Distribution and Conservation Status of the Hyrcanian Wood Frog (Rana pseudodalmatina) in Azerbaijan

Artem Aleksandrovich Kidov, Spartak Nikolaevich Litvinchuk

Abstract


In Azerbaijan, the Hyrcanian wood frog (Rana pseudodalmatina) usually inhabits forests in the Talysh Mountains and the Lenkoran Lowland from –28 to 2265 m above sea level. Drier regions to the north and west of the Talysh Mountains limit the species distribution. The species can locally penetrate to a no forested zone in the northern and western foothills of the Talysh Mountains and the Zuvand Desert. In order to study the distribution and estimate ecological preferences of the species, we applied MaxEnt using 98 localities from Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkmenistan. The range of the species covers mainly pre-Caspian slopes of the Talysh and Alborz ridges. Of the parameters included in the model, the precipitation of driest month and the habitat homogeneity (index related to vegetation types) were variables with highest percentage contributions. Based on our data, in Azerbaijan R. pseudodalmatina is very common species in most places and in some localities is the most numerous amphibian species. The frog does not avoid human-transformed biotopes. The main factors influenced on a local declining of R. pseudodalmatina are the introduction of fishes (including invasive) and the common raccoon, destruction and contamination of suitable breeding water bodies. The most suitable method of conservation of the frog is construction of new ponds for their reproduction and wintering.

Keywords


Amphibia; Ranidae; distribution model; MaxEnt; Talysh

Full Text:

PDF

References


Ahmadpour M., Ahmadpour M., Hoseini S. H., Ghasempouri S. M., Jafari A., Sinka Karimi M. H., and Amouie H. (2012), «A survey on the flora and the fauna of the Fereydunkenar International wetland for better conservation management», J. Bio. Env. Sci., 2(10), 17 – 26.

Ahmadzadeh F., Flecks M., Carretero M. A., Mozaffari O., Böhme W., Harris D. J., Freitas S., and Rodder D. (2013), «Cryptic speciation patterns in Iranian rock lizards uncovered by integrative taxonomy», PLos One, 8(12), DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0080563.

Alekperov A. M. (1957), Amphibia and Reptilia of Azerbaijan. Doctoral Thesis. Vol. 1, Zool. Inst., USSR Academy of Sciences, Leningrad [in Russian].

Alekperov A. M. (1961), «Notes on distribution and ecology of the Asia Minor frog (Rana macrocnemis Boulenger, 1885) in Azerbaijan», Uch. Zap. Azerb. Gos. Univ. Ser. Biol. Nauki, 5, 7 – 9 [in Russian].

Alekperov A. M. (1978), Amphibians and Reptiles of Azerbaijan, Baku [in Russian].

Asadi A., Montgelard C., Nazarizadeh M., Moghaddasi A., Fatemizadeh F., Simonov E., Kami H. G., and Kaboli M. (2019), «Evolutionary history and postglacial colonization of an Asian pit viper (Gloydius halys caucasicus) into Transcaucasia revealed by phylogenetic and phylogeographic analyses», Sci. Rep., 9, 1224, DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-37558-8.

Bannikov A. G., Darevsky I. S., Ishchenko V. G., Rustamov A. K., and Shcherbak N. N. (1977), The Handbook of Amphibians and Reptiles of the USSR, Moscow [in Russian].

Borkin L. J. (1998), «Amphibia», in: N. B. Ananyeva, L. J. Borkin, I. S. Darevsky, and N. L. Orlov, Amphibians and Reptiles. Encyclopedia of the Nature of Russia, Moscow [in Russian].

Delwig W. (1928), «Über die Selbständigkeit von Rana cameranoi Blgr»., Zool. Anz., 79, 37 – 44.

Ebrahimi M., Javanmardi S., Esmaeili H. R., and Kami H. G. (2008), «Embryo and larval development of Iranian Near Eastern brown frogs, Rana macrocnemis pseudodalmatina Eiselt & Schmidtler, 1971 (Amphibia: Ranidae), in Alang Dareh Forest, north-eastern Iran», Zool. Middle East, 43, 75 – 84.

Elith J. (2002), «Quantitative methods for modeling species habitat: comparative performance and an application to Australian plants», in: Quantitative Methods for Conservation Biology, Springer, New York, pp. 39 – 58. DOI: 10.1007/0-387-22648-6_4.

