Captive breeding and trial reintroduction of the Endangered yellow-spotted mountain newt Neurergus microspilotus in western Iran

The yellow-spotted mountain newt Neurergus microspilotus (Caudata: Salamandridae) is listed as Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. In spite of its conservation status and laws protecting it, the species continues to decline in the wild. A captive breeding program was successfully established to support the species’ recovery. To learn more about the species’ ecology and winter mortality, 24 juveniles reared in captivity were released on 4 occasions in a small spring enclosure from July to September 2012 and monitored until December, when they disappeared for overwintering. In 12 visits to the site before and after overwintering, a total of 31 individuals were identified. Based on an average diurnal detection probability for this newt (0.61 ± 0.19 SD), the observed newts during the pre-overwintering period were estimated to represent 6.5 to 41.0% of the reintroduced newts. The newts observed after overwintering were 13 to 28% of the reintroduced newts. This study demonstrates that post-metamorph captive-bred N. microspilotus released into the wild can survive to the second growing season, and provides a choice of life stage for a reintroduction plan.