Amphibian Conservation Needs Assessments

Assessment Results

Atelopus hoogmoedi

Hoogmoed Harlequin Toad, Nassau Harlequin Toad

Order: Anura Family: Bufonidae

Synonym(s): Atelopus hoogmoedi nassaui, Atelopus spumarius, Atelopus pulcher hoogmoedi, Atelopus spumarius hoogmoedi

Assessed for: Guyana on: 02 Jan 2025 by: AArk/ASG Assessment Workshop

Authors: Andrew Snyder, Amadeus Plewnia, Raffael Ernst, Philippe J. R. Kok

IUCN Global Red List: Not Evaluated (NE)

National Red List: (not assessed)

Distribution: Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname

Evolutionary Distinctiveness score: 7.90768859

AmphibiaWeb species account

Recommended Conservation Actions:

In Situ Research

, Husbandry Research

, Conservation Education

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)	Atelopus hoogmoedi was evaluated by the IUCN in 2022 and will be listed as Least Concern when the report is published in 2023. Guyana National Red List: has not been assessed
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?	Yes / probably	There are a lot of unknowns, but this species was abundant in various locations, both within and outside protected areas, throughout Guyana during field surveys in 2012-2017. One of the largest populations is found in Kaieteur National Park. Atelopus hoogmoedi is also known to be commonly found in the Mabura Hill Forest Reserve, Kanuku Mountains Protected Area, and the Iwokrama Forest (managed by the Iwokrama Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development, an NGO/commonwealth institution)-- the species was abundant near Turu Falls as of 2015 (Philippe Kok, pers. comm.). Authors estimate that the populations of this species are about the same across these protected areas.
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	Although sightings have not been confirmed since ~2017, authors assume that the Kaieteur National Park, Mabura Hill Forest Reserve, Kanuku Mountains Protected Area, and the Iwokrama Forest would serve well as areas for reintroduction, should that need exist in the future. However, it should be noted that Mabura Hill Forest Reserve is not officially protected by the commission. Gold mining and general deforestation for road construction (especially on the Brazilian border) are a major threat, particularly in Mabura Hill, Iwokrama, and Kaieteur.
6	Previous reintroductions	Have reintroduction or translocation attempts been made in the past for this species?	No	Reintroduction or translocation attempts for this species have not been made in Guyana.
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	No Atelopus-specific work is ongoing, as far as authors are aware. There seems to be minimal interest in amphibian research and conservation in Guyana at this time, even in the academic community.
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.)?	No / unlikely	Many Guyanan populations of this species occur within protected areas and seem stable. Authors also expect that other populations occur in unsurveyed areas.
9	In situ research	Is additional in situ research required to better understand the species, e.g. distribution, population trends, natural history etc.?	Yes	Not much is known about this species. Field surveys are needed to understand distribution, natural history (especially of tadpoles), population trends/status, phenology, phylogenetic differences, and ecotypes. Since alphataxonomy and between-population diversity are not clear for this species, certain areas may contain genetically distinct populations that need protection and/or research. Observed differences between individuals of these populations are based on adults only. Tadpoles of the Mabura population are unknown, only few amplectant pairs (3-4) have been observed in more then 3 years of consecutive research. The frequently observed sex bias has also been observed at Mabura. The few demales were exclusively found in a significant distance from lotic habitats in the forest interior, while males are frequently found on calling sites/perches along streams and creeks and show high calling site fidelity. Reassessment of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) status is needed, as the effect of chytridiomycosis on population decline for this species remains unknown. Bd surveys in Brownsberg Nature Reserve in Suriname were negative in 2005, but much could have changed since. The impact of Bd was recently assessed in Atelopus manauensis (another species from the Guyana clade) and might be similar; the study found that mortality was Bd-strain dependent and that Bd prevalence was high in amphibian communities throughout the Brazilian part of the Guiana Shield (Lambertini et al. 2022). Ultimately, more research needs to be conducted to better understand the scope of threats for this species (especially for Bd and climate change).
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	Threats are substantial, but not insurmountable. Known threats include habitat loss via mining and major infrastructure projects. Offshore oil exploration also changes economic incentives and infrastructure initiatives that cause deforestation (e.g., construction of roads). Gold and bauxite mining activity occurs both within and adjacent to protected areas. These mines, both legal and illegal, threaten the species via deforestation (habitat loss) and water pollution. There is also likely poaching/ overcollection of this species for the pet trade, but this is not as common in Guyana compared to activity in Suriname, where they are relatively accessible and thus collected in large numbers. Bd and climate change are also potential threats for this species. More research needs to be conducted to better understand the scope of threats for this species. None of these threats are likely to change, but some could be mitigated with substantial effort.
