Camiguin National High School

Looc, Catarman, Camiguin

Diversity and Conservation Status of Anurans in Three Springs

of Catarman, Province of Camiguin

A Science Investigatory Project

By:

KEITH D. BORRES
GRADE 9- Nickel

DORIS E. ANTOLIJAO
Adviser
 INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Catarman is one of the Municipalities in the Province of Camiguin, it is well known for

its marvellous Springs which are always visited by Tourists from around the world. These

Springs are known as Sto. Nino Cold Spring, Soda Water Pool, and Secret Paradise. In Springs,

it is common that aquatic animals thrive, especially frogs. The goal of this study is to collect

samples of Anurans, compare the diversity of Anura species present, and to assess the

conservation status of Anura species in the different study sites. According to Heather Heying of

animaldiversity.org, Anurans are amphibians that belong to the order Anura which also means

without a tail, which is made up of frogs and toads. There are about 3500 species of anuran alive

today. They make up the majority of the amphibian species. Anurans can be found in all of the

continents on Earth, except for Antarctica. The difference between toads to frogs is that toads

adapted to drier environment and it does not have webbed feet just like frogs do. Most anurans

have external fertilization, and adopt mating posture called the Amplexus to insure contact

between eggs and sperms. There are even exceptions even to this rule of anuran reproduction,

which points to the extreme diversity of reproductive modes found in this animals. Nowadays,

the amphibian population is dramatically decreasing due to habitat destruction, that is why it is

essential to do an assessment research about their composition and diversity. The reason I choose

to study frogs and toads is because they play an important role in the ecosystem, they control the

insects and pests around us. They also play an important role in world’s culture, it symbolizes

fertility in ancient Egypt, bringer of goodluck in Japan, and the Rain God in some of Native
Americans. They are also important in medicine because they are extensively used in medical

researches. If these tailless amphibians would disappear, organisms preying on them would also

be affected due to shortage of food. Based on the facts mentioned above, they are not just small

insignificant animals, you could say that they are one of the coolest.

Statement of the Problem

Does the Anurans from three different study sites differ in terms of diversity and

conservation status?

Objectives of the Study

This study will investigate the diversity and conservation status of anurans in three springs of

Catarman, Province of Camiguin.

Specifically it aims to:

1. collect samples of Anurans from the three study sites;

2. compare the diversity of species of anurans present in the three study sites; and

3. assess the conservation status of anuran species in the area;

Significance of the Study

The findings of this study is deemed to be of values to the following:

To the School Administrators, this study will help them plan and implement budgetary

funds in order to pursue the research in a wide variety area.

actively cooperate in conserving biodiversity.

To the Students, this study will help them to become aware on the effects that they may

cause to these animals and be an active advocate to promote unity in sustaining the environment

a better place to live in for both living and nonliving organisms.

To the Researchers, this study will also help them to determine and diagnose the different

factors that may affect the Anurans development which lead to decrease their number.

And find a solution and some protective measures on how frogs are to be saved for it is

rapidly disappearing nowadays.

To the Future Researchers, this study will help them to get additional information , data

and serve as guide or basis for further research study.

Scope and Delimitation of the study

This study focused on the collection of samples of Anurans , compare the

diversity of species of anurans and assess the conservation status of anuran species in

three different springs in the town. The study is to be conducted at three springs namely :

Sto. Nino Cold Spring in Barangay Sto.Niño, Soda Water in Barangay Bura, and Secret

Paradise in Barangay Mainit

Frogs are an integral part of our existence on this planet and have every bit as much right

to exist as do we. Anurans represent, by far, the most diverse, and widespread of the three extant

amphibian orders. They are found throughout most of the world, except in polar regions, and

some oceanic islands and extremely xeric deserts. Anuran diversity is greatest in the tropics.

Twenty-five families are currently recognized, representing more than 4,000 species, with more

being discovered regularly.

