Amphibians from the Municipality of João Pinheiro, an area of “Cerrado” savanna in northwestern Minas Gerais, Brazil

Abstract

Here is presented the first records to the amphibian’s fauna from the Municipality of João Pinheiro, an area of “Cerrado” savanna in northwestern Minas Gerais, Brazil. I surveyed the amphibians through a program of observations and collection of specimens in many different habitats, in the period between April 2001 and May 2005. I recorded 37 species assigned in 15 genera, including the families Leptodactylidae (17 species), Hylidae (13), Bufonidae (3), Brachycephalidae (1), Cycloramphidae (1), Dendrobatidae (1), Microhylidae (1), and Caeciliidae (1). The study site represents the southernmost limit of the known geographic distribution of three species commonly found in the “Caatinga” biome: Physalaemus cicada, Dendropsophus soaresi, and Leptodactylus troglodytes. In this study, Leptodactylus chaquensis was first recorded to southeastern Brazil, whereas Pseudopaludicola ternetzi and Leptodactylus hylaedactylus were first recorded to Minas Gerais. The studied locality was noticed to have one of the greatest amphibian richness known from the “Cerrado” biome.