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?	Unknown	Over-collection of this species is likely more of a problem in Suriname compared to other range countries, including Guyana. This species is relatively accessible and easy to find in Suriname only. Sometimes the species shows up in German and US internet marketplaces; individuals are likely from Suriname. They are generally collected in large numbers per effort (in the hundreds). Collected individuals are mostly males, since they are much easier to find. Many animals are exported with the vague label “Bufo sp,” especially from Suriname, since it is easy for Europeans to legally and illegally collect them (e.g., there are several flights to/from Amsterdam per week). The purple morphotype from the Nassau mountains is commonly traded. This population was once described as a subspecies, but there is currently no support for this distinction (color variation is very common in this species). The overall impact of the pet trade on this species remains unclear.
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	A global action plan exists for the genus Atelopus, but not specifically for this species.
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	Local people seem generally disinterested in amphibians.
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	There are many potential ex situ studies that would help us better understand this and other Atelopus species in the wild, such as investigations regarding reproductive mode, resistance/susceptibility to Bd and/or climate change (via physiology and responses to temperature changes). This species is likely a good candidate for climate change/resilience research, as it is sensitive to temperature swings and breeds in ephemeral pools and small streams (which are vulnerable to drought). Studies on the hybridization of A. flavescens & A. hoogmoedi (and the resulting color morphs) could be useful, as this is also not well understood in the wild.
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 species is currently being bred (from populations in Pará, Brazil) at the São Paulo Zoo (Reserva Paulista) to serve as an analog species for Atelopus manauensis. Since this species is Least Concern and relatively easy to find in Suriname, it could potentially be useful as an analog for more threatened Atelopus species, especially lowland Amazonian species and/or those from French Guiana (i.e., A. flavescens).
21	Captive breeding	Has this species been successfully bred and/or maintained in captivity?	Yes, bred to F1	In the past, non-range locations (such as the Düsseldorf Löbbeke-Museum & Aquazoo in Germany and the Atlanta Botanical Garden in the United States) received specimens from Suriname, but they are not kept anymore. This species is currently being bred (from populations in Pará, Brazil) at the São Paulo Zoo (Reserva Paulista) to serve as an analog species for Atelopus manauensis. At least one private sector breeder has successfully bred this species to F2.
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	Theoretically, yes. This species is colorful, diurnal, and often large, which makes it a good candidate for educational programming. This species is a specific attraction for day tours in Iwokrama Forest; it was proposed that A. hoogmoedi be declared a flagship species. There are a few reptile-amphibian specific eco-tours that target this species, but it is costly to get to the areas where this species occurs. Community conservation and regional district boards exist, and there seems to be at least some interest in the frog, but the problem is mobilization of resources. If the right people are contacted, interest could likely be galvanized.
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	Since this is a species of Least Concern at the global level, presumably a permit would not be difficult to obtain.
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	Because this species is Least Concern, we assume that there would be enough individuals for founders if the need arose. As with other Atelopus species, males are often found by streams, but females are often very difficult to find (assumed to occur at higher elevations or further from streams than the males).
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)?	No	Research into species validity needs to be prioritised. Research into species validity needs to be prioritized. Possible species complex. Research into species validity needs to be prioritized. Variation exists within and between populations; cryptic diversity is possible. From the taxonomic section of the 2022 IUCN assessment (to be published in 2023): "This is a split from the broader concept of Atelopus spumarius (Lötters et al. 2005). Silva et al. (2020) provided molecular evidence that this is a species complex with populations south of the Amazon River being a distinct, but unnamed species." Noonan and Gaucher (2005), Lötters et al. (2011) and Jorge et al. (2020) obtained phylogenetic relationships based on mitochondrial DNA that provided ambiguous boundaries between 2 main mtDNA lineages: Atelopus hoogmoedi on the one hand, and A. flavescens, A. franciscus and A. barbotini on the other hand. These last three may best be referable to a single polymorphic taxon according to Lötters et al (2011). The ambiguous boundaries notably concern the populations in central French Guiana where the two main mtDNA lineages seem to be in contact and where intermediary phenotypes exist (Noonan and Gaucher, 2005) suggesting admixture.

Citation: Andrew Snyder, Amadeus Plewnia, Raffael Ernst, Philippe J. R. Kok 2025. Conservation Needs Assessment for Atelopus hoogmoedi, Guyana (AArk/ASG Assessment Workshop).
https://conservationneeds.org/assessment/6991 Accessed 22 Feb 2025