| Budget Amount *help |
¥11,300,000 (Direct Cost: ¥11,300,000)
Fiscal Year 2005: ¥3,400,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,400,000)
Fiscal Year 2004: ¥3,800,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,800,000)
Fiscal Year 2003: ¥4,100,000 (Direct Cost: ¥4,100,000)
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| Research Abstract |
From 2003 to 2005, we carried out re-evaluation of amphibian inventory in the Crocker Range National Park, Tawau Hills Park, Tabin Wildlife Reserve, and Kinabalu National Park, Sabah, Malaysia, with the help of members of University Malaysia Sabah and Sabah Parks. As a result of our intensive field surveys, we found several undescibed species and many new records of distribution in all the regions surveyed. Acoustic information greatly contributed in increment of records, and learning frog voices proved to be a powerful tool to document local distributions. By the use of acoustic information, we succeeded in finding new Leptolalax species and ascertained distribution of a Megophrys from Sabah for the first time. Biochemical methods also contributed greatly in finding out undescribed cryptic species of Meristogenys and revising taxonomic status of Staurois species. This method also contributed in associating larvae and adults of Meristogenys, which has long been in confusion. Accumulation of comparable materials led to findings of cryptic species in the past, but we can apply acoustic and biochemical methods to re-evaluate anuran inventory now. We also made new findings in caecilians, and could observe egg brooding of Caudacaecilia for the first time, and could assess generic taxonomic status. Considering very limited areas we could survey within a wide range of the parks and reserve in the present study, much higher amphibian species diversity is highly expected in Sabah. From the accumulation curve of known amphibian taxa, the number of species/subspecies in Sabah is expected to further increase, and complete inventory will be not made in the near future. More intensive inventory of Sabah should be done by use of the methods employed in this survey, before habitats of these animals are lost.
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