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The blue-sided leaf frog, a unique species native to Costa Rica, has contributed its genes to a scientific study aimed at creating a holistic conservation approach that can be applied to the many varieties of frogs vulnerable to extinction.
Unique Color PatternsKnown in the scientific community as Agalychnis annae, this species is known for its unique color patterns. While its back is largely green, allowing it to camouflage itself among the leaves it calls home, this frog has pink, lavender, blue and orange patches on its sides, arms and legs. The animal lives in trees around the bases of mountains and has also been known to populate vacant lots in urban areas of Costa Rica's central valley. In recent years, the species has been threatened by infection with chytrid fungus, leading it to disappear from many protected areas around the country.
Its ContributionWhat set the blue-sided leaf frog apart from other endangered species, however, is its contribution to ongoing research in the field of amphibian conservation. In early 2011, scientists at the University of Manchester discovered that this creature was closely related to another variety of tree frog native to Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and Belize. They then allowed individuals from the two species to interbreed, producing a hybrid frog unlike anything else on earth.
This hybridization was able to occur in spite of the fact that the two frogs involved belonged to different species, as distinct clades are usually not able to produce offspring. The results of the study suggest that scientists' previous conception of genetic variation as greater between species than between individual populations within a single variety of frog may be outdated. Instead, DNA differences between different populations from the same species may be just as important to consider.
As a result of this conclusion, the researchers at the University of Manchester said they now believe that conservation planning must take several different factors into account. In addition to the standard model, which treats species holistically, conservationists must now account for differences within a species as well. By doing so, they may be able to better tailor their efforts to the needs of specific populations, improving the frogs' overall chances for survival when faced with threats like the chytrid fungus. | |
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