Blog Posts - CATENAZZI LAB

Alessandro named Half-Earth Chair with the E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation

4/23/2024

The E. O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation named Alessandro as the next Half-Earth Chair, succeeding Dr. Piotr Naskrecki. The Half-Earth Chairs and Scholars program aims to support scientific research on biodiversity around the world. They achieve this by selecting experienced scientists (Chairs) to mentor and collaborate with emerging researchers (Scholars) in different regions. This program provides funding and fosters a global network of scientists dedicated to biodiversity conservation. Half-Earth Chairs & Scholars are nominated and selected by an Advisory Board of individuals with unique insight into global biodiversity science and conservation efforts.

Cara advances to candidacy

4/17/2024

Cara passed her qualifying exams today, after taking her written and oral exams, and is now a PhD candidate. Congratulations Cara!

Anne publishes study on carbon dots and tadpoles

3/15/2024

Anne published one of the chapters of her dissertation, titled Carbon nitride dots do not impair the growth, development, and telomere length of tadpoles, in the journal Science of the Total Environment. The study investigated if carbon dots, nanoparticles with potential benefits, might harm wildlife if they enter wastewater. Tadpoles, sensitive to pollutants, were exposed to different carbon dot concentrations for an extended period, mimicking potential real-world exposure. The experiment found no negative effects on tadpole growth, development, or telomere length, suggesting carbon dots at these levels don't disrupt tadpole development. Congrats Anne!

Citation: Sabol, A., Y. Zhou, W. Zhang, B. C. L. B. Ferreira, J. Chen, R. M. Leblanc, A. Catenazzi. 2024. The impact of carbon nitride dots on the growth, development, and telomere length of tadpoles. Science of the Total Environment 916 : 170176.
doi: doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170176

Gustavo presents at the FIU Biosymposium

2/3/2024

Gustavo presented a talk on his dissertation research titled Bromeligenous Amphibians in Suboptimal Habitats: A Case Study of Phyllodytes gyrinaethes and its Environmental Interactions during our annual Biosymposium at the BBC campus.

Jon passes his quals

1/13/2024

Congrats to Jon for passing his qualifying exams! Jon is now a PhD candidate.

Anne presents poster at SICB

1/6/2024

Anne presented at the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology 2024 annual meeting in early January in Seattle, WA. She presented a poster about her work investigating the effects of microplastics on tadpoles titled “Investigating the impacts of microplastics as a potential vector for chemicals on tadpoles”.

Two new species of lizards

12/31/2023

The last taxonomic contribution of the lab in 2023 is a collaboration with the description of two new species of lizards in the genus Petracola from Peru, led by Luis Mamani. The two new species are Petracola amazonensis and P. shrugojalcapi (shown in the picture by V. Vargas). The two new species increase the diversity of Petracola to seven species. However, like other genera of gymnophthalmids, the diversity is still underestimated.

Citation: Mamani, L. , V. J. Vargas, J.C. Chaparo, A. Catenazzi. Two new species of gymnophthalmid lizards (Squamata: Cercosaurinae) from the Andes of Peru and their phylogenetic relationships. Amphibian and Reptile Conservation 17(1-2): : 161–173 (e328).

New species of Pristimantis

12/20/2023

Lab collaborator Valia Herrera-Alva published today the description of a new species of terrestrial-breeding frog, Pristimantis similaris from the montane forests of southern Peru. The species is cryptic (hence the name) with P. rhabdolaemus and P. pharangobates, also distributed in southern Peru, but molecular analyses and careful examination of their external morphology allowed Valia to set them apart.

Pristimantis similaris is a member of the family Strabomantidae, a group of small, ground-dwelling frogs found throughout the tropical Americas. The new species is distinguished by its small size (less than an inch in length), rough skin, and long, slender legs. It also has a distinctive oval-shaped tongue, which it uses to snatch insects from the leaf litter.

The discovery of Pristimantis similaris highlights the incredible biodiversity of the Peruvian cloud forests, a hotspot for amphibian endemism. These fragile ecosystems are home to hundreds of frog species, many of which are found nowhere else on Earth.

"The cloud forests of Peru are a treasure trove of undiscovered life," said Valia. "This new frog is a reminder that there is still so much we don't know about the natural world, and that even the most common-looking creatures can hold hidden secrets."

The scientists who discovered Pristimantis similaris are calling for increased conservation efforts in the Peruvian cloud forests. These irreplaceable ecosystems are threatened by deforestation, climate change, and other human activities.

"We need to do more to protect these cloud forests," said Valia. "They are not only home to a wealth of biodiversity, but they also play an important role in regulating the climate and providing clean water. By protecting the cloud forests, we are protecting the future of our planet."

The discovery of Pristimantis similaris is a testament to the power of scientific curiosity and the importance of protecting our planet's biodiversity. With continued research and conservation efforts, we can ensure that these remarkable creatures continue to thrive for generations to come.

Citation: Herrera-Alva, V., A. Catenazzi, C. Aguilar-Puntriano. 2023. A new cryptic species of terrestrial breeding frog of the Pristimantis danae Group (Anura, Strabomantidae) from montane forests in Ayacucho, Peru. ZooKeys 1187: 1-29.
doi: 10.3897/zookeys.1187.104536

Alessandro on TV with Emanuele Biggi

12/14/2023

Alessandro was host to Emanuele Biggi's live TV show Geo, and spoke about amphibian declines, their ecological consequences, and the paradox of species discoveries (and rediscoveries) as many more are lost due to habitad destruction, disease, and climate change. The interview (in italian) can be seen online at https://www.raiplay.it/programmi/geo.

