Botucatu Escuerzo (Proceratophrys moratoi)

Mohamed bin Zayed Species project number 172515125

Status review update of Proceratophrys moratoi: a endemic toad of Brazilian Cerrado

The species was described from the municipality of Botucatu, state of São Paulo, Southeastern Brazil from where it is now extinct. The probable cause of this disappearance was habitat change. After, several populations outside Botucatu were encountered in São Paulo and Minas Gerais states. However, little is known about the size and status of these populations currently. Only the population of Itirapina municipality is large and well protected within a conservation unit. It is an exclusive species of areas of Cerrado, one of the global hotspots for conservation. It occurs in open areas of low vegetation and in gallery forests near small streams and swamp areas. The objective of the project is to evaluate the status of the knowledge of the species, search for new areas of occurrence based on a niche modeling, confirm the identity of individuals collected this species and suggest the revision of the species of lists of threatened.