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IUCN ASSESSMENT OF RHAEBO OLALLAI. THE IUCN RED LIST OF THREATENED SPECIES™

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Rhaebo olallai IUCN Assessment
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™
ISSN 2307-8235 (online)
IUCN 2008: T54463A49340530
Scope: Global
Language: English
Rhaebo olallai, Tandayapa Andes Toad
Assessment by: IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group
View on www.iucnredlist.org
Citation: IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group. 2019. Rhaebo olallai. The IUCN Red List of
Threatened Species 2019: e.T54463A49340530. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-
1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
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The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ is produced and managed by the IUCN Global Species Programme, the IUCN
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THE IUCN RED LIST OF THREATENED SPECIES™
Taxonomy
Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family
Animalia Chordata Amphibia Anura Bufonidae
Taxon Name:ÊÊRhaebo olallai (Hoogmoed, 1985)
Synonym(s):
Andinophryne olallai Hoogmoed, 1985
Common Name(s):
• English: Tandayapa Andes Toad
Taxonomic Source(s):
Frost, D.R. 2015. Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. Version 6.0. New York, USA.
Available at: http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/index.html.
Assessment Information
Red List Category & Criteria: Critically Endangered B1ab(i,ii,iii)+2ab(i,ii,iii) ver 3.1
Year Published: 2019
Date Assessed: July 26, 2018
Justification:
The species was previously listed as Data Deficient due to the lack of records for over 40 years from the
well-surveyed type locality in Ecuador, and uncertainty regarding the identity of records in Colombia,
which have now been allocated to another species. The current known distribution is highly restricted
and the species is thought to occupy only one of two known localities, being extinct at the type locality.
The resulting area of occupancy (AOO) of 4 km2, represents a single threat-defined location, where there
is ongoing decline in the extent and quality of its habitat caused by human activities. It is therefore listed
as Critically Endangered.
Previously Published Red List Assessments
2010 – Data Deficient (DD)
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-2.RLTS.T54463A11149986.en
2004 – Data Deficient (DD)
Geographic Range
Range Description:
This species is endemic to northwestern Ecuador where it was described from the type locality of
Tandayapa, Pichincha Province. Surveys in 2012 discovered a previously unknown subpopulation at
Reserva Rio Manduriacu, Imbabura Province extending the distribution to the north of the type locality
by c. 40 km (Lynch et al. 2014). Extensive surveys in the neighboring Reserva Los Cedros have not
© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rhaebo olallai – published in 2019.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
1
recorded the species (S. Kohn pers. comm. July 2018) and it is now thought to be restricted to the Rio
Manduriacu locality. The elevational range of the species' distribution is 1,156-1,627 m asl (Ron et al.
2018, S. Kohn pers. comm. July 2018). The area of occupancy (AOO), when calculated according to the
IUCN definition, is 4 km2 (the minimum possible value), but the area of the extant range is only 2.2 km2.
The range represents a single threat-defined location and is inferred to have an extent of occurrence
(EOO) that is equal to the AOO.
Records reported by Murillo et al. (2005) from Reserva Natural Río Ñambi, vereda El Barro,
Corregimiento Ortiz y Zamora, municipality of Barbacoas, Nariño in southwestern Colombia that were
assigned to this species in the previous IUCN Red List assessment (Coloma et al. 2010), have since been
confirmed as belonging to Rhaebo colomai, following morphological analysis (Lynch et al. 2014, S. Ron
pers. comm. May 2017).
Country Occurrence:
Native: Ecuador (Ecuador (mainland))
© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rhaebo olallai – published in 2019.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
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Distribution Map
Rhaebo olallai
© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rhaebo olallai – published in 2019.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
3
Population
Although the type locality is often visited by herpetologists, surveys during the last few decades have
failed to find any individuals. In the 2004 assessment, Delia and D. Cisneros-Heredia pers. reported that
over 150-person hours of searching had not located the species, which they re-confirmed in July 2016
and Lynch et al. (2014) also confirmed. Thus, there have been no records at the type locality since the
1970s (Coloma et al. 2010) and the species is thought to be extinct there (Lynch et al. 2014).
Surveys in November 2012 rediscovered the species, recording two adult individuals, and further
surveys in May 2013 recorded 18 additional adults, juveniles, and froglets at Reserva Río Manduriacu,
suggesting that the population is healthy (Lynch et al. 2014). Surveys in 2016 and 2018 collectively
recorded 185 individuals, which were found within a relatively small area of about 2 km2 (Maynard et al.
2018).
However, the overall population is suspected to be decreasing due to the ongoing decline in the quality
and extent of suitable habitat.
