or closely related species) in situ depend upon research that can be most easily carried out ex situ? | No | |
| 18 | Ex situ conservation activities | Is any ex situ research or other ex situ conservation action currently in place for this species? (Information from the Conservation Actions section of the Red List assessment should be reviewed and considered when answering this question.) | No / unlikely | |
| 19 | Husbandry analog required | If an ex situ rescue program is recommended for this species, would an analog species be required to develop husbandry protocols first? | No / unlikely | |
| 20 | Husbandry analog | Do the biological and ecological attributes of this species make it suitable for developing husbandry regimes for more threatened related species? i.e. could this species be used in captivity to help to develop husbandry and breeding protocols which could be used for a similar, but more endangered species at a later stage? | No | |
| 21 | Captive breeding | Has this species been successfully bred and/or maintained in captivity? | Not held in captivity to date | |
| 22 | Conservation education/ecotourism potential | Is the species especially diurnal, active or colourful, or is there an interesting or unusual aspect of its ecology that make it particularly suitable to be an educational ambassador for conservation of the species in the range country, either in zoos or aquariums or within ecotourism activities? | Yes | This is very common species and it would make a good educational species (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). |
| 23 | Mandate | Is there an existing conservation mandate recommending the ex situ conservation of this taxon? | No | |
| 24 | Range State approval | If an ex situ initiative was proposed for this species, would it be supported (and approved) by the range State (either within the range State or out-of-country ex situ)? | Yes / probably | |
| 25 | Founder specimens | Are sufficient animals of the taxon available or potentially available (from wild or captive sources) to initiate an ex situ program, if one was recommended? | Yes / probably | |
| 26 | Taxonomic status | Has a complete taxonomic analysis of the species in the wild been carried out, to fully understand the functional unit you wish to conserve (i.e. have species limits been determined)? | Yes |
Citation:
Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, Basundhara Chettri, Dr. Tutul Bortamuli, Annemarie Ohler and Jayanta Roy 2020. Conservation Needs Assessment for Nanorana arunachalensis, India
(AArk/ASG India Assessment Workshop).
https://conservationneeds.org/assessment/5585
Accessed 12 Feb 2025
