Assessment Results
Breviceps adspersus
Common Rain Frog
Order:
Anura
Family:
Brevicipitidae
Synonym(s):
Assessed for:
South Africa
on:
20 Dec 2024
by:
AArk/ASG Southern Africa Workshop
Authors:
Werner Conradie, Darren Pietersen, Luke Verburgt, Francois Becker, Darren Pietersen
IUCN Global Red List:
Least Concern (LC)
National Red List:
(not assessed)
Distribution:
Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Evolutionary Distinctiveness score:
25.06280041
Recommended Conservation Actions:
Additional Comments:
This taxon is considered to be a complex of three or more species (Nilesen et al 2020), occurring in Namibia. Northern KZN (South Africa), central KZN and Mozambique.
| 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 - 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? | Yes / probably | This species occurs in many protected areas ( iSimangaliso Wetland Park, Madikwe Nature Reserve, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, Kruger National Park) |
| 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 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park, Madikwe Nature Reserve, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, Kruger National Park |
| 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.)? | No / unlikely | |
| 9 | In situ research | Is additional in situ research required to better understand the species, e.g. distribution, population trends, natural history etc.? | Yes | Further taxonomic work is needed to further refine our understanding of its taxonomic concept and distribution. |
| 10 | Threat mitigation | Are the threats facing the taxon, including any new and emerging threats not considered in the IUCN Red List, potentially reversible? | Species does not require conservation action at this time | |
| 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 | Because of the popularity of Breviceps macrops on social media platforms, and this species’ similar appearance, this species is collected for export for the international pet trade. However, collection is not at a level that is thought to threaten the species. The species is likely being exported both legally and illegally from several of its countries of distribution. |
| 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 | |
| 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? | Yes | Call is well known and associated with rain. There are at least a couple local names for them. All Namibian farmers know the call. |
| 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 would make a suitable analog species for any threatened Breviceps species. |
| 21 | Captive breeding | Has this species been successfully bred and/or maintained in captivity? | Maintained but no successful breeding | This species is definitely kept in captivity in Japan and likely China, due to popularity of the genus on social media. Unknown if hobbyists have successfully bred the species, since it is often misidentified. |
| 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 | All Breviceps are charismatic, and this one is common and well known for being associated with rain. |
| 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)? | No | Research into species validity needs to be prioritised. Research into species validity needs to be prioritized. This taxon is considered to be a complex of three or more species (Nilesen et al 2020), occurring in Namibia, Northern KZN (South Africa), central KZN and Mozambique. |
Citation:
Werner Conradie, Darren Pietersen, Luke Verburgt, Francois Becker, Darren Pietersen 2024. Conservation Needs Assessment for Breviceps adspersus, South Africa
(AArk/ASG Southern Africa Workshop).
https://conservationneeds.org/assessment/7160
Accessed 13 Mar 2025