There is no scientific distinction between "frogs" and "toads," although most anurans are

usually referred to as one or the other. Anurans have several synapomorphies that distinguish

them from other amphibians. The name, Anura, meaning "without tail," identifies one of these:

with one exception (Ascaphus), adult frogs do not have tails. Anurans also have nine or fewer

presacral vertebrae (usually eight), and the three or four posterior to the sacrum are fused into a

rod called the urostyle. Both the radius and ulna (forearm bones), and the tibia and fibula (shank

bones), are fused to each other. Furthermore, the astragalus and calcaneum, ankle bones, are

greatly elongate, providing an additional level in the legs of frogs, which they utilize in jumping.

The saltatory locomotion by which many recognize frogs is aided, and perhaps even permitted,

by these many morphological adaptations. Several skull bones are lacking in frogs, although

their heads remain highly ossified. The dentary usually lacks teeth, but the maxilla and

premaxilla are usually tooth-bearing. The tongue is often large, and free posteriorly. Males of

most species have vocal sacs. The tadpole stage of many anuran life histories is also unique to

frogs, with several specializations such as internal gills and the absence of true teeth.
Most anurans have external fertilization, and adopt a mating posture called amplexus to insure

contact between eggs and sperm. There are exceptions even to this rule of anuran reproduction,

which points to the extreme diversity of reproductive modes found in this animals. The primitive

mode involves large numbers of aquatic eggs and feeding larvae, but alternate modes include but

are not limited to terrestrial eggs with aquatic larvae, direct development (in which there is no

tadpole stage), viviparity, and non-feeding aquatic larvae. Approximately 10% of anurans exhibit

some form of parental care. Additionally, many species are highly territorial, defending nests,

oviposition sites, or other resources. Many temperate species breed "explosively," congregating

in large numbers around water for only a night or two each year, during which time all mating

takes place. Some tropical species breed year-round. Anurans are found from tropical rainforests

to dry mountaintops, from deserts to swamps. Adults may be arboreal, terrestrial, aquatic, or

fossorial. Unlike caecilians and salamanders, no anurans are fully paedomorphic. Most anurans

are nocturnal. In the winter, many temperate anurans enter a state of torpor to avoid freezing; in

arid regions, frogs may bury themselves underground, or minimize the cutaneous respiration

(and thus the water loss) that usually identifies frogs.

Despite extensive research on the evolutionary history of amphibians, phylogenetic

relationships among the three orders of extant amphibians remain problematic. Of three possible

histories, the only one that has not been seriously considered is an Anura - Gymnophiona

(caecilians) sister relationship, with Caudata (salamanders) sister to that group. A salamander-

caecilian clade (with Anura sister to that) is supported by soft anatomical characters and

ribosomal DNA sequences. Osteological characters support a salamander-frog clade, as does a

combination of morphological and molecular evidence. There is little doubt that Anura, and

Salientia, are monophyletic. Each group is supported by several synapomorphies. Within Anura,
however, and especially among the neobatrachians ("higher frogs"), very few historical

relationships are resolved. Anuran phylogenies remain highly contentious.

Fossil anurans are known from the Jurassic in Europe, North America, and South

America, extending through the Pleistocene. Given the extensive radiation of many anuran

clades, the fossil record is somewhat poor, with several families lacking any fossil

representatives. Several fossil genera have not been assigned to recognized families. The

superorder Salientia includes the fossil "proto-frog" Triadobatrachus, from Madagascar, and

Anura. (Heather, H. 2003)

Anura also called Salientia, one of the major extant orders of the class Amphibia. It

includes the frogs and toads, which, because of their wide distribution, are known by most

people around the world. The name frog is commonly applied to those forms with long legs and

smooth, mucus-covered skins, toad being used for a variety of robust, short-legged anurans,

especially those with rough skins. The name toad is applied so unevenly that one member of a

family may be called a toad and a closely related member a frog. The familiar members of the

family Bufonidae may be distinguished as “true toads.” In this article, frog is applied generally to

members of the Anura and toad to those for which it has traditionally been used. There are

roughly 5,400 species of living anurans. (George R. Zug; William E. Duellman, 2015)

According to Laura Klapenbach of animals.about.com, frogs and toads (Anura) are one

of three main groups of amphibians, the other two being newts and salamanders and caecilians.

