Notes on the Hyperossified Pumpkin Toadlets of the Genus Brachycephalus (Anura: Brachycephalidae) with the Description of a New Species

Condez, Thaís Helena; Monteiro, Juliane P. C.; Malagoli, Leo Ramos; Trevine, Vivian C.; Schunck, Fábio; García, Paulo C. A.; Haddad, Célio F. B.

doi:10.1655/herpetologica-d-20-00031

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 68 publications

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“…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.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

“…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.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…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).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2022

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The mineralized dermal layer (MDL) is found in most terrestrial anurans. Its thickness represents on average up to 8% of that of the entire skin. It has been proposed that it may reduce body water loss, act on homeostasis, support skin structure, or conversely, it may be a currently functionless trait constrained by groups' evolutionary history. We described the MDL morphology of 11 Brachycephalus species, terrestrial, miniaturized and microendemic anurans, and tested for its relationship with climate of higher latitude regions of the Atlantic Rainforest of Brazil. All species presented MDL, described with two distinct morphological patterns: homogeneous or heterogeneous MDL, the latter distinguishable by MDL with dorsal or lateral expansion, sometimes up to the limit of the epidermis and comprising up to 50% of the thicknesses of the entire skin. Climate differed between locations by MDL morphological group, less rainy or seasonally less rainy where species with heterogeneous MDL occur. Our results indicate that the abundance of calcium in MDL and its heterogeneous condition suggest its adaptive function in reduce water loss. Such adaptations in anurans in very humid highlands reinforce the mountains' propensity for rapid loss of humidity, demystifying them as an extremely abundant source of water. This is the third study that tested the relationship between the MDL morphology and the environment where species occur and the first that correlated this structure with the climate of anurans of the same habit and distributed in a single habitat, the Atlantic Rainforest.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2022

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“…In recent years, several new species of tiny frogs have been discovered in different parts of the world like Cuba, Ecuador, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Madagascar and Brazil (Condez et al., 2021; Estrada & Hedges, 1996; Kraus, 2011; Lehr & Coloma, 2008; Napoli et al., 2011; Nunes et al., 2021; Santa Cruz et al., 2019; Scherz et al., 2019); however, identifying the smallest frog in the world has been no easy challenge. All miniaturized frogs with adults smaller than 25 mm in length seem to share similar characteristics as loss of phalanges in the anterior and posterior appendages, hyperossification of skull and vertebrae bones, and absence of other bony elements (Yeh, 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Zooming in on amphibians: Which is the smallest vertebrate in the world?

Bolaños,

Dias,

Solé

2024

Zoologica Scripta

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During the last decades several miniaturized frogs have been described from different parts of the world. Those frogs, measuring less than 25 mm, show similar miniaturization features as the loss of phalanges in both the anterior and posterior limbs and the reduction of bone elements. However, there seems to be a limit regarding the minimum size of frogs and here we wanted to find an answer to the question: which is the smallest amphibian in the world? In 2019, an endemic species of toad known only from two localities in southern Bahia, Brazil, was studied. When we compared the size of adult representatives of this species with those of other species discovered in various parts of the world in the last decade, we observed that individuals of Brachycephalus pulex are the amphibians with the smallest total length recorded, thus qualifying them to bear the title of the tiniest anuran amphibian, and also tiniest vertebrate in the world.

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“…Surprisingly, early molecular phylogenetic evidence (Figure 2A) suggested that these two morphological groups are not reciprocally monophyletic within Brachycephalus [18]. Based on DNA sequences of few mitochondrial and two nuclear-encoded genes (tyrosinase and recombination activating gene 1), two major clades of pumpkin-toadlets were recovered: the B. ephippium group (with 15 species), characterized by a gradient of increased mineralization in the skull [20,[24][25][26][27], and the B. pernix group (with 19 species), which is not hyperossified [18][19][20]. The B. ephippium group is distributed across the Serra do Mar and Serra da Mantiqueira mountain ranges whereas the B. pernix group is distributed across the Serra do Mar, respectively at the north and south of the Guapiara Lineament [19] (Figure 1).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Initial Phylotranscriptomic Confirmation of Homoplastic Evolution of the Conspicuous Coloration and Bufoniform Morphology of Pumpkin-Toadlets in the Genus Brachycephalus

Lyra

Monteiro

Rancilhac

et al. 2021

Toxins

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The genus Brachycephalus is a fascinating group of miniaturized anurans from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, comprising the conspicuous, brightly colored pumpkin-toadlets and the cryptic flea-toads. Pumpkin-toadlets are known to contain tetrodotoxins and therefore, their bright colors may perform an aposematic function. Previous studies based on a limited number of mitochondrial and nuclear-encoded markers supported the existence of two clades containing species of pumpkin-toadlet phenotype, but deep nodes remained largely unresolved or conflicting between data sets. We use new RNAseq data of 17 individuals from nine Brachycephalus species to infer their evolutionary relationships from a phylogenomic perspective. Analyses of almost 5300 nuclear-encoded ortholog protein-coding genes and full mitochondrial genomes confirmed the existence of two separate pumpkin-toadlet clades, suggesting the convergent evolution (or multiple reversals) of the bufoniform morphology, conspicuous coloration, and probably toxicity. In addition, the study of the mitochondrial gene order revealed that three species (B. hermogenesi, B. pitanga, and B. rotenbergae) display translocations of different tRNAs (NCY and CYA) from the WANCY tRNA cluster to a position between the genes ATP6 and COIII, showing a new mitochondrial gene order arrangement for vertebrates. The newly clarified phylogeny suggests that Brachycephalus has the potential to become a promising model taxon to understand the evolution of coloration, body plan and toxicity. Given that toxicity information is available for only few species of Brachycephalus, without data for any flea-toad species, we also emphasize the need for a wider screening of toxicity across species, together with more in-depth functional and ecological study of their phenotypes.

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Notes on the Hyperossified Pumpkin Toadlets of the Genus Brachycephalus (Anura: Brachycephalidae) with the Description of a New Species

Cited by 8 publications

References 68 publications

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

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

Zooming in on amphibians: Which is the smallest vertebrate in the world?

Initial Phylotranscriptomic Confirmation of Homoplastic Evolution of the Conspicuous Coloration and Bufoniform Morphology of Pumpkin-Toadlets in the Genus Brachycephalus

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