Characterization of microsatellite markers for snouted treefrogs in the Scinax perpusillus species group (Anura, Hylidae)

Abstract

We characterized eight microsatellite loci for snouted treefrogs in the Scinax perpusillus species group, a group of hylid frogs endemic to the Atlantic Coastal Forest of Brazil, and tested their utility in mainland and island species of the complex. All eight loci were polymorphic in one population of S. perpusillus; four of the loci showed excess homozygosity and three of those deviated from Hardy-Weinberg expectations, possibly due to null alleles, inbreeding, or population structure in sampled individuals. Six loci amplified and were polymorphic in S. arduous, S. argyreornatus, and S. faivovichi, but only one in S. alcatraz. These markers will be useful for quantifying effects of habitat fragmentation on population genetic diversity and connectivity in coastal and island populations of this threatened species group.