New paper on harlequin toads and amphibian declines

11/24/2023

Our planet is home to almost 9,000 amphibian species. For more than 100 years, these animals have dramatically suffered the consequences of deforestation, agriculture, wetland drainage, agrochemicals and other pollutants. In recent times, new threats have emerged making 40% of all amphibian species threatened with extinction under “Red List” released by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which was recently updated. New threats include climate change and emerging infectious diseases. Among them, amphibian chytrid fungi causing skin infections play a key role. These fungi have been spread all over the world by humans and induce the disease chytridiomycosis in amphibians, leading to population declines and even extinctions.

Already 30 years ago, researchers, conservationists and other stakeholders have realized the crisis
the amphibians are in. Various initiatives, at the global, regional and local scales have been founded to safeguard amphibian diversity including numerous management and action plans. Due to these activities, we massively augmented our knowledge about where declines happen, as well as the mechanisms behind these and how threats interact. This goes hand in hand with enormous
engagement for protecting natural habitats and accompanying captive breeding in conservation
facilities. Also, diseases and their agents are much better understood. There have been many stories of success and without all the investment, work and passion of dedicated actors many amphibian species would have become extinct by now!

However, it is difficult to appreciate where we stand in overcoming the amphibian crisis. Threats and the vulnerability to them are not equally distributed over all species. Certain amphibians are more susceptible and suffer more. They represent ‘worst-case scenarios’ of the amphibian crisis. For many of them, we lack sufficient information to access their current status. Not so for harlequin toads, genus Atelopus, from Central and South America. These are small, often colorful and day-active animals that inhabit lowland rainforests to high Andean moorlands (páramos) above tree line. More than 130 Atelopus species are known and – being highly sensitive to threats – many of them have declined and are even feared extinct. Harlequin toads are the poster child of the amphibian crisis, and due to their iconic appearance, scientists have studied population status data since the early 1990s.

In a recent study published in Communications Earth and Environment , Lötters and 99
colleagues, mostly conservationists and researchers from countries where harlequin toads naturally occur, compared population status data as of 2004 and of 2022 to examine species-specific trends over the last two decades. Data from the authors confirm that massive conservation efforts from many scientists, conservationists and local communities have revealed that more than 30 Atelopus species that in part were feared to have vanished are still there! However, evidence suggests that at the same time all species remain threatened and their conservation status has not improved. Factors threatening the remaining harlequin toads remain unchanged and include habitat change and chytrid fungus spread. In addition, the authors demonstrated that in the future harlequin toads suffer from climate change.

Authors conclude that other worst-case amphibians continue to be imperiled demonstrating that
the amphibian crisis is still an emergency. Thanks to the tremendous strength put into conservation, by collaborative networks like the recently launched Atelopus Survival Initiative under the umbrella of the Atelopus Task Force of the IUCN Amphibian Specialist Group, these amphibians have not yet vanished. It is now more than ever critical to continue and increase efforts to escape the emergency the amphibian crisis still is.

Citation: Lötters, S., A. Plewnia, A. Catenazzi, K. Neam, A.R. Acosta-Galvis, Y. Alarcon Vela, J.P. Allen, J.O. Alfaro Segundo, A. de Lourdes Almendáriz Cabezas, G. Alvarado Barboza, K.R. Alves-Silva, M. Anganoy-Criollo, E. Arbeláez Ortiz, J.D. Arpi L., A. Arteaga, O. Ballestas, D. Barrera Moscoso, J.D. Barros-Castañeda, A. Batista, M.H. Bernal, E. Betancourt, Y.O. da Cunha Bitar, P. Böning, L. Bravo-Valencia, J.F. Cáceres Andrade, D. Cadenas, J.C. Chaparro Auza, G.A. Chaves-Portilla, G. Chávez, L.A. Coloma,C.F. Cortez-Fernandez, E.A. Courtois, J. Culebras, I. De la Riva, V. Diaz, L.C. Elizondo Lara, R. Ernst, S.V.Flechas, T. Foch, A. Fouquet, C.Z. García Méndez, J. E. García-Pérez, D.A. Gómez-Hoyos, S.C. Gomides,J. Guerrel, B. Gratwicke, J.M. Guayasamin, E. Griffith, V. Herrera-Alva, R. Ibáñez, C.I. Idrovo, A. Jiménez Monge, R.F. Jorge, A. Jung, B. Klocke, M. Lampo, E. Lehr, C.H.R. Lewis, E.D. Lindquist, Y.R. López-Perilla, G. Mazepa, G.F. Medina-Rangel, A. Merino Viteri, K. Mulder, M. Pacheco-Suarez, A. Pereira-Muñoz, J.L. Pérez-González, M.A. Pinto Erazo, A.G. Pisso Florez, M. Ponce, V. Poole, A.B. Quezada Riera, A.J. Quiroz, M. Quiroz-Espinoza, A. Ramírez Guerra, J.P. Ramírez, S. Reichle, H. Reizine, M. Rivera-Correa, B. Roca-Rey Ross, A. Rocha-Usuga, M.T. Rodrigues, S. Rojas Montaño, D.C.Rößler, L.A. Rueda Solano, C. Señaris, A. Shepack, F.R. Siavichay Pesántez, A. Sorokin, A. Terán-Valdez, G. Torres-Ccasani, P.C. Tovar-Siso, L.M. Valencia, D.A. Velásquez-Trujillo, M. Veith, P.J. Venegas, J. Villalba-Fuentes, R. von May, J.F. Webster Bernal & E. La Marca. 2023. Ongoing harlequin toad declines suggest the amphibian extinction crisis is still an emergency. Communications Earth and Environment, 4, 412. doi: https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-023-01069-w