Biota colombiana

26-35

Authors: Edgar Cifuentes, Juliana Vélez Gómez, Simon J. Butler

Ecoacoustic approaches have the potential to provide rapid biodiversity assessments and avoid costly fieldwork. Their use in biodiversity studies for improving management and conservation of natural landscapes has grown considerably in recent years. Standardised methods for sampling acoustic information that deliver reliable and consistent results within and between ecosystems are still lacking. Sampling frequency and duration are particularly important considerations because shorter, intermittent recordings mean recorder batteries last longer and data processing is less computationally intensive, but a smaller proportion of the available soundscape is sampled. Here, we compare acoustic indices and processing time for subsamples of increasing duration clipped from 94 one-hour recordings, to test how different acoustic indices behave, in order to identify the minimum sample length required. Our results suggest that short recordings distributed across the survey period accurately represent acoustic patterns, while optimizing data collection and processing. ACI and H are the most stable indices, showing an ideal sampling schedule of ten 1-minute samples in an hour. Although ADI, AEI and NDSI well represent acoustic patterns under the same sampling schedule, these are more robust under continuous recording formats. Such targeted subsampling could greatly reduce data storage and computational power requirements in large-scale and long-term projects.

57-73

Authors: Mónica Isabel Retamosa Izaguirre, David Segura Sequeira, Jimmy Barrantes-Madrigal, Manuel Spínola Parallada, Óscar Ramírez-Alán

We assessed the structural complexity of vegetation, birds and soundscapes in two areas of Braulio Carrillo National Park, Costa Rica, with different road exposure, as baseline information for conservation and management. We measured vegetation structure complexity, surveyed birds and recorded soundscapes in an area adjacent to the National Highway 32 (Quebrada) and another area 20 km away (Ceibo). Quebrada presented a more open forest structure and lower density of trees and shrubs; lower evenness and higher acoustic complexity, higher bioacoustic activity and sound pressure level; higher bird abundance and richness. Ceibo showed a higher density of trees and shrubs, higher complexity of vegetation structure, higher proportion of biophonies than anthrophonies, and an acoustic community with higher diversity and entropy. The study sites differed in characteristics of their bird communities in an unexpected way; these differences appear to be mostly influenced by the structure and complexity of the vegetation surrounding the road. However, the soundscapes seemed to properly reflect the habitat condition, and are promising for evaluating the ecological condition of a site.

96-107

Authors: Sara Gonçalves Santos, Nadia Pieretti, Robert John Young, Marina Duarte

Anthropogenic noise, which is part of an urban soundscape, can negatively affect the behaviour of wild animals. Here we investigated how biophony (animal sounds) was affected by noise in an urban Brazilian forest fragment. Our hypothesis was that noise and biophony would differ between the border and the centre of the forest fragment (i.e., lower biophony predicted in noisy areas). Two passive acoustic monitoring devices were used to record soundscapes one week per month, 24 hour per day, from May to July 2012. The Acoustic Complexity Index (ACI) was used to quantify biophony and the Power Spectral Density (PSD) to quantify urban noise. PSD and ACI were higher on the border than in the centre of the fragment. PSD was lower in July, while the ACI did not significantly vary between months. Noise levels were also higher on the border. Conversely, potential species richness was higher in the centre of the forest fragment. Higher biophony at noisy sites can be interpreted as behavioural responses of species for communicating in noisy areas. Alternatively, they could be the result of species segregation by degree of vocal plasticity or due to differences in composition of communities.

122-132

Authors: Julián A. Rojas-Morales, Enrique La Marca, Héctor E. Ramírez-Chaves

We describe the advertisement call of seven males and observations on the natural history related to the parental attention by males, of a population of nurse frogs attributed to the Leucostethus fraterdanieli complex from the Central Cordillera in the Department of Caldas, Colombia. The advertisement call consists of a long sequence of repeated (x̅ = 143 notes.min-1) pulsed notes, which have an average duration of 79 ± 17 ms (range 63-122 ms), separated by time intervals between 187-413 ms (289 ± 67 ms). The dominant frequency values are in the range between 3209-3520 Hz. Our results suggest differences in temporal and spectral parameters between the population studied and other populations assigned to L. fraterdanieli, L. brachistriatus, and the recently described L. jota.