Frost D. R. (2019), Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0, American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA. http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia.

Frynta D., Moravec J., Cihakova J., Sadlo J., Hodkova Z., Kaftan M., Kodym P., Kral D., Pitule V., and Sejna L. (1997), «Results of the Czech Biological Expedition to Iran. Part 1. Notes on the distribution of Amphibians and Reptiles», Acta Soc. Zool. Bohem., 61, 3 – 17.

Hernandez P. A., Graham C. H., Master L. L., and Albert D. L. (2006), «The effect of sample size and species characteristics on performance of different species distribution modeling methods», Ecography, 29(5), 773 – 785. DOI: 10.1111/j.0906-7590.2006.04700.x.

Ischenko V. G. (1978), Dynamic Polymorphism of Brown Frogs of the Fauna of the USSR, Nauka, Moscow [in Russian].

Jablonski D., Nagy Z. T., Avcı A., Olgun K., Kukushkin O. V., Safaei-Mahroo B., and Jandzik D. (2019), «Cryptic diversity in the smooth snake (Coronella austriaca)», Amphibia–Reptilia, 40, 179 – 192.

Kami H. G. and Vakilpoure E. (1996), «Geographic distribution: Rana macrocnemis pseudodalmatina (Iranian Brusa Frog)», Herpetol. Rev., 27(3), 150.

Kidov A. A. (2009), «Amphibians of the ‘Hirkan’ National Park», in: Biodiversity and the Role of Protected Areas in its Conservation, Tambov, pp. 217 – 219 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A. (2010), «Notes on the biology of Iranian long-legged wood frog (Rana macrocnemis pseudodalmatina Eiselt et Schmidtler, 1971) in Southeastern Azerbaijan», Curr. Stud. Herpetol. Saratov, 10(3 – 4), 109 – 114 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A. (2012), «Hibernation of Iranian long-legged wood frog (Rana macrocnemis pseudodalmatina Eiselt et Schmidtler, 1971) (Amphibia, Anura: Ranidae) in Talysh Mountains», Estestv. Tekhn. Nauki, 58(2), 102 – 105 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A. (2016), «Analysis of distribution of the Hyrcanian frog, Rana pseudodalmatina in Azerbaijan», Byull. Tambov. Univ. Ser. Estestv. Tekhn. Nauki, 21(5), 1770 – 1774 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A. (2019), «Spring aspect of the herpetofauna in the Iranian Talysh», Univ. Tr. Volzh. Region Estestv. Nauki, 1(25), 51 – 62 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A. and Matushkina K. A. (2012), «Comparative characteristics of releasing calls in males and females of the Hyrcanian wood frog (Rana macrocnemis pseudodalmatina Eiselt et Schmidtler, 1971) in Azerbaijan», in: V All-Russian Conf. on Animal Behavior, KMK, Moscow, p. 93 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A. and Matushkina K. A. (2013), «Reproductive biology of an Iranian long-legged frog, Rana macrocnemis pseudodalmatina Eiselt et Schmidtler, 1971 (Amphibia: Anura: Ranidae) in the northwest of range», Byull. Tambov. Univ. Ser. Estestv. Tekhn. Nauki, 18(6 – 1), 3012 – 3014 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A., Pykhov S. G., and Dernakov V. V. (2009), «Notes on distribution of amphibians and reptiles in southeast Azerbaijan», in: G. I. Blokhin et al. (eds.), Conservation of a Diversity of Animals and the Hunting Economy of Russia, Moscow, pp. 43 – 45 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A., Matushkina K. A., and Timoshina A. L. (2011a), «New distribution’s materials for amphibians and reptiles in the Talysh Mountains and the Lenkoran Lowland: some results of herpetological expeditions, 2009 – 2011», Tr. Ukr. Gerpetol. Obshch., 3, 56 – 63 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A., Timoshina A. L., and Matushkina K. A. (2011b), «Problem of invasive species in conservation of amphibian on the example of introduction of the common raccoon, Procyon lotor L., 1756 in Southeastern Azerbaijan», in: G. I. Blokhin et al. (eds.), Conservation of a Diversity of Animals and the Hunting Economy of Russia, Moscow, pp. 45 – 48 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A., Matushkina K. A., Blinova S. A., Afrin K. A., Kovrina E. G., and Baksheyeva A. A. (2015), «Reproduction of the Iranian long-legged frog (Rana macrocnemis pseudodalmatina Eiselt et Schmidtler, 1971) in laboratory conditions», Curr. Stud. Herpetol. Saratov, 15(3 – 4), 109 – 113 [in Russian].

