Mario H. Yánez-MuñozInstituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO), Ecuador · División Herpetología
Mario H. Yánez-Muñoz
Master of Science
Investigador - Unidad de Investigación - Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO)
About
258
Publications
146,016
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905
Citations
Citations since 2017
Introduction
I am a conservation biologist dedicated to the study of the evolution, biogeography and macroecology of small neotropical vertebrates, with emphasis on amphibians and reptiles. I am part of the research unit team of Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO) of Ecuador, where I develop lines of research in integrative taxonomy, monitoring of threatened species and bioecological characterization in areas of importance for conservation.
Additional affiliations
June 2013 - December 2016
Museo Ecuatoriano de Ciencias Naturales
Position
- Managing Director
January 2013 - August 2018
AmphibiaWebEcuador
Position
- Editor
Description
- Editor de la sección Craugastoridae
February 2011 - February 2012
Position
- Taxónomo asociado
Description
- TAXÓNOMO DE LA FAMILIA CRAUGASTORIDAE
Education
October 2010 - December 2014
October 1996 - December 2005
Publications
Publications (258)
We describe a new species of spiny green frog of the genus Pristimantis diagnosed by having
tympanum, cranial crest, large conical tubercles on the posterior and anterior limbs, and by its
uniform cream ventral coloration. Bioacoustics information about the warning and courtship calls
and detailed comparisons of the new species with similar species...
Gal apagos snakes are among the least studied terrestrial vertebrates of the Archipelago. Here, we provide a phylogenetic analysis and a time calibrated tree for the group, based on a sampling of the major populations known to occur in the Archipelago. Our study revealed the presence of two previously unknown species from Santiago and R abida Islan...
Ecuador is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, but faces severe pressures and threats to its natural ecosystems. Numerous species have declined and require to be objectively evaluated and quantified, as a step towards the development of conservation strategies. Herein, we present an updated National Red List Assessment for amphibian...
We provide several lines of evidence to delimit a new species of Hyloscirtus and define its phylogenetic position inside the Hyloscirtus bogotensis group. The new species is the sister taxon to Hyloscirtus mashpi and is related to a clade formed by H. alytolylax and a putative new species from the province of El Oro in, southwestern Ecuador. Hylosc...
We describe a new species of Neotropical spiny-lizard of the genus Echinosaura from the Imbabura and Carchi Provinces on the western slopes of the Andes in northwestern Ecuador. The new species mostly resembles E. horrida. However, it can be distinguished from all congeners by having keeled enlarged dorsal scales forming a paired vertebral row, two...
Guedes et al.1 argue that eponymous scientific names, despite their long tradition in biology, have no place in the modern world. They want to erase eponyms assigned
to species in the past and want scientists to stop naming new species after people. Both of these proposals would hurt science and disproportionately hurt science in the Global South —...
El Corredor Ecológico Llanganates-Sangay (CELS) se ubica entre los parques nacionales Llanganates y Sangay, en la parte central-oriental del Ecuador. El corredor fue declarado en el año 2002 como “regalo a la Tierra” por la WWF (Viteri 2002). Es una de las áreas consideradas como prioritarias para esfuerzos de conservación debido a su ubicación est...
We describe two new species of glassfrogs of the genus Centrolene living in syntopy at
La Enramada, province of Azuay, southwestern Ecuador. They were found in a small
creek in montane evergreen forests at 2,900 m elevation. The first new species is
distinguished from all other members of the genus Centrolene by having the
following combination of...
Background
Pristimantis is the most diverse genus of terrestrial frogs. Historically, it has been divided into several phenetic groups in order to facilitate species identification. However, in light of phylogenetic analysis, many of these groups have been shown to be non-monophyletic, denoting a high degree of morphological convergence and limited...
The amerophidian snake radiation is a Late Cretaceous superfamily that encompasses two families: Aniliidae, pipe snakes, and Tropidophiidae, dwarf boas. We describe a new dwarf boa snake species, from the Tropidophiidae family, from the cloud forest in northeastern Ecuador. Tropidophis cacuangoae sp. nov. can be diagnosed from its congeners based o...
A Rapid Biological Inventory was conducted in the Shuin-Mamus comunity, Morona Santiago Province, within the Territorio Achuar. The study area is part of the Low lands Evergreen Forest ecosystem of the amazonian. Information on 487 species of flora and fauna is documented, estimating at least 1116 species for the region. The diversity of flora, amp...
A Rapid Biological Inventory was conducted in the Finca El Encanto sector, Tungurahua Province, within the Llanganates-Sangay Ecological Corridor. The study area is part of the Montanto Bajo Evergreen Forest ecosystem of the western Andean Cordillera. Information on 308 species of flora and fauna is documented, estimating at least 1117 species for...
Through the combination of morphological and phylogenetic evidence, we describe two species of Pristimantis from the upper basin of the Napo River. Both species have well-defined dorso-lateral folds, a conical tubercle on the eyelid, a papilla on the tip of the snout, weakly expanded discs, and small size (female SVL < 28.2 mm). Pristimantis omarrh...