Current Population Trend:ÊÊDecreasing
Habitat and Ecology (see Appendix for additional information)
The species is active only nocturnally, remaining hidden during the day (R. Maynard and P. Hamilton,
unpubl. data). It is arboreal and lives in tall vegetation along streams in premontane and montane
primary cloud forest. Although it appears to be dependent on small, fast-moving streams, it is unclear if
this habitat is utilized for breeding; no larvae have been found in these streams despite intensive
searching (R. Maynard and P. Hamilton, unpubl. data). Nonetheless, a large adult was found within an
axil of a large bromeliad in primary forest, and further efforts are needed to clarify the microhabitat is a
potential oviposition site for the species (R. Maynard and P. Hamilton, unpubl. data). Juveniles are
occasionally found at night away from streams, presumably dispersing (R. Maynard and P. Hamilton,
unpubl. data). The apparent disappearance of the species from its type locality, where the cloud forest
has been completely deforested and fragmented, seems to indicate that it is highly sensitive to habitat
fragmentation and disturbance (Lynch et al. 2014).
Systems:ÊÊTerrestrial
Use and Trade
There are no records of this species being utilized.
Threats (see Appendix for additional information)
The habitat at the type locality has been reported as decreasing since the 2004 IUCN Red List
assessment. It is still being lost and fragmented due to ongoing agriculture and logging, which is
expanding upslope (Coloma et al. 2010, Lynch et al. 2014). At Rio Manduriacu, encroachment into the
primary cloud forest required by this species is ongoing and rapidly expanding, caused by agricultural
expansion, intensive logging, open pit gold and copper mining, and the development of hydroelectric
projects (Lynch et al. 2014, S. Kohn pers. comm. July 2018). In particular, two mining concessions were
approved for the area in which the reserve occurs, covering the entire known range of the species, and
© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rhaebo olallai – published in 2019.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
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threatening the integrity of the forest; exploration activities have been recorded within the boundaries
of the reserve (S. Kohn pers. comm. May 2017).
Conservation Actions (see Appendix for additional information)
Conservation Actions In-Place
The northern part of the range occurs in the Río Manduriacu Reserve, a private reserve covering c. 530
ha protected from the Programa Socio Bosque of the Ecuador Ministry of Environment, and managed by
Fundacion EcoMinga. Ongoing and future expansion projects are aiming to conserve at total area of
over 1,000 hectares (S. Kohn pers. comm. July 2018).
Conservation Actions Needed
Due to the encroachment of various human activities into the reserve, the ongoing reduction in suitable
habitat at the type locality, and the severe threat posed by mining concessions, the enforcement of
robust habitat protection is urgently required to prevent further destruction of the forest. In particular,
protecting the integrity of the forest habitat in the Río Manduriacu Reserve is critical for the survival of
this species. It is possible that the species should be considered for a captive breeding programme to
ensure that an ex situ assurance population is available to boost numbers in the wild, should the wild
population decrease below a viable level.
Research Needed
Further research is needed to better understand the species' population size, distribution, and trends,
and its life history. Ongoing surveys to the type locality and surrounding areas should continue in order
to detect any possibly remaining individuals.
Credits
Assessor(s): IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group
Reviewer(s): Cox, N.A.
Contributor(s): Angulo, A., Cisneros-Heredia, D.F., Coloma, L.A., Yánez-Muñoz, M., Gutiérrez-
Cárdenas, P., Hamilton, P., Maynard, R., Ron, S.R. & Kohn, S.
Facilitators(s) and
Compiler(s):
Acosta, A.N., Peñaherrera, E., Morris, E.J. & Luedtke, J.
© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rhaebo olallai – published in 2019.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
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Bibliography
Coloma, L.A, Ron, S., Cisneros-Heredia, D., Yánez-Muñoz, M., Gutiérrez-Cárdenas, P., Angulo, A. 2010.
Rhaebo olallai. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010: e.T54463A11149986.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-2.RLTS.T54463A11149986.en. (Accessed: 26 July 2018).
Hoogmoed, M.S. 1985. A new genus of toads (Amphibia: Anura: Bufonidae) from the Pacific slopes of
the Andes in northern Ecuador and southern Colombia, with the description of two new species.
Zoologische Mededelingen 59(22): 251-274.
IUCN. 2019. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2019-1. Available at: www.iucnredlist.org.
(Accessed: 21 March 2019).
Lynch, R., Kohn, S., Ayala-Varela F., Hamilton, P., Ron, S.R. 2014. Rediscovery of Andinophryne olallai
Hoogmoed, 1985 (Anura, Bufonidae), an enigmatic and endangered Andean toad. Amphibian and
Reptile Conservation 8(1): 1-7.
Maynard, R., Hamilton, P., Trageser, S., Kohn, S., Guyasamin, J.M. 2018. Discovery and conservation of a
Herpetofaunal Sanctuary. Poster Presented at Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists.
Rochester, New York.