149-163

Authors: Laura Andrea Hoyos Cardona, Juan Ulloa, Juan Luis Parra Vergara

Acoustic monitoring allows the evaluation of spatio-temporal changes in animal populations. However, analyzing large volumes of information is challenging. We evaluate the performance of a detection technique (autodetec function of the R warbleR package) to identify vocalizations of Megascops centralis, using 6877 one-minute recordings from 21 sites in the vicinity of the Jaguas dam, Andes of Antioquia Colombia., All vocalizations were manually annotated and two sites (597 recordings) with the highest number of records (49 and 34) were selected to evaluate the algorithm. The function was implemented with audios at two sampling rates (44 100 Hz and 22 050 Hz) and three amplitude thresholds (5, 10, and 20). We assessed the performance of this function in terms of its sensitivity and specificity, and we estimate the probability of detection of a signal according to its quality. Sensitivity and specificity showed great variation (0-0.48 and 0.5-0.98 respectively) and the probability of detection of a signal increased with its quality (poor: 0.12, medium: 0.27 andhigh: 0.64). Acoustic monitoring has an enormous potential, and its success depends, in part, on the availability of automatic recognition tools, that are open access and can be easily implemented. This development can be achieved by strengthening acoustic collections.

184-199

Authors: Milena Paulo-Moreno, Pedro Sanchez-Palomino

We observed a population of cotton-top tamarins (Saguinus oedipus, Primates: Callitrichidae) in the municipality of Santa Catalina, Bolívar, northern Colombia. We observed them over 100 hours, and we recorded 16 hours of vocalizations, which were subsequently digitalized at 44.1 kHz, using Protools. We analyzed 2617 sounds with Raven 1.2, with the aim of identifying the phonetic units forming the vocal repertoire of this species, according to the following acoustic parameters: Duration (ms), change frequency (Hz), peak frequency (Hz), start frequency (Hz) and harmonics. In order to describe the vocal repertoire, the phonemes were classified into 11 groups, according to their form. The acoustic parameters were analyzed using confidence intervals, and 49 different sounds were identified. By assembling the phonetic units, 14 different vocalizations wer identified. The sounds emitted by cotton-top tamarins are of short duration (= 0.0215 s). The lowest start frequency registered is 322.7 Hz and the highest is 13 956.5 Hz. The change in frequency ranges from 113.8 to 13 652.2 Hz. The peak frequencies range from 0 to 10 077.6 Hz. On the other hand, 37.4 % of sound lacks harmonics, and the remainder 62.6 % show between 1 and 12 harmonics.

21-39

Authors: Juliana Duran prieto, Astrid Gissell Molina Fonseca

We carried out an inventory of the butterflies occurring in eight green areas of socio-environmental importance for the city of Bogotá and its region (Cundinamarca, Colombia). We found 45 species belonging to four families, Nymphalidae, Pieridae, Lycaenidae and Hesperiidae. The greatest richness was provided by the Nymphalidae family with 23 species, most of which are pronophilines, typical of high mountain ecosystems. Colias dimera, Dione glycera and Vanessa virginiensis were the more widely distributed species. It is argued that urbanization, as a modeling factor of the urban-regional landscape, is affecting the diversity and distribution of butterflies of Bogotá-Region.

72-87

Authors: Giovanni Cárdenas, Diana Ramírez-Mosquera, Diana Eusse-González, Eliana Fierro-Calderón, Viviana Vidal-Astudillo, Felipe A. Estela

The avifauna of the department of Valle del Cauca, Colombia, has been one of the best studied biological groups in Colombia since the late 19th century. As a result of these information compilations, estimates of species richness range between 818 and 1025 species. We collected information on bird records from different sources and obtained a list of 989 confirmed bird species for the department and 13 species that were listed as potentially present. We found eight introduced species that have no published records or are anecdotal in Colombia. Future expeditions or investigations should focus on filling the information gaps on birds in the Garrapatas river canyon, the area south of Buenaventura and the Central mountain range.

94-100

Authors: Liliana Prada Lara, Ángela R. Amarillo-Suárez, Giovanny Fagua

We made moth collections in the Utria National Natural Park, Chocó, during in 2017, using a light trap, and collected five males of Podalia orsilochus, representing the first record of this species for the department of Chocó, and the first specific location for Colombia. The records of the species were complemented with identification of photographed specimens, which confirmed records from the departments of Antioquia, Caldas, Huila, Quindío, Santander, and Valle del Cauca.

