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A third species of Brasilotyphlus, a siphonopid caecilian, is described based on six specimens from two twin mountains in Roraima state, northern Brazil. Brasilotyphlus dubium sp. nov. differs from all other congeners in having a combination of 123-129 primary annuli and 9-16 secondary annular grooves. The first molecular data were generated and analyzed for Brasilotyphlus, and the genus was recovered as monophyletic and nested within a paraphyletic Microcaecilia. The extent of genetic and taxonomic sampling, and moderate phylogenetic support are not considered sufficient enough to place Brasilotyphlus in the synonymy of Microcaecilia.

The fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) is among the main causes of declines in amphibian populations. This fungus is considered a generalist pathogen because it infects several species and spreads rapidly in the wild. To date, Bd has been detected in more than 100 anuran species in Brazil, mostly in the southern portion of the Atlantic forest. Here, we report survey data from some poorly explored regions; these data considerably extend current information on the distribution of Bd in the northern Atlantic forest region. In addition, we tested the hypothesis that Bd is a generalist pathogen in this biome. We also report the first positive record for Bd in an anuran caught in the wild in Amazonia. In total, we screened 90 individuals (from 27 species), of which 39 individuals (from 22 species) were Bd-positive. All samples collected in Bahia (2 individuals), Pernambuco (3 individuals), Pará (1 individual), and Minas Gerais (1 individual) showed positive results for Bd. We found a positive correlation between anuran richness per family and the number of infected species in the Atlantic forest, supporting previous observations that Bd lacks strong host specificity; of 38% of the anuran species in the Atlantic forest that were tested for Bd infection, 25% showed positive results. The results of our study exemplify the pandemic and widespread nature of Bd infection in amphibians.

The challenge in studying Neotropical tadpoles is identifying species using only their external morphology. However, the DNA barcode protocol is often implemented to help elucidate taxonomic issues. In fact, the identification of frogs through their unknown tadpoles has already been achieved accurately using this protocol. Despite the successful application of this tool, the efficiency of the 16S rRNA gene as a DNA barcode for Neotropical tadpoles has not been fully assessed. Herein we evaluate the efficacy of the 16S rRNA gene for identifying tadpoles from northeastern Brazil. Samples of 100 tadpole specimens from 12 locations were analyzed. The DNA sequences were individually submitted to a BLAST search and were then aligned with a matrix containing available sequences in the GenBank based on the anurans known to occur in the study area. The 16S rRNA fragment successfully identified the analyzed anuran species. Based on DNA barcoding, 8% of the tadpoles morphologically identified at the species level were incorrect. When an incongruence between morphological and molecular identifications was detected, the morphology of the target morphotype was reexamined, and previously neglected morphological characteristics were identified. DNA barcoding using the 16S rRNA gene facilitated the assessment of tadpole richness in northeastern Brazil. This DNA protocol can be used as a starting point for detecting high levels of genetic divergence, highlighting potential taxa that should be studied from phylogenetic and taxonomic perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Boana atlantica was described based on morphological characters to acommodate populations from Bahia state, Brazil, previously referred to as B. punctata. However, its taxonomic validity is questionable due to inconsistencies in bioacoustic data. Here, we integrate molecular, cytogenetic and morphological data to re-evaluate the taxonomic status of B. atlantica. Molecular analyses provided strong support for the hypothesis that B. atlantica is a valid species, being, however, nominal populations from Bahia state paraphyletic with respect to individuals of B. atlantica collected in Alagoas and Pernambuco states. These populations shown high genetic divergence in the 16S rRNA mitochondrial fragment, and we consider populations from Alagoas and Pernambuco as a putative new candidate species of Boana punctata group. The external and internal morphology of the tadpoles of these lineages were similar, but Nucleolar Organizer Regions (NOR) was sited in different chromosomes. Our results indicate that B. atlantica is paraphyletic and may be a complex of species. Morphological of adult and/or bioacoustical data should be further assessed to find diagnostic characters to tease these lineages apart and name them properly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This note reports the presence of Leptodactylus paraensis at the municipality of Cláudia, state of Mato Grosso, central Brazil. This is the first recorded for this species in Mato Grosso. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]