Herpetology Notes, volume 10: 287-296 (2017) (published online on 29 May 2017) Anurans of Parque Estadual da Serra Furada, Santa Catarina, Southern Brazil Karoline Ceron1,2,*, Elaine Maria Lucas 3,4 and Jairo José Zocche1 Abstract. We provide a list of amphibians from Parque Estadual da Serra Furada, located in Orleans and Grão-Pará municipalities, in Santa Catarina state, southern Brazil. Monthly sampling was carried out from August 2014 to July 2015, using visual and acoustic surveys. Twenty-seven species of anurans belonging to nine families were recorded on six distinct sites between forest trails, swamps, and streams, with 13 reproductive modes reported. Including all sites, 13 species were abundant, and five of them were considered rare. The greatest richness was recorded in the swamp, while forest trail and stream areas showed the greatest taxonomic distinctness. The high number of reproductive modes is a result of structural characteristics of the sampled areas, providing different microenvironments for anuran reproduction, a characteristic of the Atlantic Forest biome, emphasizing the importance of these environments in amphibian conservation. Keywords: Amphibians, Atlantic Forest, biodiversity, protected area, Neotropical region Introduction 2012). Today, the remnants cover less than 13% of the original territory (Fundação SOS Mata Atlântica & Brazil is one of the countries with the highest richness INPE, 2015). of amphibians in the world, with 1080 species (Segalla Santa Catarina is a south Brazilian state inserted et al., 2016). The Atlantic Forest is an endangered in the Atlantic Forest area with less than 30% of its morphoclimatic domain, classified as a hotspot (Myers original cover, with a predominance of vegetation et al., 2000), with 529 species of anurans (Haddad in the medium and advanced successional stages et al., 2013), one of the greatest biodiversity and (Sevegnani & Schroeder, 2013). Approximately 80% of endemism areas of the world. The original coverage the fragments are smaller than 50 ha, revealing a high of this morphoclimatic domain included almost the degree of fragmentation of the remaining forest of the entire Brazilian coast; from the northern of Rio Grande State (Vibrans et al., 2012). The study area comprises do Norte state to north of Rio Grande do Sul (IBGE, a phytoecological region of montane rainforest, 1 Laboratório de Ecologia de Paisagem e de Vertebrados, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Ambientais, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, Brazil. 2 Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia e Conservação, Instituto de Biociências, Cidade Universitária, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil. 3 Departamento de Zootecnia e Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria – UFSM, Palmeira das Missões-RS, Brazil. 4 Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Ambientais. Universidade Comunitária da Região de Chapecó, Chapecó- SC, Brazil. Figure 1. Map showing the study site in the state of Santa * Corresponding author e-mail: [email protected] Catarina, Southern Brazil. 288 Karoline Ceron et al. Figure 2. Sampling sites in the Parque Estadual da Serra Furada, Orleans and Grão-Pará municipalities, Santa Catarina state, Brazil. Where (A) Swamp, (B) Forest, (C) Stream and (D) Dry stream. which originally covered 31% of Santa Catarina, with Santa Catarina state are incipient and lack information latitudinal and altitudinal variations, a high rate of in all territories except on the western and central coasts rainfall, constant temperatures throughout the year (Garcia, 1996; Garcia & Vinciprova; 1998; Garcia et (Klein, 1978; IBGE, 2012), and a great diversity, the al., 2003; Lucas & Fortes, 2008; Lingnau, 2009; Lucas result of those characteristics. These highly fragmented & Garcia, 2011; Lucas & Marocco, 2011; Bastiani et remnants are composed of pioneer and secondary plant al., 2012; Bastiani & Lucas, 2013), while the southern species (Schorn et al., 2012; Vibrans et al., 2013). In region presents few studies (Ceron et al., 2016). The aim the south of Santa Catarina, the montane rainforest is of this study is to characterize the anuran community, under pressure from agricultural activities, livestock, including species richness, taxonomic distinctness, and the presence of cities and roads, which contributes constancy of occurrence, and reproductive modes, in greatly to the fragmentation and isolation (Sevegnani et sites of Atlantic Forest in Parque Estadual da Serra al., 2013). Furada, southern Santa Catarina, and southern Brazil. Although amphibians play an important role in the functioning of ecosystems, this importance is not widely Material and Methods recognized as it is for other groups (e.g., mammals and