108-133

Authors: Slendy Julieth Rodríguez-Alarcón, Luisa Pinzón-Pérez, José López Cruz, Diego Cabrera Amaya

Plant functional traits can be used to test resource use strategies, and they provide information about species responses to environmental conditions and their incidence on ecosystem functioning. The databases of functional traits still have information gaps, due to the great diversity of native and exotic woody plant in the green spaces of Bogotá, Colombia. We include five functional traits (wood density, maximum height, leaf area, specific leaf area and dry matter content) of 508 individuals belonging to 101 species, distributed into 44 taxonomic families. The measurement of functional traits was made in the more abundant tree and shrub species determined from the database of Bogotá Urban Trees (SIGAU in Spanish), and according to the vegetation sampling on two rural micro-basins and on the Bogotá Eastern Forest Protective Forest Reserve. This sampling used plots of 50 m2 (shrublands) and 100 m2 (native forests and forest plantations). The database presented here includes 3556 trait records of 68 native and 33 exotic species, and its information will allow to compare results of other studies, and to optimize resources, by facilitating access to these data. This database also complements national and global functional trait databases, important tools in ecological studies.

142-155

Authors: Alejandra Clavijo Giraldo, Leidy Areiza Restrepo, Carlos Federico Álvarez Hincapie, Dumar Ariel Parrales Ramirez, Kevin Giancarlo Borja Acosta, Sandra Ines Uribe Soto, Claudia Alejandra Medina Uribe

We present a public database at SIB Colombia, the product of several studies about the diversity and complementarity of a butterfly community (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea) in the El Romeral reserve, a protected area located southwest of the Aburrá Valley on the Central Cordillera in the department of Antioquia, Colombia. We report 69 species, 40 genera, 12 subfamilies and 5 families of butterflies in high Andean ecosystems, between 2250 and 2878 m a.s.l., including unique records and endemic species. The information is associated with specimens and barcode sequences in GenBank.

16-27

Authors: Oscar Ascuntar-Osnas, Sebastián Montoya-Bustamante, Baltazar González-Chávez

Streblidae is a highly specialized fly family, which feeds exclusively on bats. Here we present information about the species of streblids occurring in two fragments of tropical dry forest in Cauca, Colombia. Between April and November 2012, we conducted 16 capture events of bats using mist nets, which were open from 18:00 until 06:00. Each captured bat was identified and the ectoparasites found were preserved in 90% alcohol solution. A total of 85 ectoparasites were collected and 10 species of streblids were identified in seven bat species. Our analysis showed that these parasites are locally specialized, which strongly contrasts with the high number of host species that have been reported for them. We hypothesize that this discrepancy is due to local constraints that filter the fundamental niche of these flies. This work enriches the inventories of the entomofauna in remnants of tropical dry forest, an ecosystem in a critical state of conservation.

41-57

Authors: María Alejandra Pinto-Erazo, Martha Lucía Calderón Espinosa, Guido Fabian Medina Rangel, Miguel Ángel Méndez Galeano

We present a preliminary list of the herpetofauna of Tumaco and Francisco Pizarro municipalities, department of Nariño, Colombia, located in the south of the Chocó biogeographic region, based on field data and on museum collection databases and literature. We recorded 25 species of amphibians and 55 reptiles. The most species-rich families were Hylidae and Craugastoridae for amphibians, and Colubridae and Dactyloidae for reptiles, a pattern similar to that observed on a global scale. Two new species records for Colombia are presented -Pristimantis walkeri and Scinax tsachila, as well as range extensions for Allobates talamancae, Anolis auratus, Dendropsophus ebraccatus, Gonatodes albogularis and Scinax sugillatus. Species accumulation curves and sampling coverage reveal that more field studies are needed for complementing this list, especially studies using methodologies focused on aquatic and fossorial species, and that there could be an effect of deforestation on the diversity of the herpetofauna, which concurs with the lack of canopy amphibians and the exclusive presence of species associated with leaf litter or forest interior in the locations with best plant coverage.

86-103

Authors: Santiago Jiménez González, Haydy Monsalve Redwan, María Angélica Moreno Duarte, Claudia Jiménez Escobar

A demographic and reproductive analysis of the population of jaguars (Panthera onca) (n = 38) held in Colombian zoos. Records were analyzed (1970-2010), where paternity and maternity data were completed by DNA’s microsatelite analysis. The SPARKS program was used for the construction of the Regional Studbook for Jaguars and the Population Management 2000 (PM 2000) program for its analysis. The main results obtained were: the census, distribution by sex and age, fertility rate, survival rate, mortality rate, average life expectancy, reproductive value, reproductive projections for 5, 10, 15, 20 and 100 years while preserving the 90% of genetic diversity. The most relevant findings were: the population analyzed in 2010 was decreasing (λ = 0.9876), the generational time (T) was longer for females (T = 18.21 years) than for males (T = 17.46 years), the genetic diversity was on the rise from 1994 to 2002 and remained stable from 2002 to 2009 (GD = 0.78). The genetic analysis allowed to structure the captive population, optimizing the analysis and the reliability of the results, opening the possibility of applying these methods as a conservation model in other threatened species.