We have discovered a spectacular new species of frog in the genus Hyloscirtus, belonging to the H. larinopygion species group. The adult female is characterized by a mostly black body with large bright red spots on the dorsal and ventral surface, extremities, and toe pads. The adult male is unknown. Small juveniles are characterized by a yellow bod...
La anatomía del pene en paucituberculados ha merecido poca atención. El único tratado que aborda la genitalia y próstata en este grupo de marsupiales proviene de hace un siglo. El presente trabajo describe la morfología macroscópica de la genitalia masculina del ratón marsupial de vientre gris, Caenolestes caniventer, estructura que puede ser de ut...
The Neotropical region hosts 4,225 freshwater fish species, ranking first among the world’s most diverse regions for freshwater fishes. Our NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set is the first to produce a large-scale Neotropical freshwater fish inventory, covering the entire Neotropical region from Mexico and the Caribbean in the north, to the sout...
We present the results of herpetological surveys in two adjacent mountains where the EcoMinga Foundation protects the cloud forest in the Upper Rio Pastaza watershed, in the Llanganates Sangay Ecological Corridor in Ecuador. A rapid assessment of the amphibian communities of the study sites reveals a diverse and heterogeneous composition, dominated...
El valle del alto Río Anzu se ubica en el “Corredor Ecológico Llanganates-Sangay”, Cantón Mera, Provincia de Pastaza; en una zona que designó el World Wildlife Fund como Regalo de la Tierra” en el año 2002 por ser área prioritaria con gran diversidad de flora y fauna, variedad de ecosistemas y microhábitats, haciéndola un área de complejidad histór...
We describe a new species of Anolis lizard from the Pacific slopes of the Andes of southwestern Ecuador at elevations between 372–1,000 m. The new species belongs to the Dactyloa clade and may be distinguished from other Anolis by size, external anatomy, mitochondrial DNA divergence, and dewlap color. Based on phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial...
We describe two new species of salamanders of the genus Oedipina, subgenus Oe-dopinola, from two localities on the northwestern foothills of Ecuador, at elevations between 921 and 1,067 m. These are the southernmost members of the genus. We examined different museum collections and we found just three specimens of Oedipina from Ecuador, obtained th...
The Province of Carchi is a strategic area, where the most important remnants of tropical forests of the Ecuadorian Chocó come together. These contact the western foothills of the Andes, between the Mira and San Juan river basins, and ascend to the paramo platforms above 3400 meters in altitude and all the way to 4800 meters. This impressive altitu...
Esta ponencia muestra un sumario sobre el estado del conocimiento de los anfibios y reptiles de la región biogeográfica del Chocó de Ecuador. Se discuten sus características, las motivaciones pasadas y actuales de los estudios generados. No obstante se hace énfasis en mostrar evidencias de barreras geográficas que dificultan la delimitación del Cho...
Elachistocleis is a Neotropical genus of microhylid frogs with 18 species, most of which occur east of the Andes in South America. Here, we present a new phylogeny of Gastrophryninae and describe and name a new species of Elachistocleis from southern Ecuador-the first to be found west of the Andes and also the first from Ecuador. Our phylogeny is b...
Describimos 3 nuevas especies de cutines Pristimantis del subgénero Hypodictyon de la bioregión del Chocó de Colombia y Ecuador. Además, presentamos una filogenia actualizada del subgénero Hypodictyon en la que reportamos por primera vez la posición filogenética de P. calcaratus, P. colomai, P. illotus, P. kuri, P. rosadoi, P. tenebrionis y P. vari...
El contenido de esta charla aborda la difícil tarea del taxónomo y de las colecciones científicas tanto en Ecuador y en Mundo. Se realiza una breve cronología histórica de la herpetología en Ecuador y destacando los grandes hitos contemporáneos del estudio herpetológico en país. Finalmente se expones lecciones aprendidas y retos para el futuro de l...
This note describes the advertisement calls of Rhaebo haematiticus, recorded in Tobar Donoso, province of Carchi‒Ecuador, providing for the first time a quantitative analysis of its spectral and temporal variables. The calls of three populations were analyzed and compared with calls of Rhaebo blombergi and Rhaebo guttatus, two species of the genus...
En este capítulo de propone cinco Áreas Naturales de Conservación a partir de la priorización y zonificación del corredor ecológico propuesto para la provincia de El Oro. Se realiza una caracterización general de la parte física y biótica de cada área de conservación. Además, se detalla la figura de conservación de cada área y su recomendación de u...
En este Capítulo se resume los datos obtenidos a partir del programa de inventarios bioecológicos de flora y fauna de la provincia de El Oro, desarrollados por el GAD Provincial de El Oro y el Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad. Los resultados han documentado una sobresaliente diversidad, que incluyen hallazgos relevantes para la ciencia como el d...
El presente capítulo ofrece una recopilación de metodologías de varios componentes de la biodiversidad que se utilizaron para el inventario y caracterización de los ecosistemas de la provincia de El Oro. Se trata de una revisión breve en la se recopila un conjunto de herramientas básicas para establecer la riqueza de especies de un sitio o ecosiste...
Listed as Data Deficient on the basis that nothing is known of this species other than that it was reportedly collected from an unknown locality in Ecuador, and it has not been rediscovered since it was described nearly 70 years ago.