Kidov A. A., Zamaletdinov R. I., Matushkina K. A., and Mikhailova R. I. (2018), «Notes on study of age and growth of the Hyrcanian frog, Rana pseudodalmatina Eiselt et Schmidtler, 1971 in the Talysh Mountains», Russ. J. Herpetol., 25(3), 183 – 188.

Kidov A. A., Matushkina K. A., and Litvinchuk S. N. (2020), «Distribution and conservation status of the Eichwald’s toad, Bufo eichwaldi in Azerbaijan», Russ. J. Herpetol., 27(1), 11 – 18.

Kuzmin S. L. (2013), The Amphibians of the Former Soviet Union, Pensoft, Sofia – Moscow.

Lantz L. A. and Cyrén O. (1914), «Über die Identität von Rana macrocnemis und Rana camerani», Zool. Anz., 43, 214 – 220.

Litvinchuk S. N. and Borkin L. J. (2009), Evolution, Systematics and Distribution of Crested Newts (Triturus cristatus complex) in Russia and Adjacent Countries, St. Petersburg [in Russian].

Litvinchuk S. N., Borkin L. J., Rosanov J. M., and Skorinov D. V. (2006), «Allozyme and genome size variation in tree frogs from the Caucasus, with description of a new subspecies Hyla arborea gumilevskii from the Talysh Mountains», Russ. J. Herpetol., 13(3), 187 – 206.

Litvinchuk S. N., Rozanov Y. M., Borkin L. Y., and Skorinov D. V. (2008a), «Molecular-biochemical and cytogenetic aspects of microevolution in tailless amphibians of fauna of Russia and neighboring countries», in: Problems of Herpetology, pp. 247 – 257 [in Russian].

Litvinchuk S. N., Borkin L. J., and Rosanov J. M. (2008b), «Genome size variation in Rana arvalis and some related brown frog species, including taxonomic comments on the validity of the R. arvalis subspecies», Zeitschr. Feldherp., Suppl. 13, 95 – 112.

Litvinchuk S. N., Mazepa G. O., Kami H. G., and Auer M. (2012), «Taxonomic status and distribution of common toads in Iran», Herpetol. J., 22, 271 – 274.

Mensi P., Lattes A., Macario B., Salvidio S., Giacoma C., and Balletto E. (1992), «Taxonomy and evolution of European brown frogs», Zool. J. Linn. Soc., 105, 293 – 311.

Molavi F., Ghanbarifardi M., Mohammadian-kalat T., Haddadian H., Barani-Beiranvand H., and Aliabadian M. (2013), «Surveying effective factors on the distributional patterns of genus Rana (Anura: Ranidae) using SAM (Spatial Analysis in Macro Ecology) software in Iran», Anim. Biol., 10, 59 – 73 [in Persian].

Najibzadeh M., Veith M., Gharzi A., Rastegar-Pouyani N., Rastegar-Pouyani E., Kieren S., and Pesarkloo A. (2017a), «Molecular phylogenetic relationships among Anatolia-Hyrcanian brown frog taxa (Ranidae: Rana)», Amphibia–Reptilia, 38, 339 – 350.

Najibzadeh M., Gharzi A., Rastegar-Pouyani N., Rastegar-Pouyani N., Rastegar-Pouyani E., and Pesarkloo A. (2017b), «Habitat suitability and patterns of sex-biased migration of the Iranian long-legged wood frog, Rana pseudodalmatina (Anura: Ranidae)», Biologia, 72(6), 686 – 693.

Najibzadeh M., Gharzi A., Rastegar-Pouyani N., Rastegar-Pouyani E., and Pesarkloo A. (2018), «Genetic structure of the Hyrcanian wood frog, Rana pseudodalmatina (Amphibia: Ranidae) using mtDNA gene sequences», Russ. J. Genet., 54, 1221, DOI: 10.1134/S1022795418100095.