109-116

Authors: Cristhian David Gaitán García, Sergio Losada Prado

In recent years, the white-bibbed manakin (Corapipo leucorrhoa) has been reported outside its usual distribution north of the upper Magdalena valley (Tolima, Colombia), which means that its actual distribution is not well known. In this study, three records of C. leucorrhoa in the department of Tolima are reported. With the review of several database records and our reports, we modeled a potential distribution map for this species, finding that there are favorable conditions for its presence along the upper Magdalena valley, and that this region should be included as part of its geographical distribution for Colombia.

20-31

Authors: Esteban Terneus Jácome, Berenice Vallejo, Mateo Gómez de la Torre

We evaluated the impact of climate change on the structure and floral composition of the aquatic plants occurring in five Andean lakes (3900 m a. s. l.) at the foot of the Chiles Volcano. We obtained field information using transects and depth quadrants to evaluate richness and cover vegetation patterns, whereas physical chemistry of water was evaluated using electronic measuring equipment in situ. Part of the information from the same lakes 17 years ago was used as a basis for comparison. Were recorded fifteen species of aquatic plants, with evidence of a reduction in the populations of Isoetes sp., Crassula venezuelensis and Elatine ecuadoriensis. Apparently, Lilaeopsis schaffneriana and Juncus stipulatus were replaced by Lachemilla nivalis and a Poaceae of the genus Agrostis as a colonizer. The abiotic characteristics of the lakes show changing trends in pH and conductivity of the waters, turning them more neutral than acidic. This leads to conditions that may allow for the establishment of species other than those of historical records, increasing the general variety, implying the possibility that climate change effects are not necessarily negative in this situation. However, there is evidence of damage to the natural aquatic ecosystem, through the loss or replacement of hydrophilic for halophile plants. This potential transformation process of the natural environment jeopardizes the ecological functioning of the aquatic ecosystems in the area.

46-58

Authors: Zuleyma Mosquera Murillo, Sandra Patricia Sánchez Vazquez

We present a preliminary report on the richness and distribution of aquatic Diptera in the department of Chocó, from 490 specimens (larvae and pupae) kept in the Chocó Limnological Collection (CLCH-Insec), corresponding to 18 municipalities (between 5 and 3202 m a.s.l.), 46 water streams of different order and 14 lentic ecosystems of the Atrato, San Juan and Baudó Rivers basins. There are 12 families and 30 genera, of which 4 families and 16 genera are recorded for the first time for Chocó. Chironomidae is the most abundant and most widely distributed family, while Dixidae and Sciomyzidae are the families with lowest abundance and distribution. The highest taxonomic richness is recorded for the families Culicidae and Ceratopogonidae, with five genera each. Macrophytes are the substrate with the greatest specific richness. The largest taxonomic record is found in the Atrato River basin, with 11 families and 24 genera. These results show the enormous diversity of aquatic Diptera in the department of Chocó and the need to develop new research that will broaden their taxonomic and ecological knowledge in the region.

76-92

Authors: Carlos A. Aya-Cuero, Federico Mosquera-Guerra, Diego A. Esquivel, Daniel Brooks, Fernando Trujillo

We describe the diversity of medium and large mammals from an area in the Colombian Orinoco River basin. For three years we systematically used camera traps at 72 sampling stations and walked forest and savanna transects to determine the diversity of medium and large mammals. Relative abundance was documented for 29 native and 2 feral mammals from a sampling effort of 1789 camera-days and 469.5 km walked. Thirty-one species of mammals (9 orders, 19 families) were recorded. Threatened species recorded included the giant armadillo (Priodontes maximus), lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris), white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari), and giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla). The most abundant species were the collared peccary (Pecari tajacu) and the common opossum (Didelphis marsupialis). We recorded rare species, including the bush dog (Speothos venaticus) and the Llano semi-endemic long-nosed armadillo (Dasypus sabanicola). The species documented face diverse pressures, including development, hunting for subsistence, and competition with invasive species and livestock. Our results suggest that the surveyed areas are important for the conservation of mammals in the eastern plains of Colombia.

105-119

Authors: Julieth Stella Cárdenas Hincapie, Diana Alexandra Delgadillo Méndez

The anuran collection of the Museo de La Salle is one of the oldest in Colombia, with 2059 specimens collected since 1917. Its age represents a challenge for a thorough quantification of its status, considering that it may not necessarily fit current quality standards. Therefore, we implemented a methodology to evaluate the status of the collection in terms of health, data completeness, taxonomic representativeness, taxonomic identification and geographical coverage. The collection harbors 13 families, with Craugastoridae as the best represented, with 44 species and 517 specimens. The department with the largest number of specimens was Cundinamarca, with 363 records of 52 species. Most specimens are in optimal condition of conservation and preservation. The results of this research enabled the solution of problems in the collection and it could be useful for other collections.

