Natural history notes and micro-habitat use by Bokermannohyla luctuosa (Pombal & Haddad, 1993) (Anura: Hylidae)
Abstract
This study investigates the activity, habitat use, and ecological patterns of the arboreal treefrog Bokermannohyla luctuosa, based on long-term monitoring from April 2020 to August 2022 in São Francisco Xavier, São Paulo state, Brazil. Over 126 field trips, we recorded this frog 203 times across 17 sites, with significant seasonal variation in activity and habitat use. During the dry season (April to September), the animals frequently occupied waterfall spray zones, while wetter months saw decreased reliance on these habitats. Reproductive activity, including vocalizing males, gravid females, and tadpoles, was observed across multiple months, which indicates an extended reproductive period. Notable trophic interactions included predation by the larger treefrog Boana faber and the consumption of a harvestman by B. luctuosa. These findings highlight the importance of long-term monitoring to address knowledge gaps, particularly as climate change threatens amphibian habitats. Understanding seasonal microhabitat preferences can guide conservation strategies and improve fieldwork outcomes.
References
Agostinelli, C. & Lund, U. 2024. R package ‘circular’: Circular Statistics (version 0.5-1). Avaliable at: https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=circular.
Alvares, C.A.; Stape, J.L.; Sentelhas, P.C.; Gonçalves, J.D.M. & Sparovek, G. 2013. Köppen’s climate classification map for Brazil. Meteorologische Zeitschrift 22: 711-728.
Alves-Ferreira, G.; Heming, N.M.; Talora, D.; Keitt, T.H.; Solé, M. & Zamudio, K.R. 2025. Climate change is projected to shrink phylogenetic endemism of Neotropical frogs. Nature Communications 16:3713. Bolochio, B.E.; Brasil-Godinho, M.; Nogueira, C.C.; Sawaya, R.J. 2025. Conserving biogeographical units of endemic amphibians in the megadiverse Atlantic Forest. Annals of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences 97: e20240472.
Botelho, L.M.; Barbosa, A.C.F.; Prado, J.S.; Pedrozo, M.; Moroti, M.T.; Toledo, L.F. & Muscat, E. 2023. Reproductive biology, tadpole description, and natural history of Dendrophryniscus haddadi (Anura: Bufonidae). Journal of Natural History 57: 596-607.
Carvalho, T.R.; Giaretta, A.A. & Magrini, L. 2012. A new species of the Bokermannohyla circumdata group (Anura: Hylidae) from southeastern Brazil, with bioacoustic data on seven species of the genus. Zootaxa 68: 57-68.
Donnelly, M.A. & Crump, M.L. 1998. Potential effects of climate change on two Neotropical amphibian assemblages. Climatic Change 39: 541-561.
Duellman, W.E. & Trueb L. 1986. Biology of amphibians. McGraw-Hill Publishing Company. New York.
Duellman, W.E. & Trueb, L. 1994. Biology of amphibians. JHU press. Maryland.
Faivovich, J.; Haddad, C.F.B.; Garcia, P.C.A.; Frost, D.R.; Campbell, J.A. & Wheeler, W.C. 2005. Systematic review of the frog family Hylidae, with special reference to Hylinae: phylogenetic analysis and taxonomic revision. Bulletin of the American Museum of natural History 294: 1-240.
Feder, M.E & Burggren, W.W. 1992. Environmental physiology of the amphibians. University of Chicago Press. Chicago.
Gomez-Mestre, I.; Pyron, R.A. & Wiens, J.J. 2012. Phylogenetic analyses reveal unexpected patterns in the evolution of reproductive modes in frogs. Evolution 66: 3687-3700.
Haddad, C.F.B. & Prado, C.P.A. 2005. Reproductive modes in frogs and their unexpected diversity in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. BioScience 55: 207-217.
Haddad, C.F.B.; Toledo, L.F.; Prado, C.P.A.; Loebmann, D.; Gasparini, J.L. & Sazima, I. 2013. Guia dos Anfíbios da Mata Atlântica - Diversidade e Biologia. Anolis Books Editora. São Paulo.
Jenkins, C.N.; Alves, M.A.S.; Uezu, A. & Vale M.M. 2015. Patterns of vertebrate diversity and protection in Brazil. PLoS ONE 10: e0145064.
Junior, B.T. & Gomes, F.R. 2012. Balanço hídrico e a distribuição geográfica dos anfíbios. Revista da Biologia 8:49-57.
Leite, F.S.F.; Pezzuti, T.L. & Drummond L.O. 2008. Hypsiboas faber (Smith Frog), Diet. Herpetological Review 39: 206-207.
Luedtke, J.A.; Chanson, J.; Neam, K. et al. 2023. Ongoing declines for the world’s amphibians in the face of emerging threats. Nature 622: 308-314.