Nikolsky A. M. (1913), Herpetologia Caucasica, The Caucasian Museum, Tiflis [in Russian].

Pesarakloo A. R., Gharezi A., and Kami H. G. (2008), «Study of embryonic stages and metamorphosis in the jungle frog (Rana macrocnemis pseudodalmatina) in Golestan Province (Minudasht City)», Res. J. Univ. Isfahan, 35(6), 209 – 222.

Phillips S. J. and Dudik M. (2008), «Modeling of species distributions with Maxent new extensions and a comprehensive evaluation», Ecography, 31, 161 – 175.

Phillips S. J., Anderson R. P., and Schapire R. E. (2006), «Maximum entropy modeling of species geographic distributions», Ecol. Modelling, 190(3 – 4), 231 – 259. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel. 2005.03.026

Phillips S. J., Anderson R. P., Dudík M., Schapire R. E., and Blair M. E. (2017), «Opening the black box: an open-source release of Maxent», Ecography, 40, 887 – 893.

Picariello O., Safaei-Mahroo B., and Chinali G. (2018), «S1 satellite DNA confirms the species rank of Rana pseudodalmatina Eiselt & Schmidtler, 1971», Salamandra, 54, 269 – 277.

Sobolevsky N. I. (1929), Herpetofauna of the Talysh and of the Lenkoran Lowland, Moscow [in Russian].

Swets K. (1988), «Measuring the accuracy of diagnostic systems», Science, 240, 1285 – 1293.

Tarkhnishvili D. N. and Gokhelashvili R. K. (1999), «The amphibians of the Caucasus», Adv. in Amphibian Res. in the Former Soviet Union, 4, 1 – 212.

Tuniyev B. S., Orlov N. L., Ananjeva N. B., and Agasian A. L. (2009), Snakes of Caucasus: Taxonomical Diversity, Distribution, Conservation, St. Petersburg – Moscow, [in Russian].

UNEP-WCMC (2015), World Database on Protected Areas. User Manual 1.0, UNEP-WCMC, Cambridge, UK.

Veith M., Kosuch J., and Vences M. (2003a) «Climatic oscillations, triggered post-Messinian speciation of Western Palearctic brown frogs (Amphibia, Ranidae)», Mol. Phylogen. Evol., 26, 310 – 327.

Veith M., Schmidtler J. F., Kosuch J., Baran I., and Seitz A. (2003b) «Palaeoclimatic changes explain Anatolian mountain frog evolution: a test for alternating vicariance and dispersal events», Mol. Ecol., 12, 185 – 199.

Veliyeva Z. D. (1975), Fauna and Ecology of Amphibians of the South-East of the Azerbaijan SSR. PhD Thesis, Azerbaijan State Pedagogical Institute, Baku [in Russian].

Vences M., Brown J. L., Lathrop A., Rosa G. M., Cameron A., Crottini A., Dolch R., Edmonds D., Freeman K. L. M., Glaw F., Grismer L. L., Litvinchuk S., Milne M. G., Moore M., Solofo J. F., Noël J., Nguyen T. Q., Ohler A., Randrianantoandro C., Raselimanana A. P., van Leeuwen P., Wogan G. O. U., Ziegler T., Andreone F., and Murphy R. W. (2017), «Tracing a toad invasion: lack of mitochondrial DNA variation, haplotype origins, and potential distribution of introduced Duttaphrynus melanostictus in Madagascar», Amphibia–Reptilia, 38(2), 197 – 207; DOI: 10.1163/15685381-00003104.

Warren D. L., Glor R. E., and Turelli M. (2010), «ENMTools: a toolbox for comparative studies of environmental niche models», Ecography, 33, 607 – 611.

Zinenko A. I. and Goncharenko L. A. (2009), Catalogue of Collections of the Museum of Nature at V. N. Karazin’s Kharkiv National University. Amphibians (Amphibia). Reptiles (Reptilia): Crocodiles (Crocodylia), Turtles (Testudines), Kharkiv [in Russian].




DOI: https://doi.org/10.30906/1026-2296-2021-28-2-97-107

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


You can subscribe to the print or electronic version of the journal on the site of EastView Company. If you have any questions, please write to the email sales@ivis.ru