Hidden by the name: A new fluorescent pumpkin toadlet from the Brachycephalus ephippium group (Anura: Brachycephalidae)

Abstract

Species of Brachycephalus has been having taxonomical issues due its morphological similarity and genetic conservatism. Herein, we describe a new species of Brachycephalus from the south Mantiqueira mountain range and semidecidual forests in the municipalities of Mogi das Cruzes, Campinas and Jundiaí, state of São Paulo, Brazil, based on an integrative approach. It can be distinguished from all species of the B. ephippium species group based on morphological characters (especially osteology and head shape), advertisement call and divergence in partial mitochondrial DNA gene sequences (16S). The new species is genetically similar to B. margaritatus and morphologically similar to B. ephippium. It can be differentiated from B. ephippium by the presence of dark faded spots on skull and post-cranial plates, presence of black connective tissue connective tissue scattered over dorsal musculature, parotic plate morphology, smaller snout-vent length (adult SVL: males 13.46–15.92 mm; females 16.04–17.69 mm) and 3% genetic distance. We also present natural history data and discuss the robustness of the integrative approach, geographic distribution, genetic data, behaviour, fluorescence in ontogeny, and conservation status.

Relationships of mineralized dermal layer of mountain endemic miniature frogs with climate

“…Thus, we argue that expansion of heterogeneous MDL to these more exposed regions of the skin would possibly be a strategy that allows water loss reduction. Interestingly, the other montane group of Brachycephalus, B. ephippium, has other structures on the dorsum and sides of the body that have been tentatively associated with protection against desiccation, that is, dermal ossification and osteoderms, respectively (Ruibal & Shoemaker, 1984;Clemente-Carvalho et al, 2009;but Silva et al, 2021;Campos et al, 2010;Clemente-Carvalho et al, 2009Condez et al, 2014Condez et al, , 2020Condez et al, 2021;Folly et al, 2020;Guimarães et al, 2017;Nunes et al, 2021;Pombal Jr. & Izecksohn, 2011). We argue that this speculation opens an avenue for future studies on whether these structures have a function analogous to the dorsal and lateral MDL expansions of certain species of Brachycephalus in protecting against desiccation.…”

“…Interestingly, the other montane group of Brachycephalus , B. ephippium , has other structures on the dorsum and sides of the body that have been tentatively associated with protection against desiccation, that is, dermal ossification and osteoderms, respectively (Ruibal & Shoemaker, 1984; Clemente‐Carvalho et al., 2009; but see Vickaryous & Sire, 2009 and Condez et al., 2020 for other possible functions). All 14 described species of this group present dermal ossification, whereas three also present osteoderms ( B. crispus Condez, Clemente‐Carvalho et al., 2014, B. margaritatus Pombal Jr. & Izecksohn, 2011, B. nodoterga Miranda‐Ribeiro, 1920) (Almeida‐Silva et al., 2021; Campos et al., 2010; Clemente‐Carvalho et al., 2009, 2012, 2016; Condez et al., 2014, 2020; Condez et al., 2021; Folly et al., 2020; Guimarães et al., 2017; Nunes et al., 2021; Pombal Jr. & Izecksohn, 2011). We argue that this speculation opens an avenue for future studies on whether these structures have a function analogous to the dorsal and lateral MDL expansions of certain species of Brachycephalus in protecting against desiccation.…”

“…Restriction to colder and wet environments of mountain tops isolated by hotter environments at lower altitude, has been hypothesized as the reason why montane groups have diverged into so many species (Bornschein, Firkowski et al., 2016; Firkowski et al., 2016; Pie, Faircloth, et al., 2018). Brachycephalus pernix and B. ephippium groups include 19 and 14 species, respectively, whereas the B. didactylus group includes only five species (Almeida‐Silva et al., 2021; Bornschein, Pie et al., 2019; Condez et al., 2021; Nunes et al., 2021).…”

Biofluorescence in the herpetofauna of northeast Bangladesh

“…For example, in Neotropical frogs, UV light re-emitted from frogs contributed between 18-28% of the total emitted light (Tadoba et al 2017a(Tadoba et al , 2017b. In contrast, Pumpkin Toadlets (Brachycephalus ephippium) emitted only 3% of the total emitted light as biofluorescence (Nunes et al 2021). Thus, a trade-off be-tween biofluorescence and reflectance may determine the extent to which species may use biofluorescence to visualise individuals or perceive signals (Taboada et al 2017a(Taboada et al , 2017bLamb and Davis 2020).…”

Anuran species composition and density estimates from an Atlantic Forest area within the APA Serra da Mantiqueira, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil

“…The state of Rio de Janeiro, whose territory is entirely included within the Atlantic Forest domain, was recently reported to harbor 201 amphibian species (Dorigo et al 2018), and new species with occurrence in the state are still being steadily described (e.g., Folly et al 2018, Pereira Silva et al 2018, Taucce et al 2018, Cruz et al 2019, Nunes et al 2021. In recent years, lists of species of amphibians have been compiled or updated for several forested areas in the state of Rio de Janeiro (e.g., Almeida-Gomes et al 2014, Caram et al 2016, Carvalho-e-Silva et al 2020, Dorigo et al 2021, contributing considerably to the knowledge of its amphibian fauna.…”