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Mantella expectata

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family
ANIMALIA CHORDATA AMPHIBIA ANURA MANTELLIDAE

Scientific Name: Mantella expectata
Species Authority: Busse and Böhme, 1992
Common Name/s:
English – Blue-legged Mantella
Taxonomic Notes: Records of Mantella expectata or M. betsileo from the arid west and southwest Madagascar (including from from Tsingy de Bemaraha) probably refer to a separate, undescribed, species that is not characterized by blue legs (F. Andreone pers. comm.; Rabemananjara et al. 2007). Here we consider as Mantella expectata to refer only the populations from Isalo.

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria: Endangered B1ab(iii,v) ver 3.1
Year Published: 2004
Assessor/s: Franco Andreone, Christopher Raxworthy, Frank Glaw
Reviewer/s: Global Amphibian Assessment Coordinating Team (Simon Stuart, Janice Chanson and Neil Cox)
Contributor/s:
Justification:
Listed as Endangered because its Extent of Occurrence is less than 5,000 km2, all individuals are in fewer than five fragmented locations, and there is continuing decline in the extent and quality of its habitat around Isalo, and it is possibly subject to over-collecting for the pet trade leading to a decline in the number of mature individuals.

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description: This species is endemic to a small region in south-western Madagascar. It is known from many sites within the Isalo Massif, either within or outside the national park (at 700-1,000m asl). Recent surveys have shown it to be distributed more widely than was once thought. It ranges from Grotte des Portugais and Amparambatomavo, south in a thin band to Ambatovaky and Sakavato (F. Andreone pers. comm.). Records from near Toliara (Busse and Böhme 1992), and from the Morondava region and Mandena (Glaw and Vences 1994) are probably erroneous (Vences, Glaw and Böhme 1999).
Countries:
Native:
Madagascar
Range Map: Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population: This species is sometimes locally abundant in suitable habitat; where present it may occur with high densities.
Population Trend: Decreasing

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology: It is usually found around seasonal streams, and in wet canyons (where it is sometimes, but not always, associated with narrow gallery forest). It breeds in a similar way to other mantella species, with the eggs laid on the ground and the larvae developing in swamps or in slow running temporary streams. It is apparently it is resistant to the repeated fires that are common in the Isalo area.
Systems: Terrestrial; Freshwater

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s): The main threat to this species is habitat loss due to grazing and fire, and in some localized regions due to mining for sapphires. It is actively sought after for the pet trade, and during the rainy season up to several thousand specimens can be collected. Such collecting might pose a major threat to the species, but this has not, as yet, been demonstrated.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions: It occurs in Parque Nacional de Isalo. Trade in this species needs to be very carefully regulated, and the populations require close monitoring (Andreone et al. 2006). It is listed on CITES Appendix II.
Citation: Franco Andreone, Christopher Raxworthy, Frank Glaw 2004. Mantella expectata. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 21 May 2013.
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