Assessment Results
Hylodes magalhaesi
Sao Paulo Tree Toad
Order:
Anura
Family:
Hylodidae
Synonym(s):
Elosia magalhãesi
Assessed for:
Brazil
on:
11 Nov 2020
by:
AArk/ASG Brazil Assessment Workshop
Authors:
F.P. de Sá and L.F. Toledo
IUCN Global Red List:
Data Deficient (DD)
National Red List:
(not assessed)
Distribution:
Brazil
Evolutionary Distinctiveness score:
20.42660965
Recommended Conservation Actions:
Additional Comments:
A captive breeding program is recommended for this species to prevent its disappearance like other Hylodes species.
| Question # | Short Name | Question Text | Response | Comments |
| 1 | Extinction risk | Current IUCN Red List category. [Data obtained from the IUCN Red List.] | Data Deficient (DD) | |
| 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 - 50 | |
| 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 is known from fragments well-preserved located in Campos do Jordão (SP) and Monte Verde (MG), but none is inserted in a reliably protected area. |
| 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? | No / unlikely | The species is less ecologically and geographically restricted, but is not known to any protected area with a good degree of conservation. It occurs very close to the Parque Nacional do Itatiaia, but as there is no record of its occurrence, this area cannot be considered for this purpose because the species would compete with the native ones. |
| 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.). | No / unlikely | |
| 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 | Increase the protection category in any of the fragments in which it occurs; improve management in the areas where it occurs, evaluating and managing the advance of anthropogenic impacts. |
| 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 is needed on natural history; monitoring of the population to know its dynamics and prevent it from disappearing like the other species of Hylodes; the species role as Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) reservoir; monitoring of Bd in the population, once its existence is confirmed; and ecophysiology related to climate change and deforestation. |
| 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 | The main threats to this species are deforestation (urban expansion and agriculture) and climate change (correlated or not with the effects of Bd). Although Bd is present in the population, there is no evidence that the fungus caused a decline in subpopulations (Toledo et al 2006), but synergistic factors should be considered as potential threats. |
| 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 | |
| 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 | |
| 13 | Action plans | Does an Action Plan for the species already exist, or is one currently being developed? | No | There is no specific plan for this species, but it is part of the National Action Plan "Plano de Ação Nacional para a Conservação da Herpetofauna Ameaçada da Mata Atlântica da Região Sudeste do Brasil" (PAN Herpetofauna do Sudeste). |
| 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? | Yes | Studies on thermal and physiological ecology and on response to pathogens. |
| 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? | Yes / probably | Hylodes asper. An initial effort has already been made with H. asper at the São Paulo Zoo (C.S.Lisboa, pers. comm. 2020). |
| 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 species is diurnal and charismatic with potential for frogwatching (ecotourism) and zoo exhibits. It has a curious reproductive behavior with signs of legs and its call is easy to hear. It is important to highlight its relationship with the habitat and environmental change, as well as the disappearance of related species. |
| 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 | Easily found in several places, including the type-locality, which would be the best place to find founders. Although it is easily found,it is not a very abundant species. |
| 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:
F.P. de Sá and L.F. Toledo 2020. Conservation Needs Assessment for Hylodes magalhaesi, Brazil
(AArk/ASG Brazil Assessment Workshop).
https://conservationneeds.org/assessment/6798
Accessed 07 Feb 2025