128-133

Authors: Edison Gabriel Mejía Valenzuela

Leucism is a congenital hypopigmentary disorder that has been described in several species of wild mammals, as an abnormal and unusual condition. The first record of Dasyprocta fuliginosa with leucism is presented and the possible causes of this condition are discussed.

21-33

Authors: Matheus Y. Halmenschlager, Juan C. Agudelo Martínez, Nestor F. Pérez-Buitrago

We analyzed 72 specimens from the Arauca (71) and Casanare (1) departments in the Orinoco region of Colombia. The specimens belong to 10 genera and 18 species of vespid wasps. Four species are reported for the first time for the region and 14 are new records for the Arauca department. There is a likely new record of Stenodynerus cf. australis for the Neotropical region.

50-74

Authors: Santiago Gaviria, Nelson Aranguren-Riaño

We present the compilation of published and unpublished records of continental copepods of Colombia, as well as personal observations by the authors, yielding an additional list of 52 species and subspecies (7 calanoids, 20 cyclopoids, 25 harpacticoids). In addition to our former inventory (2007) of 69 species, the total number now reaches 121 taxa, increasing by 75 % the known number of continental copepods. Freshwater taxa increased in 15 species and subspecies. The number of brackish species (and marine species collected in brackish environments), recorded from coastal lagoons and temporal offshore ponds reached 39 species and subspecies. Thirteen taxa with locus typicus in Colombia have been described since 2007. Between 2007 and 2018, thirty-nine departmental records were made, and 43 new habitat records were reported (not including the species recorded as new for the country). Parasitic copepods of fish reached six species. However, the number of species is expected to increase with the survey of poorly studied regions like the Amazon and the Eastern Plains, and habitats like groundwater, benthos of lakes and ponds, semiterrestrial environments and additional coastal lagoons.

91-105

Authors: Sergio Chaparro-Herrera, Andrea Lopera-Salazar, Ana M. Gutiérrez-Zuluaga, Jefry Betancur, Dariel Martínez Alvarado, Héctor Fabio Rivera Gutiérrez, Juan L. Parra

We characterized bird communities in two paramo complexes (Frontino-Urrao and Sonsón) in the department of Antioquia, Colombia, including the transition zones and the upper boundaries of cloud forests. We recorded 197 bird species (40 families), of which 7 presented some threat category, 1 is almost threatened, 5 are endemic, 15 near endemic, 4 boreal migratory species and 1 austral migratory species. We point out 12 species that are relevant, either due to their degree of national threat or because they represent geographic or altitudinal range extensions.

120-125

Authors: Glenda M. Pozo-Zamora, Mario H. Yánez-Muñoz

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 specimens. We found 26 parasitic individuals in 4 infected snakes, with a maximum of 16 individuals in a juvenile snake, and a minimum of 2 in an adult snake. Morphometric characters of the Ecuadorian populations of Porocephalus do not agree with those described for the genus. Therefore, we recommend a thorough analysis to define the taxonomic identity of these parasites.

132-145

Authors: Luis Francisco Henao Díaz, Sandy Arroyo, Ghislaine Cárdenas-Posada, Mateo Fernández, Juan Pablo López, David Camilo Martínez, Juan Salvador Mendoza, Ariadna Mondragón-Botero, Olga León, Karen L. Pulido-Herrera, Nicolás Rodríguez-Cerón, Santiago Madriñán

The Chingaza paramo complex is located in the Colombian eastern Cordillera, in the departments of Cundinamarca, Boyacá and Meta. Most of our current knowledge about this complex comes from studies conducted near Bogotá and some focal sectors in the National Natural Park Chingaza. The goal of this study was to characterize the treeline transition zone through five elevational transects. As a result, we report 11 588 occurrences and 1382 data of functional traits for plants, edaphic fauna, amphibians, reptiles, and birds. In addition, we report occurrences from two vulnerable (VU) plant species (Hedyosmum parvifolium and Centronia brachycera) and a new endemic species (Puya loca). Preliminary analyses show natural variation in the landscape, community composition and altitudinal location of transition zones along the gradient and between locations. Using this dataset, it is possible to recognize defined transitions between high Andean forests and paramo ecosystems, and their elevation turnover through their physiognomic, floristic, ecological and chorological attributes.