1
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Grant EHC, Fleming J, Bastiaans E, Brand AB, Brooks JL, Devlin C, Epp K, Evans M, Fisher-Reid MC, Gratwicke B, Grayson KL, Haydt NT, Hernández-Pacheco R, Hocking DJ, Hyde A, Losito M, MacKnight MG, Matlaga TJH, Mead L, Muñoz D, Peterman W, Puza V, Shafer C, Sterrett SC, Sutherland C, Thompson LM, Warwick AR, Wright AD, Yurewicz K, Miller DAW. Range-wide salamander densities reveal a key component of terrestrial vertebrate biomass in eastern North American forests. Biol Lett 2024; 20:20240033. [PMID: 39140203 PMCID: PMC11322892 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2024] [Revised: 05/07/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 08/15/2024] Open
Abstract
Characterizing the population density of species is a central interest in ecology. Eastern North America is the global hotspot for biodiversity of plethodontid salamanders, an inconspicuous component of terrestrial vertebrate communities, and among the most widespread is the eastern red-backed salamander, Plethodon cinereus. Previous work suggests population densities are high with significant geographic variation, but comparisons among locations are challenged by lack of standardization of methods and failure to accommodate imperfect detection. We present results from a large-scale research network that accounts for detection uncertainty using systematic survey protocols and robust statistical models. We analysed mark-recapture data from 18 study areas across much of the species range. Estimated salamander densities ranged from 1950 to 34 300 salamanders ha-1, with a median of 9965 salamanders ha-1. We compared these results to previous estimates for P. cinereus and other abundant terrestrial vertebrates. We demonstrate that overall the biomass of P. cinereus, a secondary consumer, is of similar or greater magnitude to widespread primary consumers such as white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and Peromyscus mice, and two to three orders of magnitude greater than common secondary consumer species. Our results add empirical evidence that P. cinereus, and amphibians in general, are an outsized component of terrestrial vertebrate communities in temperate ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evan H. Campbell Grant
- U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center (Patuxent Wildlife Research Center), 1 Migratory Way, Turners Falls, MA01376, USA
| | - Jillian Fleming
- U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center (Patuxent Wildlife Research Center), 1 Migratory Way, Turners Falls, MA01376, USA
| | - Elizabeth Bastiaans
- Department of Biology, State University of New York – College at Oneonta, 108 Ravine Parkway, Oneonta, NY13820, USA
| | - Adrianne B. Brand
- U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center (Patuxent Wildlife Research Center), 1 Migratory Way, Turners Falls, MA01376, USA
| | - Jacey L. Brooks
- Department of Biology, Frostburg State University, 101 Braddock Road, Frostburg, MD21532, USA
| | - Catherine Devlin
- Greenfield Community College, 1 College Drive, Greenfield, MA01301, USA
| | - Kristen Epp
- Department of Biology, Eastern Connecticut State University, 83 Windham Street, Willimantic, CT06226, USA
| | - Matt Evans
- Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Washington, DC20008, USA
| | - M. Caitlin Fisher-Reid
- Department of Biological Sciences, Bridgewater State University, Bridgewater, MA02325, USA
| | - Brian Gratwicke
- Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Washington, DC20008, USA
| | | | - Natalie T. Haydt
- Department of Biology, Frostburg State University, 101 Braddock Road, Frostburg, MD21532, USA
| | - Raisa Hernández-Pacheco
- Department of Biology, University of Richmond, Richmond, VA23173, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, California State University, Long Beach, CA90840, USA
| | - Daniel J. Hocking
- Department of Biology, Frostburg State University, 101 Braddock Road, Frostburg, MD21532, USA
| | - Amanda Hyde
- Greenfield Community College, 1 College Drive, Greenfield, MA01301, USA
| | - Michael Losito
- Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Environmental Science, State University of New York, Cobleskill, NY12043, USA
| | - Maisie G. MacKnight
- Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, Penn State University, University Park, PA16802, USA
| | | | - Louise Mead
- Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI48824, USA
| | - David Muñoz
- Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, Penn State University, University Park, PA16802, USA
| | - William Peterman
- School of Environment and Natural Resources, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH43210, USA
| | - Veronica Puza
- The New Jersey School of Conservation, 1 Waplanne Road, Sandyston, NJ07826, USA
| | - Charles Shafer
- U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center (Patuxent Wildlife Research Center), 1 Migratory Way, Turners Falls, MA01376, USA
| | - Sean C. Sterrett
- Department of Biology, Monmouth University, West Long Branch, NJ07764, USA
| | - Chris Sutherland
- Centre for Research into Ecological and Environmental Modelling, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Lily M. Thompson
- Department of Forestry and Environmental Conservation, Clemson University, Clemson, SC29634, USA
| | - Alexa R. Warwick
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI48824, USA
| | | | - Kerry Yurewicz
- Biological Sciences, Plymouth State University, Plymouth, NH03264, USA
