Autoecology and thermal attributes of the Caatinga frog <i>Leptodactylus caatingae</i> from the Brazilian Northeastern

We analyzed the microhabitat use, diet, sexual dimorphism, advertisement call, and thermal biology of the frog <i>Leptodactylus caatingae</i> and estimated its extent of occurrence (EOO), area of occupancy (AOO), area of habitat (AoH), and habitat suitability. We obtained ecological data through fieldwork and consulting scientific collections. The most used microhabitat categories were exposed soil and soil between vegetation. For calling males, the most used categories were soil between vegetation and soil between vegetation at the entrance to a hole. Insect larvae and orthopterans were primary, indicating a narrow niche breadth. The advertisement call consists of a single multipulsed note. Morphometric analysis revealed no sexual dimorphism. Substrate temperature was the variable that best explained the body temperature (<i>T</i>_b) of calling males. The thermal accuracy and thermal quality index revealed that most <i>T</i>_b values fell within the preferred temperature range (<i>T</i>_set), while habitat temperature remained below <i>T</i>_set. Males thermoregulated during calling, and estimates for temperature increase of 1.5 and 2°C showed improvements of 64.3% and 80.1% in thermal quality values, respectively, with <i>L. caatingae</i> shifting to thermoconformer. The EOO was 896,453.030 km², AOO was 136 km², and AoH was 350,799.00 km², with the distribution modeling indicating an expansion of habitat suitability.