There are about 4,380 species of frogs and toads, making the Order Anura the most diverse of all
the amphibian groups. More than 80 percent of all frogs and toads occur in the tropics. Frogs and

toads inhabit a wide range of habitats including deserts, mountains, forests, and savannas.

Frogs and toads are easily distinguished from other amphibians because they have no tail,

a large head with large eyes, and most importantly, they have long, powerful hind legs that are in

many species fine-tuned for jumping. The backbone of frogs and toads usually consists of 12 or

fewer bones. That of newts and salamanders has between 30 and 100, while caecilians can have

as many as 250 bones in their backbone.

The terms "frog" and "toad" are informal and do not reflect any underlying taxonomic

differences. In general, the term toad is used to apply to anuran species that have rough, warty

skin. (Laura, K. 2016)

There is no scientific distinction between frogs and toads, according to the University of

Michigan Museum of Zoology. Frog and toads both belong to the Anura order, but are found in

different families. "True toads" make up the Bufonidae family, which includes 580 species.

Frogs and toads do have specific traits that define them, however, according to the Maryland

Zoo. For example, frogs are mostly aquatic; most toads live on land (but near water). Frogs have

teeth; toads do not. Toads of both sexes have a rudimentary ovary called a bidder's organ. Frogs

are also typically longer than toads.

Also, frogs have smooth, slimy skin; toads have dry, bumpy skin. The bumps, however, are not

warts, and a person cannot get warts from handling a toad, according to the San Diego Zoo.

However, toads have glands behind their eyes that can secrete a burning milky toxin. (Alina, B.

2015)
 Frogs, toads and salamanders continue to vanish from the American landscape at an

alarming pace, with seven species — including Colorado’s boreal toad and Nevada’s yellow-

legged frog — facing 50 percent drops in their numbers within seven years if the current rate of

decline continues, according to new government research.

The U.S. Geological Survey study, released Wednesday, is the first to document how

quickly amphibians are disappearing, as well as how low the populations of the threatened

species could go, given current trends. The exact reasons for the decline in amphibians, first

noticed decades ago, remain unclear. But scientists believe several factors, including disease, an

explosion of invasive species, climate change and pesticide use are contributing.

The study said the populations of seven species of threatened frogs, including the boreal

toad and the yellow legged frog, are decreasing at a rate of 11.6 percent a year. More than 40

species of frogs, such as the Fowler’s toad and spring peepers, are declining at a rate of 2.7

percent. If that pace keeps up, their populations will be halved in 27 years, the study said.

(Daryl, F. 2013)
 Methodology

The study will collect and compare the diversity of species of anurans present in the three

study sites, and assess the conservation status of Anuran species in the area. Observations will be

conducted in the three study sites the Sto. Nino Cold Spring in Barangay Sto.Nino, Soda Water

Pool in Barangay Bura, and Secret Paradise which is located in Barangay Mainit.

In order to compare the diversity of species of anurans present in each of the three study

sites, the researchers are going to identify all the anuran species which exists by roaming and

taking samples and full body pictures of anurans that we come across in the area. By doing that,

we can identify the anuran species which exists in an area by sending the samples and photos to

DENR for identification.

The next objective is going to be the assessment of the conservation status of Anuran

species in the area. There are 2 steps that we are going to take to identify conservation status of

Anurans in each of the study sites. The first one is to roam the area and count the Anurans that

we come across by tallying, doing this can give us the most plausible numbers of assessing the

conservation status of the Anurans in the area.

The next step is going to the study sites when it is rainy and dark then we listen to the

sounds that they make. We may notice that amphibians especially frogs and toads make noises

when it is rainy, especially at night. Listening to their sounds can give us a clue about their

population’s status, if they are producing loud and a lot of varieties of sounds, we can conclude

that they are abundant in that area and are not endangered.
 The procedures mentioned above are going to be conducted in the three study sites. The

sequence of our study will be first in Sto. Niño Cold Spring, second in Soda Water Pool, and

third in Secret Paradise. This sequence range from nearest to farthest from our place.