Amphibians of Kokolopori: an introduction to the amphibian fauna of the Central Congolian Lowland Forests, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F68081766%3A_____%2F22%3A00555581" target="_blank" >RIV/68081766:_____/22:00555581 - isvavai.cz</a>

Alternative codes found

RIV/00023272:_____/22:10135556

Result on the web

<a href="http://amphibian-reptile-conservation.org/pdfs/Volume/Vol_16_no_1/ARC_16_1_" target="_blank" >http://amphibian-reptile-conservation.org/pdfs/Volume/Vol_16_no_1/ARC_16_1_</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

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Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Amphibians of Kokolopori: an introduction to the amphibian fauna of the Central Congolian Lowland Forests, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Original language description

The fauna of the Central Congolian Lowland Forests ecoregion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is poorly known due to the region’s remoteness and limited accessibility. An amphibian survey was conducted in Kokolopori, including the Kokolopori Bonobo Nature Reserve, to fill this gap in our knowledge of its amphibians. All major habitat types were surveyed using visual and acoustic encounter surveys, pitfall and funnel trapping, and active searching during four field sessions, totaling 48 days. A total of 37 species of anuran amphibians were recorded, while caecilians were unknown to the local human population based on the photographs presented. Incidence-based species richness statistics estimated 37–41 amphibian species, indicating that our survey was probably nearly complete, but we assume that some rare species or species with secretive behaviors have probably remained overlooked. Approximately 75–80% of the total number of species were recorded during each of the two-week portions of the fieldwork, suggesting that two weeks of intensive surveys may have good potential for amphibian inventories in Afrotropical forests. The relatively low number of species for this equatorial rainforest is probably a consequence of its climatic history, with the central Congo being at a certain level of drought during the Pleistocene glaciations. The amphibian fauna is mainly represented by forest species that inhabit the lowland forests of Central Africa. Species restricted to intact primary forests or more euryecious species of forested ecozones were recorded. Several representatives of genus Arthroleptis could not be assigned to any of the described species, and probably represent species new to science. Representatives of some other genera (Leptopelis, Sclerophrys) resembled species known from western Central Africa, but morphological differences suggested that they probably also represent new species. The taxonomic status of Arthroleptis procterae De Witte, 1921 and Hyperolius boulengeri Laurent, 1943 are revised. Range extensions were found for several taxa, including those known only from the original descriptions. The lack of ubiquitous synanthropic toad species of genus Sclerophrys can probably be attributed to the well-preserved Kokolopori forests and only narrow corridors of disturbed habitat (small paths) leading into the area. Interestingly, some degree of biofluorescence was recorded in Hyperolius phantasticus boulengeri, which to our knowledge is the first documented case in an African anuran. Despite the relatively low species richness, our results suggest that the Central Congolian Lowland Forests ecoregion harbors a unique and partially endemic amphibian fauna that is to some degree differentiated from the anuran fauna to the north, east, and west of the wide arc of the Congo River. Therefore, this survey underscores the need to protect the central Congolian rainforests as a source of unique biodiversity, and the community-based Kokolopori Bonobo Nature Reserve serves as a good example

Czech name

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Czech description

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Type

J_imp - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database

CEP classification

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OECD FORD branch

10613 - Zoology

Project

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Continuities

I - Institucionalni podpora na dlouhodoby koncepcni rozvoj vyzkumne organizace

Publication year

2022

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Amphibian & Reptile Conservation

ISSN

1083-446X

e-ISSN

1525-9153

Volume of the periodical

16

Issue of the periodical within the volume

1

Country of publishing house

US - UNITED STATES

Number of pages

36

Pages from-to

35-70

UT code for WoS article

000911431900001

EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-85125535700