Assessment Results
Rhacophorus burmanus
Patsarlamdam Flying Frog
Order:
Anura
Family:
Rhacophoridae
Synonym(s):
Polypedates dennysii ssp. burmana, Rhacophorus taronensis, Rhacophorus gongshanensis, Rhacophorus gongshanensis, Zhangixalus burmanus
Assessed for:
India
on:
15 Sep 2020
by:
AArk/ASG India Assessment Workshop
Authors:
Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, Nikhil Modak, Jayanta Roy and Karthikeyan Vasudevan
IUCN Global Red List:
Not Evaluated (NE)
National Red List:
(not assessed)
Distribution:
China, India, Myanmar
Evolutionary Distinctiveness score:
9.209386181
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.] | Least Concern (LC) | |
| 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 species occurs in Hengduan Mountains, western Yunnan (Gaoshan, Tengchong, and Baoshan counties) in China, through northern Myanmar (Ohler 2009), and Nagaland in northeastern India (Ao et al. 2003, Sen and Mathew 2009). The Baoshan County records in China are provided through the synonymy of Rhacophorus gongshanensis with Rhacophorus taronensis (Wilkinson and Rao 2004), the latter which was subsequently synonymised with this species and provided the records for Myanmar (Ohler 2009). It occurs in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipurand Nagaland (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020), and has been found in Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary and Pulibadze Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). It has also been found in Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary (Jayanta Roy, pers. comm. September 2020). It has been found in the Dibang River Basin in Arunachal Pradesh, Maruli, Hunli, and Ambuli (near Anini) (Roy et al. 2018). It occurs between 1,177-2,000 m asl. |
| 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? | Yes / probably | |
| 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 | This species has been found in Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary and Pulibadze Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020), and in Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary (Jayanta Roy, 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.)? | Unknown | Increased habitat protection is required. |
| 9 | In situ research | Is additional in situ research required to better understand the species, e.g. distribution, population trends, natural history etc.? | Unknown | |
| 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 are likely to be reversible in time frame to prevent further decline / extinction | It breeds near small water pool in secondary and primary evergreen sub-tropical broadleaf forest and roadside water bodies with thick bushes and shrubs (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020), however it has not been found in agricultural lands. Clearing of shrub vegetation along a forested road, vehicular movement along forested road, livestock grazing in forested habitat are the threats observed during the survey period (Roy et al. 2018). It is considered to be reasonably adaptable to modified habitats if temporary pools for breeding are available. |
| 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 | It is consumed locally in Nagaland and Manipur (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 quite a common species in Nagaland and is found in primary forest (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). This species is rare and breeds near small water pool in a forest and roadside water bodies with thick bushes and shrubs. A total seven individuals of this species were recorded from 5 locations in the Dibang River Basin during 2011-2019 (Jayanta Roy, pers. comm. September 2020). It was very commonly encountered in the Khonoma area of Nagaland in 2004 (Mohammad Firoz Ahmed, pers. comm. September 2020). |
| 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? | Yes | This could be considered as a husbandry analog for more threatened species (India RLA/CNA workshop, September 2020). |
| 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? | No | Although it is found close to populated areas, and therefore can often by seen by people (India RLA/CNA workshop, 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, Nikhil Modak, Jayanta Roy and Karthikeyan Vasudevan 2020. Conservation Needs Assessment for Rhacophorus burmanus, India
(AArk/ASG India Assessment Workshop).
https://conservationneeds.org/assessment/5706
Accessed 23 Jan 2025
