Barata, IM;
Correia, CM;
Ferreira, GB;
(2016)
Amphibian species composition and priorities for regional conservation at the Espinhaço mosaic, Southeastern Brazil.
Herpetological Conservation and Biology
, 11
(2)
pp. 293-303.
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Abstract
The southern portion of the Espinhaço Range in Brazil is recognized worldwide as a priority area for biodiversity conservation, and it contains a high number of endemic anuran species. We conducted field surveys and compiled published data on amphibian community composition from seven sites within Espinhaço Mosaic (EM; 910,000 ha) to explore the contribution of this area to amphibian species richness in the southern Espinhaço Range. We aimed to describe local and regional community composition and to identify priorities for future amphibian surveys and inventories in the study area. We consider the EM a species-rich area sheltering 73 anuran species, which represents 36.5% of the amphibians known for the state of Minas Gerais, 57.5% of those in the Cerrado biome, and almost 70% of the species in the Espinhaço Range. Unequal sampling effort is a major concern in the study area, and species richness in under-sampled sites might increase as new assessments are conducted. Therefore, sites for which no data are available should be prioritized for species inventories. Although an increase in sampling effort is likely to reduce the proportion of exclusive species (i.e., species known to occur in only one of the seven investigated sites), we conclude that the levels of endemicity indicate a high number of narrowly distributed (micro-endemic) species. We believe anuran community composition and similarities in composition among the sites investigated are influenced by the gradient between the Cerrado and Atlantic Rainforest biomes, which deserves further investigation.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Amphibian species composition and priorities for regional conservation at the Espinhaço mosaic, Southeastern Brazil |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Publisher version: | http://www.herpconbio.org/Volume_11/Issue_2/ |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | Zoology, anurans, biodiversity, cluster analysis, community composition, endemism, Espinhaco Range, species richness, MINAS-GERAIS, KNOWLEDGE, ANURA, COMMUNITY, HOTSPOT, RANGE, |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences > Genetics, Evolution and Environment |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10052746 |
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