Open AccessEvolutionarily significant units of the critically endangered leaf frog Pithecopus ayeaye (Anura, Phyllomedusidae) are not effectively preserved by the Brazilian protected areas network
Author(s) -
Magalhães Rafael Félix,
Lemes Priscila,
Camargo Arley,
Oliveira Ubirajara,
Brandão Reuber Albuquerque,
Thomassen Hans,
Garcia Paulo Christiano de Anchietta,
Leite Felipe Sá Fortes,
Santos Fabrício Rodrigues
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
ecology and evolution
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.17
H-Index - 63
ISSN - 2045-7758
DOI - 10.1002/ece3.3261
Subject(s) - threatened species , critically endangered , endangered species , environmental niche modelling , niche , ecology , biodiversity , range (aeronautics) , endemism , coalescent theory , biology , ecological niche , protected area , geography , phylogenetics , materials science , biochemistry , habitat , gene , composite material
Protected areas ( PA s) are essential for biodiversity conservation, but their coverage is considered inefficient for the preservation of all species. Many species are subdivided into evolutionarily significant units ( ESU s) and the effectiveness of PA s in protecting them needs to be investigated. We evaluated the usefulness of the Brazilian PA s network in protecting ESU s of the critically endangered Pithecopus ayeaye through ongoing climate change. This species occurs in a threatened mountaintop ecosystem known as campos rupestres . We used multilocus DNA sequences to delimit geographic clusters, which were further validated as ESU s with a coalescent approach. Ecological niche modeling was used to estimate spatial changes in ESU s’ potential distributions, and a gap analysis was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of the Brazilian PA s network to protect P. ayeaye in the face of climate changes. We tested the niche overlap between ESU s to gain insights for potential management alternatives for the species. Pithecopus ayeaye contains at least three ESU s isolated in distinct mountain regions, and one of them is not protected by any PA . There are no climatic niche differences between the units, and only 4% of the suitable potential area of the species is protected in present and future projections. The current PA s are not effective in preserving the intraspecific diversity of P. ayeaye in its present and future range distributions. The genetic structure of P. ayeaye could represent a typical pattern in campos rupestres endemics, which should be considered for evaluating its conservation status.