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Brazilian researchers describe new glass frog species in Cerrado

A new species of glass frog has been described and named Vitreorana micaelae following its discovery in Luziânia, in the state of Goiás. The study was conducted by researchers at the Pontifical Catholic University of Goiás, the Federal University of Goiás, and the University of Brasília (UnB). The small, greenish, nearly transparent frog caught the attention of a group of researchers led by biologist Wilian Vaz-Silva in the gallery forests bordering small tributaries of the Corumbá River in the Cerrado biome. Although it resembled other known species, the researchers decided to investigate further. Notícias relacionadas:Brazilian-led team finds new feline species in Bolivian forests.Amazon home to over 2,700 species of fish, study finds.List of threatened fish, invertebrates updated.“After these animals were found and their calls recorded, we began evaluating and comparing them with other groups of glass frogs, because glass frogs are generally more restricted to the Atlantic Forest and the Amazon,” says biologist Reuber Brandão, one of the study’s authors and a member of the Boticário Group Foundation’s Network of Experts in Nature Conservation. Species Based on an integrated approach involving different fields of knowledge - morphology, bioacoustics, molecular genetics, and fieldwork - the researchers concluded that this was the 11th species in the glass frog genus. Only four species are found in Brazil, and Vitreorana micaelae is the second species known to occur exclusively in the Cerrado. According to Brandão, in addition to molecular characteristics that distinguish the species from those already known to science, unique traits were identified in the individuals analyzed. “From a bioacoustic perspective, it is an animal with far fewer vocal notes. It has subtle but consistent differences in the shape of the iris, dorsal pigmentation, and morphology, especially in the region near the cloaca [the terminal opening for excretion and reproduction],” he explains. The researchers report that the limited knowledge about the species - even among the local Community - is due to the habits of Vitreorana micaelae. “This creature sings from the tops of trees along steep ravines on the riverbank, and only when it’s raining heavily. So, even for us, who are out in the field searching for these animals, it takes time to find populations in the region,” he points out. This difficulty in accessing the species, combined with its small size - just over 2 centimeters - and the scattered occurrence of individuals, has prevented it from being associated with a common name already used by local communities. “People have more common names for amphibians with more noticeable calls, such as the blacksmith tree frog and the barking dwarf frog. These are species that, when you go looking for them, aren’t what people typically think of as frogs - they’re tree frogs or tiny frogs,” says Brandão. Previous report During the study, the researchers were also able to better understand the species’ reproductive biology, which is quite similar to that of other species in the same Vitreorana group. “The pair lays its eggs on the leaves of tall trees. The eggs stick to the leaves, and the male takes care of them. After hatching, the tadpoles fall into the stream below, where they burrow into the sediment,” he notes. This similarity may have led other researchers who reported sightings of individuals in this region of the Cerrado in 2013 to identify them as a previously described species. “They identified them as Vitreorana eurygnatha and did not realize that it was a new species,” the researcher says. Classification The study describing the species was published in the September issue of the scientific journal ZooKeys and recommends that Vitreorana micaelae be classified as Data Deficient (DD) under the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) system, due to the need to determine its population size and the threats it faces. “Following that study, we’ve already identified another location in the Cerrado where the species is present. So far, there are three known locations, but this is new information. It’s currently being studied and hasn’t been published yet,” Brandão adds. The name chosen for the species reflects the collaboration among the scientists who worked on the study. It honors fellow biologist Micaela de Jolepian L. Vaz, the wife of Wilian Vaz-Silva. Threat This joint effort is a race against time, as climate change - which alters the water cycle - and human activities in the Cerrado, including deforestation and the damming of rivers for small hydroelectric plants, directly affect the habitats of amphibians such as the tiny Vitreorana micaelae. These threats could lead to the extinction of species that have not yet been discovered by science. “Less rain, fewer streams, fewer toads and frogs, and fewer discoveries,” Reuber Brandão concludes.