frog leg Newsletter of the Declining Amphibian Populations Task Force - South Asia No. 10, May 2002 Declining region, however, only B. viridis was been the case for some species of amphibians in recorded during this survey. reptiles and mammals. Ladakh: evidences The data from this survey was Only one amphibian species Bufo and hypotheses on compared with historical data on viridis, was recorded from four causal factors presence/absence of species in 3 locations in this survey while, in 1978 different locations in Ladakh using the three species were recorded from Karthikeyan Vasudevan1, S.P. Vijayakumar2 & B.C. program COMDYN4 (Hines et al., three locations from the same area. Choudhury1 1999) to quantify the change in The local extinction of two species 1 Wildlife Institute of India, P.O. 18, different vertebrate communities endemic to northwest Himalayas (B. Chandrabani, Dehra Dun, Uttaranchal (mammals, reptiles and amphibians). latastii and S. occidentalis) has 248001, India. The data for reptiles and amphibians contributed to the change. Currently, 2 M-25-393, Police Quarters, came from this study and published B. latastii is listed as Lower Risk-least Ganapathy, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu reports from 1976-78. The data on concern, S. occidentalis and B. viridis 641006, India. the occurrence of mammals came from as Data Deficient based on the a survey of this taxa, as part of a larger assessment made in the Conservation The survey of herpetofauna in Ladakh ongoing project at the Wildlife Institute Assessment and Management Plan part of Jammu and Kashmir covered of India (Anon, 2001). The data from workshop for amphibians in 1997 42 locations in 75 field days of work two time periods came from the same (Molur & Walker, 1998). The between June and August of 2000 and locations and it was assumed that there assessment on these species should 2001. The amphibians and reptiles was no change in the detection be revised considering the urgent need were opportunistically searched in all probabilities (test for the violation of for conservation efforts for these locations. Information from local the assumption was made). The species in the Ladakh region. people was also used to find species measure of community change and a species was marked present ‘lambda’ which is the ratio of the Habitat destruction in this region has only when that species was observed. estimated number of species in the been restricted to the valley fans where During the survey, seven species were past by that from the present, was there are human habitations. There recorded. The species presence/ used. The amphibian community has are large intact areas where amphibian absence data for 37 sites was undergone significant change since populations could survive, however analysed using capture-recapture 1978, compared to, other vertebrate their absence remains unaccounted. approach. When a species was seen taxa. It is important to understand at Stochastic events such as flash floods for the first time in any location it was this stage the limitations in the and droughts are not uncommon in the treated as ‘capture’ the resighting of interpretation of the results from this region. However, these events have the same species in any location was analysis. The presence/absence data to be correlated with the dis- treated as a ‘recapture‘. The program ignores the change in abundance of appearance of the species in different SPECRICH2 (Hines et al., 1999) different species, which might have localities to attribute stochastic events provided estimates of number of as a causal factor for change in the species (species richness) along with 2 amphibian community. A comparison the standard error and the species of temperature profiles revealed no detection probability from the data. It clear-cut change from the past. was estimated that there were seven 1 species of reptiles and amphibians There are evidences suggesting (S.E. = 1.45) in the Ladakh region. considerable depletion of ozone above Bufo latastii, B. viridis and Scutiger Ladakh since 1978. It is estimated Lambda (95% CI) Lambda (95% CI) Lambda (95% CI) Lambda (95% CI) Lambda (95% CI) 0 occidentalis are known to occur in the that ozone depletion has occurred at Amphibians Reptiles Mammals frog leg Newsletter of the DAPTF South Asia 2002 May 02 the rate of 5% per decade in the On the occurrence Reserve. I encountered this toad, in intervening period (Dr. S.L. Jain, of Bufo scaber the Kadayam Range of Kalakkad- National Physical Laboratory, pers. Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve, where comm.). Further, the current UV Schneider, 1799 individuals were found calling along the radiation levels in Ladhakh are eight from Kalakkad- edge of Gattana Dam (9 and 10 June times more than in Delhi and the Mudanthurai Tiger 1999, ca. 140m, 77°18’-77°19’E & magnitude comparable to that of 8°47’-8°48’N). The dam lies in the Antartica (Dr. S.L. Jain, National Reserve, Tamil Nadu northern part along the reserve Physical Laboratory, pers. comm.). S.P. Vijayakumar boundary. The call resembled that of Among the various possible causal M-25/393, Police Quarters, a call of the Marbled Toad Bufo factors that explain the observed Ganapathy P.O., Coimbatore, stomaticus, but more shriller and insect phenomenon, the hypothesis of climate Tamil Nadu 641006, India like (a continuous "tria, tria, tria ..." change since the late 1970s, mortality Email: [email protected] repeated at irregular intervals). The due to disease alone or disease linked individual was identified based on the to climate change needs to be tested. Bufo fergusonii (Bufonidae) was presence of weak parietal ridge and This will enable identification causes described by Boulenger (1892) based rounded parotid glands (Boulenger, for the local extinction of Bufo latastii on an individual collected from Cavalry 1892; Daniels,1963a, b; Dutta & and Scutiger occidentalis and formulate Parade ground, Thiruvananthapuram, Manamendra-Arachchi,1996). In their recovery plans for the species. in Kerala. Subsequently, the species recent taxonomic review of the genus has been reported in India from Bufo, Dubois and Ohler (1999) have References Chennai (Nungambakkam) in Tamil proposed Bufo fergusonii to be the Anon (2001). Conserving Biodiversity Nadu (Rao, 1915), Mysore (Daniel, junior subjective synonym of Bufo in the Trans-Himalayas: New Initiatives of 1963a) and Lakkavalli State Forest in scaber Schneider, 1799. field conservation in Ladakh. First Annual Karnataka (Krishnamurthy, 1999), Technical Report (1999-2000), Wildlife Banjara Hills (Hyderabad) in Andhra Habitat Institute of India, International Snow Pradesh (Donahue & Daniel, 1966), I found a few individuals calling from a Leopard Trust and US Fish and Wildlife and Sambalpur District in Orissa Service, 169pp. grass-covered open area along the Hines, J.E., T. Boulinier, J.D. Nichols, (Dutta, 1988 -- based on specimens reservoir edge. One individual (Male, J.R. Sauer & K.H. Pollock (1999). collected during 1955-1957). Outside SVL - 33.7mm) was calling atop a half- COMDYN: software to study the dynamics India, the species has been reported submerged herb along the reservoir of animal communities using a capture- from Sri Lanka (Dutta & Manamendra- edge. There was slight drizzling during recapture approach. Bird Study 46 Arachchi, 1996). Recent reports on both the days. The surrounding habitat (suppl.): 209-217. the amphibians of Kalakkad Wildlife was of dry deciduous thickets. The Molur, S. & S. Walker (Editors) Sanctuary (Cherian et al., 1999; species had been reported from (1998). Report of the Conservation Ravichandran, 1996) indicate the Assessment and Management Plan coastal scrub forest (Daniels, 1997), (CAMP) Workshop for Amphibians of India absence of the species from the grass-covered reservoir margin (Dutta (BCPP Endangered Species Project). ZOO/ Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger & Manamendra-Arachchi, 1996). CBSG India, Coimbatore, 102pp. Individuals of this species were observed breeding in rainwater pools in scrub forest (Indraneil Das, pers. comm.). The available data on the species probably shows its habitat specificity, being restricted to the dry forests and adjoining areas at lower altitudes. The species is nocturnal in habit and in captive conditions it is known to feed exclusively on termites (Rao, 1915). Acknowledgements I would like to express my thanks to B.C. Choudhury and Sugato Dutt for an opportunity to work in the FREEP- KMTR project. The Tamil Nadu Forest Department for the permission and logistic support. Karthikeyan Vasudevan for his comments on the earlier manuscript. Ashok Ragha- vendran for his support in the field. Bufo scaber at Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve frog leg Newsletter of the DAPTF South Asia 2002 May 03 References The Global Amphibian Assessment Boulenger, G.A. (1892). Description of a new toad from Travancore. Journal Neil Cox of the Bombay Natural History Society 7: 317-318. CI/CABS - IUCN/SSC Biodiversity Assessment Initiative. C/o Center for Applied Cherian, P.T., K. Rama Devi & M.S. Biodiversity Science, Conservation International, 1919 M Street NW, Suite 600, Ravichandran (1999). Icthyo and Washington DC 20036. Email: [email protected] herpetofaunal diversity of Kalakkad Sanctuary. Zoos’ Print Journal 15(2): 203- The world is entering an extinction crisis that is potentially more serious than 206. anything that has taken place over the last billion years. This extinction crisis Daniel, J.C. (1963a). Field guide to the is particularly serious for species that occur in tropical rainforests and freshwater amphibians of western India. Part I. habitats. Amphibian are one group for which extinctions seem to outstrip Journal of the Bombay Natural History even the worst predictions. Society 60(2): 415-438. Daniel, J.C. (1963b). Field guide to the Until now, fewer than 1,000 of the 5,000 known amphibian species have ever amphibians of western India. Part II. been assessed for their conservation status and needs. It is feared however Journal of the Bombay Natural History that over the past 15 years, some 40-50 amphibian species have become Society 60(3): 690-702.