Open AccessEfficiency of photo identification of inguinal color patterns of Pithecopus gonzagai (Anura: Phyllomedusidae) from northeastern Brazil
Author(s) -
Frede Lima-Araujo,
Ana Carolina Brasileiro,
Elvis Franklin Fernandes de Carvalho,
Daniel Cunha Passos
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
phyllomedusa
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.333
H-Index - 21
eISSN - 2316-9079
pISSN - 1519-1397
DOI - 10.11606/issn.2316-9079.v20i1p67-74
Subject(s) - identification (biology) , matching (statistics) , computer science , taxon , function (biology) , software , artificial intelligence , data mining , pattern recognition (psychology) , biology , ecology , statistics , evolutionary biology , mathematics , programming language
Animal monitoring research involving mark-recapture techniques increasingly requires non-invasive methods of individual identification. The photographic identification method (PIM) is an excellent tool for this purpose and has been applied successfully to many taxa. However, the utility of PIM is a function of species-specific features that are judged suitable for a given target-species. Herein, the suitability of inguinal color patterns for photo identification of individuals of Pithecopus gonzagai are evaluated by comparing two widely used computer-assisted photographic matching programs (I³S and Wild.ID). Both programs accurately identified more than 70% of individuals in the top 20 potential matching photographs. Wild.ID was slightly better than I³S in matching efficiency and has a faster processing time. Thus, PIM is useful to identify individual P. gonzagai; however, before implementing the technique in animal-monitoring studies of other taxa, one must evaluate the suitability PIM for the target species and calibrate the relative efficiency of the software programs in identifying individuals.