In this paper we extend the known distribution of the endemic and recently described Pristimantis tinguichaca Brito et al., 2016, a terrestrial robber frog characterized by its beige and brown to dark-brown dorsal coloration, flanks with longitudinal or diagonal cream-coloured bands which are separated by brown, and reddish iris. The new records, b...
We describe a new species of terrestrial frog of the genus Noblella from the eastern versants of the Ecuadorian Andes in the upper Pastaza watershed. Noblella naturetrekii sp. n. differs from its Ecuadorian congeners by the presence of a differentiated tympanic membrane and a weakly defined tympanic annulus, and eyelids with rounded tubercles. In a...
Tradicionalmente la Costa Pacífica del norte de América del Sur es dividida en dos grandes bioregiones, al norte el Chocó y al sur la Costa Pacífico Ecuatorial o Tumbes. Sin embargo, los patrones biogeográficos en esta porción de Sudamérica son más complejos y objeto de discusión por la alta heterogenidad y recambio en la composición de las comunid...
RESUMEN.-Para determinar el espectro trófico del Halconcito Colorado (Falco sparverius) en América del Sur y en Ecuador se elaboró un listado con los datos de las especies vertebradas en su dieta. Además, se reportan cuatro observaciones puntuales de predación realizadas en distintos ecosistemas de Ecuador entre 2007-2017. Se identificaron 63 espec...
El Oro es la provincia más meridional del occidente de Ecuador. Limita al Norte con
la provincia de Azuay y Guayas, al Noroeste con el Golfo de Guayaquil, al Sureste
con la provincia de Loja, y al Sur con Perú. Tiene una superfi cie de 5767,70 km2 y se
compone de 14 cantones y 81 cabeceras parroquiales .Una porción del territorio provincial se loca...
Se identifican los picos máximos de riqueza de especies de anfibios y reptiles en los bosques piemontanos (entre 400 y 1600 m), disminuyendo a medida que se alejan de esta banda de elevación. Los ecosistemas piemontanos muestran una mayor área de remanencia boscosa en la provincia. Climáticamente concentran mayores niveles de humedad y albergan tem...
RESUMEN.-Para determinar el espectro trófico del Halconcito Colorado (Falco sparverius) en América del Sur y en Ecuador se elaboró un listado con los datos de las especies vertebradas en su dieta. Además, se reportan cuatro observaciones puntuales de predación realizadas en distintos ecosistemas de Ecuador entre 2007-2017. Se identificaron 63 espec...
Endoparasites of the genus Porocephalus, which mainly affect lungs of snakes, are distributed in Asia, Africa and America. In Ecuador, these parasites have been reported only for Boa constrictor. Here, we report the first record of infestation of Porocephalus in Epicrates cenchria cenchria from the Ecuadorian Amazon, based on examination of museum...
A new species of frog of the genus Pristimantis is described from the paramos of the Nudo de Cajanuma, Podocarpus National Park, on the border between the provinces of Loja and Zamora-Chinchipe, Ecuador. The new species is readily distinguished from all other species of Pristimantis by its large body size (snout-vent length: 50.0–50.5 mm in adult f...
We describe a new species of Pristimantis from the montane forest of the Río Zuñag Ecological Reserve, upper basin of the Pastaza River, Ecuador. Pristimantis mallii sp. n. is characterized by a snout-vent length of 11.6-21.3 mm in adult males (n = 12), 22.6-34.3 mm in adult females (n = 8), and is compared morphologically and genetically with Pris...
We describe a new species of Lynchius from the eastern montane forest of southern Ecuador. We also report the occurrence of L. parkeri in Ecuador, on paramos of Yacuri National Park, near the border with Peru. We used morphological and genetic evidence for the description of the new species and the new report of L. parkeri. Phylogenetic analyses we...
El género Pristimantis es un grupo endémico de ranas terrestres de la región Neotropical; con más de 525 especies es el género más grande de todos los vertebrados. Su mayor diversidad se encuentra en los bosques montanos andinos de Colombia, Ecuador y Perú. En Ecuador, el género representa el 38.5% de los anfibios del país con 230 especies descrita...
We performed a systematic review of the genus Anadia in Ecuador to delimit species based on several lines of evidence: external morphology, hemipenes, coloration, DNA sequences and geographical distribution. We describe a new species, Anadia buenaventura sp. nov., which is distinguished from other species of Anadia by presenting a pattern of colora...
A new species of Anolis lizard from the Andean slopes of southwestern Colombia and northwestern Ecuador, from between 1187 and 2353 m in elevation, is described. The new species can be distinguished from other Anolis in squamation, cranial osteology, hemipenial morphology, and nuclear and mitochondrial DNA. The new species is sister to Anolisaequat...
Two species of endoparasitic chiggers, Vercammenia neotropica n. sp. and Microtrombicula ecuadorensis n. sp., are described, both found in terrestrial anurans of the genus Pristimantis collected in the Andes of Ecuador. A new combination is proposed for Trombicula yorkei Sambon, 1928 as Microtrombicula yorkei (Sambon, 1928) n. comb., and Schoengast...