Species richness and structure of an anuran community in an Atlantic Forest site in southern Brazil

The species richness and spatial distribution of an anuran community were studied over 12 months in an Atlantic Forest area in São José dos Pinhais Municipality, Paraná State, southern Brazil. During field surveys, we registered 32 species from ten families: Brachycephalidae (2), Bufonidae (2), Centrolenidae (1), Cycloramphidae (1), Hemiphractidae (1), Hylidae (18), Hylodidae (1), Leiuperidae (2), Leptodactylidae (3), and Microhylidae (1). Sixteen species were registered in open areas, while seventeen species were found on forest borders and twenty species in forest areas. In relation to the microhabitat utilization, species were registered according to stratum of vocalization: 1) on the ground (eight); 2) in the water (two); 3) in the lower stratum (eleven); 4) in the intermediate stratum (five); 5) in the upper stratum (four). Five species were abundant (15.6%), while twelve were common (37.5%), and fifteen were considered rare (46.9%). The biological aspects of the majority of the species described in this work as related to forest areas are not well known. This fact reinforces the importance of Atlantic Forest conservation.