Murillo Pacheco, J., Cepeda Quilindo, B. and Florez Pai, C. 2005. Andinophryne olallai (Tandayapa Andes
toad). Geographic distribution. Herpetological Review 36: 331.
Ron, S.R., Varela-Jaramillo, A. and Frenkel, C. 2018. Rhaebo olallai. Available at:
https://bioweb.bio/faunaweb/amphibiaweb/FichaEspecie/Rhaebo%20olallai. (Accessed: 06-04-2018).
Citation
IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group. 2019. Rhaebo olallai. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
2019: e.T54463A49340530. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
Disclaimer
To make use of this information, please check the Terms of Use.
External Resources
For Images and External Links to Additional Information, please see the Red List website.
© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rhaebo olallai – published in 2019.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
6
Appendix
Habitats
(http://www.iucnredlist.org/technical-documents/classification-schemes)
Habitat Season Suitability Major
Importance?
1. Forest -> 1.9. Forest - Subtropical/Tropical Moist Montane Resident Suitable Yes
Threats
(http://www.iucnredlist.org/technical-documents/classification-schemes)
Threat Timing Scope Severity Impact Score
2. Agriculture & aquaculture -> 2.1. Annual &
perennial non-timber crops -> 2.1.2. Small-holder
farming
Ongoing Minority (50%) Rapid declines Medium
impact: 6
Stresses: 1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.1. Ecosystem conversion
1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.2. Ecosystem degradation
3. Energy production & mining -> 3.2. Mining &
quarrying
Ongoing Whole (>90%) Very rapid
declines
High impact: 9
Stresses: 1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.1. Ecosystem conversion
1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.2. Ecosystem degradation
5. Biological resource use -> 5.3. Logging & wood
harvesting -> 5.3.3. Unintentional effects:
(subsistence/small scale) [harvest]
Ongoing Minority (50%) Rapid declines Medium
impact: 6
Stresses: 1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.1. Ecosystem conversion
1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.2. Ecosystem degradation
5. Biological resource use -> 5.3. Logging & wood
harvesting -> 5.3.4. Unintentional effects: (large
scale) [harvest]
Ongoing Minority (50%) Rapid declines Medium
impact: 6
Stresses: 1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.1. Ecosystem conversion
1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.2. Ecosystem degradation
7. Natural system modifications -> 7.2. Dams & water
management/use -> 7.2.11. Dams (size unknown)
Ongoing Minority (50%) Rapid declines Medium
impact: 6
Stresses: 1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.1. Ecosystem conversion
1. Ecosystem stresses -> 1.2. Ecosystem degradation
Conservation Actions in Place
(http://www.iucnredlist.org/technical-documents/classification-schemes)
Conservation Actions in Place
In-Place Land/Water Protection and Management
Conservation sites identified: Yes, over part of range
Occur in at least one PA: No
© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rhaebo olallai – published in 2019.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
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Conservation Actions Needed
(http://www.iucnredlist.org/technical-documents/classification-schemes)
Conservation Actions Needed
1. Land/water protection -> 1.1. Site/area protection
1. Land/water protection -> 1.2. Resource & habitat protection
3. Species management -> 3.4. Ex-situ conservation -> 3.4.1. Captive breeding/artificial propagation
5. Law & policy -> 5.4. Compliance and enforcement -> 5.4.3. Sub-national level
Research Needed
(http://www.iucnredlist.org/technical-documents/classification-schemes)
Research Needed
1. Research -> 1.2. Population size, distribution & trends
1. Research -> 1.3. Life history & ecology
3. Monitoring -> 3.1. Population trends
Additional Data Fields
Distribution
Estimated area of occupancy (AOO) (km²): 4
Continuing decline in area of occupancy (AOO): Yes
Estimated extent of occurrence (EOO) (km²): 4
Continuing decline in extent of occurrence (EOO): Yes
Number of Locations: 1
Lower elevation limit (m): 1156
Upper elevation limit (m): 1627
Population
Population severely fragmented: Unknown
Habitats and Ecology
Continuing decline in area, extent and/or quality of habitat: Yes
Movement patterns: Not a Migrant
© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rhaebo olallai – published in 2019.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
8
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™
ISSN 2307-8235 (online)
IUCN 2008: T54463A49340530
Scope: Global
Language: English
The IUCN Red List Partnership
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ is produced and managed by the IUCN Global Species
Programme, the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC) and The IUCN Red List Partnership.
The IUCN Red List Partners are: Arizona State University; BirdLife International; Botanic Gardens
Conservation International; Conservation International; NatureServe; Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew;
Sapienza University of Rome; Texas A&M University; and Zoological Society of London.
THE IUCN RED LIST OF THREATENED SPECIES™
© The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Rhaebo olallai – published in 2019.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T54463A49340530.en
9

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