Factors affecting the distribution of cryptic anurans in Malaysian montane forests

Amphibians have survived the last four major extinction events in Earth's history, and now in the Anthropocene they face an unprecedented global rate of extinction [1]. Southeast Asia hosts at least 700 species of Amphibian [1], and ~50% of Malaysian species currently have threatened status [2]. We currently lack vital information on the impacts of deforestation and climate change on their population dynamics with which to assess extinction risks and plan conservation management.
Montane forests provide important refuges for threatened and endemic species, although they are greatly affected by both anthropogenic development and climate change [2]. Previous studies have investigated the effect of environmental change on commonly encountered montane anurans. A knowledge gap remains on the distribution of rare or cryptic anurans with low detection rates and sporadic site occupancy. Many of these species may depend on the availability of ephemeral microhabitats, particularly phytotelmata: water-filled cavities in terrestrial plants.
This project aims to develop methods to study the ecology of cryptic montane forest anurans, and to investigate factors affecting their distribution across a disturbance gradient. Traditional survey methods will be combined with modern methods of Environmental DNA analysis [3] to develop a framework enabling the future monitoring of these species.