Martín Boullhesen
Other projects
11 Jan 2023
A Silent Loss: Evaluation of Human Impacts in the Yungas Andean Forests through Passive Acoustic Monitoring
This project aims to determine if Gastrotheca christiani is still extant, as the keystone for any future conservation effort on this endangered marsupial frog. We intend to determine the reproductive phenology and the relationship of calling activity with environmental cues of the threatened species of the anuran assemblage in Calilegua National Park; this will be a valuable tool for determining the conservation status, population trends and to design an effective long-term monitoring protocol in the protected area. Through the development of an audiovisual field guide of amphibians of Calilegua National Park, we will promote eco-tourist activities of frog-watching and frog-listening. With workshops, we will encourage to add nocturnal visits to this National Park. The same field guide will be presented to Calilegua’s authorities for training the park ranger staff in amphibian species recognition, and to develop the project of citizen science.
Telmatobius oxycephalus.
Yungas Andean forest is one of the most biodiverse ecoregions of Argentina, but its amphibian diversity is over-threatened. Particularly, Gastrotheca christiani is missing since 1996. Passive monitoring techniques based on the use of automated digital recording systems (ADR’s) have been proven as effective tools to assess anuran diversity, as well as for studying temporal calling patterns. The association of ADR’s with temperature and relative air humidity data loggers allows understanding the influence of the abiotic cues on the breeding phenology of anurans and the possibility of the development of predictive models to maximise the detection chance of cryptic and elusive species such as G.christiani in monitoring programs. Automated species recognition software not only is employed by researchers and conservationists to manage and analyze huge amount of data within a short time required and confident precision but also is a valuable tool for the establishment of real-time monitoring programs of endangered species. With the implementation of an ecoacoustic monitoring program based on ADR’s and species recognition software combined with standard monitoring techniques, we will determine the conservation status and population trends of threatened anuran species distributed in Calilegua National Park. Likewise we will increment the awareness about amphibian biodiversity conservation and enhance conservation value of the protected area with the edition of an audiovisual field guide. We will develop the first citizen science program in this natural protected area, named “Wanted alive, Calilegua’s Marsupial Frog” for encourage the visitor of the National Park (naturalist, bird watchers and researchers) to get involved in the search effort of this missing species.