El equipo de Pro Fauna Silvestre nos lleva en este video hasta la comunidad de Anchihuay, donde la exploración herpetológica nos permite descubrir la increíble diversidad de anfibios y reptiles que habitan estos bosques. Entre montañas, neblina y bosques exuberantes, cada expedición es una oportunidad para conocer y valorar la biodiversidad que aún se esconde en estos ecosistemas. ¡Disfruten del viaje!
 A new study and Catenazzi lab collaboration, alongside lead author Pablo J. Venegas and international collaborators, describes four previously unknown species of direct-developing frogs from the Peruvian Andes. Published in Diversity, the research (https://doi.org/10.3390/d18080458) draws on extensive fieldwork across the departments of Amazonas, San Martín, and Huánuco. By combining morphological analyses, skin texture details, color patterns, and mitochondrial DNA sequencing, the team expanded the genus Oreobates within the family Strabomantidae.  The newly described taxa exhibit distinct morphological features and narrow geographic ranges across Peru's eastern Andean slopes. Oreobates azulensis from Huánuco features a tan-to-cream belly with faint brown reticulations and heavily tuberculate skin, while Oreobates chirimoto in Amazonas stands out with a bright yellow underside and an absence of vocal slits. In the San Martín region, Oreobates foliaspectrum displays cryptic leaf-like dorsal patterning over a mottled orange-brown belly, and Oreobates nigrumcompletum is named for its striking, near-solid dark brown to black ventral coloration. Like other terraranan frogs, these species bypass the free-swimming tadpole stage entirely through direct development. Females deposit eggs in damp leaf litter or soil, where embryos develop directly into fully formed miniature froglets. This life history strategy drives high levels of micro-endemism across the Peruvian Yungas. Because adults have limited dispersal capabilities and cannot travel along river systems, deep, dry inter-Andean valleys act as formidable barriers to gene flow. Isolated on individual mountain ridges or narrow elevational zones, populations rapidly diverge over evolutionary time into distinct species.  Establishing precise taxonomic identities for these localized populations is a crucial prerequisite for regional conservation. By formalizing the descriptions of O. azulensis, O. chirimoto, O. foliaspectrum, and O. nigrumcompletum, the Catenazzi lab and their collaborators provide essential baseline data to help protection efforts target fragile, highly specialized cloud forest habitats. Citation: Venegas, P.J., J. W. Ttito, L. A. García-Ayachi, M. Gulman, J. D. Valencia, A. Catenazzi. 2026. Four new species of direct-developing frogs, genus Oreobates (Anura: Strabomantidae), from Peru. Diversity 2026, 18(8). doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/d18080458
 Congratulations to Cara Giordano, who received the Behavior & Ecology award in the 16th Annual SSAR Victor Hutchison Student Poster Competition at the 2026 Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists & Herpetologists in New Orleans, Louisiana. Cara was recognized as the top presenter in the Behavior & Ecology category for her poster, "Investigating Thermal Physiological Traits of a Nonnative Amphibian, the Rio Cauca Caecilian (Typhlonectes natans)." The SSAR Victor Hutchison Student Poster Awards recognize outstanding graduate student research while honoring Victor Hutchison's lasting contributions to herpetology and his dedication to mentoring future generations of herpetologists.
The lab presented posters and talks at the JMIH in New Orleans from 8-12 July 2026.  Cara by her award-winning poster Investigating Thermal Physiological Traits of a Nonnative Amphibian, the Rio Cauca Caecilian (Typhlonectes natans).  Gustavo gave a poster titled Tank bromeliads as refugia or ecological traps for the bromelicolous salamander Bolitoglossa helmrichi.  Jon presented a poster about Testing Alternative Sampling Methods for Detection of Ophidiomycosis and also...  ...gave a talk Elucidating the Role of Shed Skins in the Persistence of Ophiodiomyces ophidiicola in Soils.
From June 8 to 12, 2026, researchers gathered in Knoxville, Tennessee, for the Global Amphibian and Reptile Disease (GARD26) Conference to address critical pathogen threats facing herpetofauna. Among the presenters, lab members Jon Adamski and Gustavo Ruano shared essential findings on fungal disease dynamics. Jon presented "Elucidating the role of shed skins in the persistence of Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola," detailing how snake exuviae act as environmental reservoirs for the pathogen behind snake fungal disease. His insights provide crucial guidance for refining biosecurity protocols during field surveys. Gustavo delivered "Amphibian population status across an altitudinal gradient in Guatemala: Insights from the San Marcos transect related to Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis," examining how elevation and microclimate influence Bd prevalence. His work along the San Marcos transect highlights the role of thermal refugia in Neotropical amphibian survival.
 We are excited to announce the submission of a new manuscript investigating how frog-biting midges Corethrella are distributed along a 3,000-meter elevational gradient near Manu National Park. These tiny midges locate their hosts by listening to their calls, creating a unique ecological relationship between parasites and frogs. Using frog-call baited traps, we sampled midges from Amazonian lowland forests to Andean cloud forests. Species richness declined with elevation, and no midges were detected above 2,400m despite the continued presence of frogs.  Community composition changed dramatically across the elevational gradient, with species turnover driving most of the differences among sites. The highest occupied elevations contained unique species not found at lower elevations, highlighting the distinctiveness of montane midge communities.  Our findings suggest that abiotic conditions, rather than host availability, limit the upper elevational range of frog-biting midges. This study provides new insights into how mountain environments shape parasite diversity and their ecological associations with amphibians in the tropical Andes. Citation: Timelli, F., X. Bernal, A. Catenazzi. 2026. Abiotic constraints shape elevational distributions of Andean frog-biting midges (Corethrellidae) despite persistent host availability. Ecology and Evolution: under review. Authorea doi: https://doi.org/10.22541/authorea.15004772/v1
 Jesus presented his research on the antimicrobial properties of a skin peptide of Pristimantis toftae at the Annual Honors Thesis Presentations. Jesus combined a variety of transcriptomic, proteomic, and genetic approaches to identify peptide candidates from the genome, transcriptome, and skin secretions. One of the best candidate peptide, found at high frequency in the skin transcripts, was then tested for inhibition activity in co-culture assays in a plate reader, revealing moderate inhibition against E. coli. Rising microbial resistance to antibiotics demands innovative strategies to expand our therapeutic arsenal, and the chemically diverse secretions of frog skin offer a promising pharmacopeia for the discovery of novel antimicrobial agents
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