Machado, G.; Carrera, P.C.; Pomini, A.M. & Marsaioli A.J. 2005. Chemical defense in harvestmen (Arachnida, Opiliones): do benzoquinone secretions deter invertebrate and vertebrate predators?. Journal of Chemical Ecology 31: 2519-2539.
Malagoli, L.R.; Pezzuti, T.L.; Bang, D.L.; Faivovich, J.; Lyra, M.L.; Giovanelli, J.G.R.; Garcia, P.C.A.; Sawaya, R.J. & Haddad, C.F.B. 2021. A new reproductive mode in anurans: Natural history of Bokermannohyla astartea (Anura: Hylidae) with the description of its tadpole and vocal repertoire. PLoS ONE 16: e0246401.
McNab, B.K. 2002. The physiological ecology of vertebrates: a view from energetics. Cornell University Press. New York.
Muscat, E.; Menegucci, R.C.; Tanaka, R.M.; Rotenberg, E.; Moroti, M.T.; Pedrozo, M.; Stuginsk, D.R. & Sazima, I. 2020. Natural history of the marsupial frog Gastrotheca albolineata (Anura: Hemiphractidae) in lowland Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Phyllomedusa 19: 189-200.
Moroti, M.T.; Sestito, G.; Pedrozo, M.; Machado, I.F. & Santana, D.J. 2018. Defensive behaviours in Bokermannohyla luctuosa (Pombal and Haddad, 1993) (Anura, Hylidae). Herpetology Notes 11: 233-237.
Moroti, M.T.; Severgnini, M. R.; Bolovon, J. P. & Toledo, L. F., Muscat E. 2022. Filling the knowledge gaps of Paratelmatobius mantiqueira (Anura: Leptodactylidae): tadpole, acoustic repertoire, and life history traits. Journal of Natural History 56: 1563-1584.
Moura, M.R.; Motta, A.P.; Fernandes, V.D. & Feio, R.N. 2012. Herpetofauna da Serra do Brigadeiro, um remanescente de Mata Atlântica em Minas Gerais, sudeste do Brasil. Biota Neotropica 12: 209-235.
Prado, C.; Uetanabaro, M. & Haddad, C. 2005. Breeding activity patterns, reproductive modes, and habitat use by anurans (Amphibia) in a seasonal environment in the Pantanal, Brazil. Amphibia-Reptilia 26: 211-221.
Pombal, J.P. & Haddad, C.F.B. 1993. Hyla luctuosa, a new treefrog from southeastern Brazil (Amphibia, Hylidae). Herpetologica 49: 16-21.
Pounds, J.A.; Fogden, M.P.L. & Campbell, J.H. 1999. Biological response to climate change on a tropical mountain. Nature 398: 611-615.
Rossa-Feres, D.C.; Garey, M.V.; Caramaschi, U.; Napoli, M.F.; Nomura, F. et al. 2017. Anfíbios da Mata Atlântica: lista de espécies, histórico dos estudos, biologia e conservação. Revisões em Zoologia, Editora UFPR. Curitiba.
R Core Team. 2020. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. - R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. Available from: https://www.R-project.org/
Silva, F.R.; Almeida-Neto, M.; Prado, V.H.M.; Haddad, C.F.B. & Rossa-Feres, D.C. 2012. Humidity levels drive reproductive modes and phylogenetic diversity of amphibians in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Journal of Biogeography 39: 1720- 1732.
Toledo, L.F. & Haddad, C.F.B. 2009. Defensive vocalizations of Neotropical anurans. South American Journal of Herpetology 4: 25-42.
Toledo, L.F.; Sazima, I. & Haddad, C.F.B. 2011. Behavioural defences of anurans: an overview. Ethology Ecology and Evolution 23: 1-25.
Verdade, V.K.; Valdujo, P.H.; Carnaval, A.C.; Schiesar,i L.; Toledo, L.F., Mott, T.; Andrade, G.V.; Eterovick, P.C.; Menin, M.; Pimenta B.V.S., Nogueira, C.; Lisboal, C.S.; de Paula, C.D. & Silvano, D.L. 2012. A leap further: the Brazilian Amphibian Conservation Action Plan. Alytes 29: 28-43.
Verdade, V.K.; Almeida-Silva, D.; Cassimiro, J. & Rodrigues, M.T. 2019. Rediscovering Cycloramphus bandeirensis (Anura: Cycloramphidae): natural history and breeding biology of a vulnerable species with a variant reproductive mode. Phyllomedusa 18:159-175.
Zornosa-Torres, C. & Toledo, L.F. 2019. Courtship behavior and advertisement call geographic variation of Bokermannohyla luctuosa (Pombal Jr. and Haddad, 1993) (Hylidae, Cophomantini). South American Journal of Herpetology 14: 71-79.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Lucas Machado Botelho, João Albert Bachur, Vanessa Kruth Verdade, Diego Almeida-Silva, Ivan Sazima, Edelcio Muscat
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
You are free to:
Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material
The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
Under the following terms:
-
Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
-
NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
