Rana arborícola del Socopó (Dendropsophus amicorum) Case Study

MBZF Grant 13057540
Amphibian

Continent: South America

Country: Venezuela

Grant Amount: $2,550

Awarded Date: February 04, 2014

Ada Sanchez-Mercado

Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Cientificas


Av. 8, entre calles 79 y 80

Maracaibo

Zulia

4020

Venezuela

Tel: 00582617534924

Mob: 00584246159752

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We want to improve occurrence probability estimates, and evaluate habitat conditions of Dendropsophus amicorum, an endemic and data deficient amphibian species from Venezuela. We will implement visual encounter, and automatic recorder surveys in nocturnal line-transects at their type locality, Cerro Socopó, which is a small and isolated mountain that represents a relict of non-protected cloud forest at central-west region of the country.

Worldwide, amphibian population declining have been documented since 1970, with an important increasing in the number of reports during 80 and 90 decades. Particularly in remote, montane regions of the tropics, where the species richness is high and the endemism concentrates, the declining rates rapidly increase for species with relatively high degree of ecologically specialization, commonly found in upland Neotropical riparian habitats.

Venezuela is the sixth country in the world with most amphibian biodiversity (333 known species), with a high proportion of endemism. In this project we want to enhance the conservation of one threatened endemic amphibian species in Venezuela: Dendropsophus amicorum (Hylidae), by improving occurrence probability estimates, and evaluating their habitat conditions. D. amicorum is known from a single specimen taken at Cerro Socopó, at north-west of the country between Falcon, Lara and Zulia states. This is a small and isolated mountain belonging to the Serranía de Siruma, with a maximum elevation of 1571m. Cerro Socopó represents a relict of cloud forest surrounded by semi-arid vegetation and grassland.

We are going to implement a visual encounter surveys and manual-calling surveys to characterize vocalizations of D. amicorum based on acoustic parameters. Then we are going to implement automated recording surveys and detect presence and absence using call recognition and detectors routines. Finally, we will model detection probability and site occupancy taking into account environmental and anthropic factors affecting species detectability. We expect improve species occurrence estimates, and be able to differentiate between real absences from non-detection, which have important implications for our correct understanding of the potential occurrence contractions.

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MBZF Grant 13057540 - located in Venezuela, South America