Suriname’s New Species

By Hardman, Chris

Encouraging news from the amphibian world comes from Suriname, where biologists have discovered five new frog species in an area that shows no sign of the chytrid fungus. The frogs were found along with nineteen other species believed to be new to science, during a Rapid Assessment Program (RAP) conducted by Conservation International (CI). Among the frogs discovered is a neon purple and black member of the genus Atelopus and four Eleutherodactylus species. The survey also yielded five new species of fish, thirteen of dung beetles, and one new species of ant-and turned up a variety of fish thought to be extinct. "New species of insects are common, but so many new species of amphibians and fishes indicates that this area has a very high overall diversity and likely harbors many more species yet to discover," the authors concluded in their 2007 report. Since 1990, Conservation International has developed a highly effective way to survey the biological diversity of an area. Experts specific to the region of study spend a week or two categorizing every species they can find in their specialty area. From the program’s inception, RAP surveys have uncovered 600 species new to science in 26 countries.

To complete the first comprehensive biological survey of Suriname, thirteen scientists recorded all the bird, mammal, fish, reptile, amphibian, and plant species they could find at the LeIy and Nassau plateaus, during two short expeditions in 2005. Located in the remote eastern part of Suriname, both plateaus are relatively intact with healthy savannah forests, high dryland rainforests, and palm swamps.

"The main threat at the moment is illegal gold mining, which is quite rampant in Suriname," says Leeanne Alonso, RAP director and a CI vice president. "They make these huge cleared areas and use arsenic that just washes the gold out of the ground and goes right into the streams." Clean water is particularly important in an area with such a high diversity of amphibian and fish species.

This region is part of the Guyana Shield, a two-billion-year-old geological formation found underneath Suriname, Guyana, and French Guyana, as well as parts of Colombia, Venezuela, and Brazil. Covering nearly a million square miles, the Guyana Shield supports the largest tract of undisturbed Neotropical forest in the world, where jaguars thrive and giant river otters still play in the streams. In addition to a rich biological population, the Guyana Shield houses a diverse human population as well. At least 100 indigenous groups live in the area, along with descendants of African, Chinese, East Indian, Javanese, and Portuguese immigrants.

In 2002, representatives from throughout this region gathered in Suriname’s capital for the Guyana Shield Conservation Priority- Setting Workshop. One result was a consensus-among the 100 experts specializing in biology and socioeconomics-that Nassau and LeIy are located in one of the highest conservation priority areas within the Guyana Shield. The results of CI’s assessment confirmed the area’s importance. Of the 467 species identified, 27 are endemic to the Guyana Shield Region, meaning they are found nowhere else in the world. Scientists also found vulnerable and threatened species such as the Brazilian tapir, the cougar, the Guyanan red howler monkey, the dark fruit-eating bat, and the giant anteater.

Part of the purpose of a Rapid Assessment Program is to develop conservation strategies for the survey site. The Suriname study was prepared for two mining companies, BHP-Billiton Maatschappij Suriname (a subsidiary of BHP BUliton) and the Suriname Aluminium Company LLC (a subsidiary of Alcoa Inc.). Mining contributes greatly to the economy of Suriname, and bauxite-a mineral found in Suriname’s thick upper crust-generates 15 percent ofthe country’s gross domestic product and 70 percent of exports. CI frequently works with mining companies to develop sustainable mining practices. "They want to find out if there is anything important there before [they start excavating]," Alonso says. "It’s more economically feasible to do things the right way first."

The RAP report recommends incorporating the LeIy and Nassau plateaus into a regional conservation plan. "We think this is a significantly important place and should get some kind of increased protection of the area, maybe even make Nassau a national park," Alonso explains. By working with local people, FLAP biologists believe Suriname can develop realistic conservation strategies to regulate hunting and provide alternative income sources to logging and illegal gold mining.

"Suriname is so beautiful and they have so much left, but extractive industries [logging and mining] are their main income," explains Alonso. She warns that the forest will disappear if people rely solely on extractive industries to survive. Also of concern is the rise of unregulated hunting of large mammals and birds, which RAP participants saw evidence of in the abandoned hunting camps and discarded shotgun shells scattered throughout the study site.

Another recommendation is to monitor frog populations for the deadly chytrid fungus. Although the fungus has not yet appeared in eastern Suriname, biologists advise testing individual frogs regularly through dermal swabs and working with the Declining Amphibian Populations Task Force. To keep both the amphibian and fish species healthy, the streams and rivers must remain clean. "On both the LeIy and Nassau plateaus, human activities, including gold mining, logging, agriculture, hunting, and base camp construction, currently threaten the integrity of the aquatic ecosystems," the report states. To protect the freshwater streams, the researchers suggest sedimentation and runoff-prevention methods and a water- quality monitoring program.

RAP participants also recommend more scientific studies of the area. In a place as pristine as eastern Suriname, there are still areas unknown to science. Vast tracts of undisturbed rainforest may house any number of unusual species waiting to be discovered.

This unique species of dwarf catfish, above, known as "Big Mouth" among its discoverers, is new to science and is likely endemic to the eastern plateaus of Suriname. Epipedobates trivittatus, left, also recorded during the RAP survey in 2005, can be found throughout the region’s forests. The male of this species carries the tadpoles on its back