Hope for the Mindo Harlequin Toad: the finding of Soli-Tyrone

Описание: Support project 👉 www.khamai.bio/arlequin_reserve.html

On September 2024, a group of biologists and park rangers from Khamai Foundation, with support from Ceiba Foundation, begun a series of monitoring expeditions in the cloud forest of Ecuador.

The goal? To determine if there are individuals of the Mindo Harlequin Toad (or Atelopus mindoensis) still alive.

This toad, once the most common along the rivers of Mindo, was declared “possibly extinct” after not being seen in its habitat since 1989.

Famous amphibian taxonomist John Lynch noted that on July 1977, reproductive pairs and tadpoles of Atelopus mindoensis were common near Mindo.

But in the 1980s, an amphibian pandemic begun.

Named Chytridiomycosis, this infectious disease caused mortality rates of up to 99–100 per cent in some toad species, including the Mindo Toad.

The Mindo Harlequin Toad disappeared and was thought extinct for over 30 years.

However, everything changed in 2019 when a relict population (in reality, just 5 individuals) was discovered in a remote undisclosed locality.

The locality, a pristine cloud forest stream, is currently home to the only known surviving “population,” estimated to be composed of fewer than 50 mature individuals.

Unfortunately, all attempts to breed Atelopus mindoensis ex-situ failed and the entire group of founder individuals died, with no additional toads being found since.

Five years passed with no signs of the toad.

The team looked in streams, ponds, and large rivers, as well as in the adjacent vegetation.

Notably, the surveys also targeted rocks in the water to search for tadpoles.

Sure, there were frogs and tadpoles to be found, but not of Atelopus mindoensis.

No luck.

Until on September 10, 2024, at 7:30 pm, Gerardo Obando, park ranger of Khamai Foundation, saw a silhouette perched on a leaf 2.3 m above the ground.

He knew it was a toad but doubted it was “the toad” because it was not entirely green as he was told the species was.

He called Amanda, the field biologist in charge of the monitoring, and slowly lowered the leaf so she could see it.

It is an Atelopus, she screamed!

It turns out, this is the first individual of the species seen in five years, and the sixth recorded in 30 years.

No other toads were found during this initial stage of the monitoring, so the singleton individual was left were found, in a make-shift semi-permeable quadrant to monitor its status.

The toad was named “Tyrone the solitary” of soli-Tyrone, and is now being closely protected by Gerardo and Amanda of Khamai Foundation with help of Ceiba Foundation.

The discovery of soli-Tyrone is fabulous news. It means the toad is not extinct.

However, the monitoring efforts are suggesting that the population densities of this species are extremely low.

Therefore, immediate protection of the habitat is needed.

This is why Khamai Foundation is seeking your help to save the habitat of Tyrone and the last population of the Mindo Harlequin Toad.

Please visit www.khama.bio to support this mission.