Study site birds) (Cunha & Rego, 2005). Information about the abundance and richness of amphibians is very important The study was conducted in the Parque Estadual da to understand population fluctuations (Lucas, 2008). Serra Furada (PAESF), municipalities of Orleans e Grão- Regarding amphibians, large areas still need inventories Pará, in southern Santa Catarina state, southern Brazil and many localities have been investigated by sub- (28º11’07”77S, 49º23’31”80W). Altitudes ranged from sampling (Silvano & Segalla, 2005). Studies in the 360 to 1000 m (Figure 1). Anurans of Parque Estadual da Serra Furada, Santa Catarina, Southern Brazil 289 The vegetation comprises remnants of submontane, (735 m in length) remains mainly dry in winter and montane, and high montane tropical rainforest (IBGE, autumn. 2012) at different degrees of conservation, ranging from the initial stage to the advanced stage of succession Data analysis (FATMA, 2010). The climate, according to the Köppen Sampling efficiency was evaluated by a species classification system, is Cfa (Alvares et al., 2013) with accumulation curve, constructed from the matrix average temperatures ranging from 17.0 to 19.3°C and of monthly data collected on species abundance. minimum and maximum averages ranging from 12.0 to Calculations were performed based on 1000 15.1°C and from 23.4 to 25.9°C, respectively. Annual randomizations using the non-parametric estimators precipitation ranges from 1200 to 1700 mm, with rain Bootstrap and Jacknife 2 in the program EstimateS9.0 events well-distributed throughout the year (Alvares et (Cowell, 2013). Each recorded species was classified al., 2013). according to the constancy of occurrence index (Dajoz, 1983) considered to be abundant (present in >50% of Data collection samples), common (present in 25%–50% of samples), Field sampling was conducted monthly, during two or rare (present in <25% of samples). Reproductive consecutive days from August 2014 to July 2015 by modes of recorded frogs were classified according to the active search (Crump, 1971), and visual and acoustic literature (Haddad & Prado, 2005; Haddad et al., 2008; encounters (Zimmerman, 1994) at six distinct sites: Haddad et al., 2013). In order to verify the taxonomic swamp (n = two), track into the forest (n = two), and distinctness between the sampled environments (track stream (n = two) (Figure 2). Sampling was conducted into the forest, stream, and swamp), the averages between 15:00 and 00:00 h, totalling 144 h of sampling. of taxonomic distinctness (Δ +) and the variation in Each site was sampled three times on each sampling taxonomic distinctness (Λ +) were calculated (Clarke & occasion, using a standardized sampling protocol for all Warwick, 1998; 2001) with PRIMER software version areas. All species seen or heard were recorded. Habitats 7.0 (PRIMER-E Ltd.). were also visited ad libitum during the day, on separate dates from samplings, to register casual daytime Results activities. When required, specimens were collected Twenty-seven species were recorded, belonging to and deposited in the Museu de Zoologia Profª. Morgana nineteen genera and nine families (Table 1; Figure 3). Cirimbeli Gaidzinski (MUESC) at UNESC University, Hylidae (13 spp., 48.4%) was the most represented Criciúma municipality, state of Santa Catarina, Brazil. family, followed by Leptodactylidae (four spp., 18.5%) The individuals were manually captured, anesthetized and Bufonidae (three spp., 11.1%). The other families and killed with a 5% lidocaine paste, then fixed in (Brachycephalidae, Centrolenidae, Hemiphractidae, 10% formalin and preserved in 70% alcohol. Acoustic Hylodidae, Microhylidae, and Odontophrynidae) were recordings were deposited in the Fonoteca Neotropical represented by one species each. Jacques Vielliard (FNJV). Most species in this study were classified as abundant The swamps are situated in open areas and are (n = 13), followed by common (n = nine) and rare species characterized by herbaceous vegetation, influenced by (n = five) (Table 1). Thirteen reproductive modes were pasture and livestock. They have sizes of 345 m² and observed (Figure 4), with exotrophic tadpoles in still 315 m² with altitudes varying from 505 m to 600 m. water (mode 1) being the most frequent mode. Nine Forest areas consist of tracks (360 m and 315 m) of of the 27 studied species (33%) had this reproductive medium successional stage on different altitudes (477 m mode. The species accumulation curve showed that and 815 m, respectively), evidenced by the high density the sampling effort was sufficient to register 96.1% of of bromeliads. The streams are inserted into forests of species potentially present in the study area, according medium/advanced successional stage, with a presence to the Bootstrap estimator