This article documents the addition of 142 microsatellite marker loci to the Molecular Ecology Resources database. Loci were developed for the following species:

Habitat loss, overexploitation, the presence of invasive species, climate change and the proliferation of diseases continue to put at risk anuran species that represent 90% of all amphibians. Biphasic life cycle, habitat specialization to oviposit and forage, low dispersal abilities, and permeable skin make anurans particularly susceptible to the effect of landscape composition and configuration on their capacity to move through the landscape (connectivity). Limited connectivity can result in reduced gene flow, low genetic variation and high genetic structuring. Therefore, identifying landscape elements that promote or limit the dispersal of anurans is fundamental to propose conservation plans that allow maintaining areas that enhance connectivity to assure the evolutionary potential of the species by preserving genetic diversity. Here, we reviewed studies evaluating the effect of natural and anthropogenic elements of the landscape on gene flow across temperate, tropical and subtropical landscapes. Our results suggest that roads have the strongest negative effect on connectivity resistance in anurans from temperate regions. Urbanization, fragmentation, and land cover change into agriculture and grasslands are other anthropogenic landscape elements that provide resistance to connectivity in anurans worldwide. In temperate and tropical regions, rivers are the most important natural element negatively affecting connectivity, having a stronger effect in the tropics. Contrary, streams and forests cover promote connectivity in all regions. We provide a review of the growing progress of landscape genetics in this group of vulnerable organisms and highlight the importance of considering this research field for the conservation of the threatened ecosystems that anurans inhabit.

Community composition reflects evolutionary and ecological processes such as diversification and species assortment. Communities are generally considered to be saturated, which means that the number of species is maximized and that regulatory mechanisms, such as interspecific competition, prevent the addition of new species. In the tropics, however, species numbers of local bird assemblages double up each winter after the arrival of migratory species, which suggests that a rearrangement of niches occurs. Here ecological space is defined by morphological traits that reflect the ecological position of species, to describe changes in the structure of local communities. We found that the average morphological distance between species was reduced, and the volume (the total extent of trait space) was expanded with the arrival of migrants, indicating that newcomers occupy the periphery and the interior of the available ecological space. Furthermore, with greater morphological differences between resident species, higher numbers of migratory species can take advantage of free space and potentially exploit unused resources due to their intermediate morphology. We highlight the differences in the attributes of resident versus migratory species that may allow both to be accommodated in the morphological space, and we suggest coexistence theory as a possible explanation for the co-occurrence of similar species.

These markers will facilitate genetic diversity studies of P. padifolia across its distribution range and facilitate investigations on the evolution of its breeding system.

No abstract

The Andes range in Ecuador presents high biodiversity and characteristic altitudinal gradients, which are frequently threatened by deforestation and farming. In particular, forest have developed in the high inter-Andean alley on volcanic soils forming a unique ecoregion. Little is known on the fungal biodiversity of soil in such high Andean gallery forest submitted to strong degradation pressures. Therefore, in this study we evaluated wether the soil mycobiome was associated with altitudinal gradients during the dry season. Three representative locations were selected based on altitude: A (3,309 meters above the sea level, masl), B (3,809 masl) and C (4,409 masl). High performance sequencing (NGS) of the ITS region of ribosomal DNA genes with Illumina technology was used to explore the fungal taxonomic composition in the soil samples. Our results showed changes in the structure of fungal communities in the different locations, related to the relative abundance of Amplicon Sequence Variants (ASV). Higher fungal diversity was related with the altitudinal gradient with average taxa ranging from 675, 626 and 556 ASVs, respectively from location A to C. The results highlight the complexity and diversity of fungal communities in high Andean forest and the need to protect these unique mycobiomes. The findings in this ecosystem of Ecuador will improve our understanding of distribution, diversity, ecology, and biological perspectives for the restoration of terrestrial microbiomes.