| | - David A. W. Miller
- Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, Penn State University, University Park, PA16802, USA
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2
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Vargas-Gastélum L, Romer AS, Ghotbi M, Dallas JW, Alexander NR, Moe KC, McPhail KL, Neuhaus GF, Shadmani L, Spatafora JW, Stajich JE, Tabima JF, Walker DM. Herptile gut microbiomes: a natural system to study multi-kingdom interactions between filamentous fungi and bacteria. mSphere 2024; 9:e0047523. [PMID: 38349154 PMCID: PMC10964425 DOI: 10.1128/msphere.00475-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Reptiles and amphibians (herptiles) are some of the most endangered and threatened species on the planet and numerous conservation strategies are being implemented with the goal of ensuring species recovery. Little is known, however, about the gut microbiome of wild herptiles and how it relates to the health of these populations. Here, we report results from the gut microbiome characterization of both a broad survey of herptiles, and the correlation between the fungus Basidiobolus, and the bacterial community supported by a deeper, more intensive sampling of Plethodon glutinosus, known as slimy salamanders. We demonstrate that bacterial communities sampled from frogs, lizards, and salamanders are structured by the host taxonomy and that Basidiobolus is a common and natural component of these wild gut microbiomes. Intensive sampling of multiple hosts across the ecoregions of Tennessee revealed that geography and host:geography interactions are strong predictors of distinct Basidiobolus operational taxonomic units present within a given host. Co-occurrence analyses of Basidiobolus and bacterial community diversity support a correlation and interaction between Basidiobolus and bacteria, suggesting that Basidiobolus may play a role in structuring the bacterial community. We further the hypothesis that this interaction is advanced by unique specialized metabolism originating from horizontal gene transfer from bacteria to Basidiobolus and demonstrate that Basidiobolus is capable of producing a diversity of specialized metabolites including small cyclic peptides.IMPORTANCEThis work significantly advances our understanding of biodiversity and microbial interactions in herptile microbiomes, the role that fungi play as a structural and functional members of herptile gut microbiomes, and the chemical functions that structure microbiome phenotypes. We also provide an important observational system of how the gut microbiome represents a unique environment that selects for novel metabolic functions through horizontal gene transfer between fungi and bacteria. Such studies are needed to better understand the complexity of gut microbiomes in nature and will inform conservation strategies for threatened species of herpetofauna.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lluvia Vargas-Gastélum
- Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Alexander S. Romer
- Department of Biology, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
| | - Marjan Ghotbi
- Research Division 3, Marine Ecology, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Jason W. Dallas
- Department of Biology, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
| | - N. Reed Alexander
- Department of Biology, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
| | - Kylie C. Moe
- Department of Biology, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
| | - Kerry L. McPhail
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - George F. Neuhaus
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Leila Shadmani
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, University of California Riverside, Riverside, California, USA
| | - Joseph W. Spatafora
- Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Jason E. Stajich
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, University of California Riverside, Riverside, California, USA
- Institute for Integrative Genome Biology, University of California, Riverside, California, USA
| | - Javier F. Tabima
- Department of Biology, Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Donald M. Walker
- Department of Biology, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
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3
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Dimitrie DA, Burke DJ, Benard MF. Response of American Toads and Their Invertebrate Prey to Experimentally Elevated Soil pH. ICHTHYOLOGY & HERPETOLOGY 2023. [DOI: 10.1643/h2020057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- David A. Dimitrie
- Department of Biology, Case Western Reserve University, DeGrace Hall, 2080 Adelbert Road, Cleveland, Ohio 44106; (DAD) ; and (MFB)
| | - David J. Burke
- Holden Arboretum, 9550 Sperry Road, Kirtland, Ohio 44094;
| | - Michael F. Benard
- Department of Biology, Case Western Reserve University, DeGrace Hall, 2080 Adelbert Road, Cleveland, Ohio 44106; (DAD) ; and (MFB)
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4
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Schuett GW, Reiserer RS, Salywon AM, Blackwell S, Hodgson WC, Foster CD, Hall J, Zach R, Davis MA, Greene HW. Secondary Seed Ingestion in Snakes: Germination Frequency and Rate, Seedling Viability, and Implications for Dispersal in Nature. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.761293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The importance of vertebrate animals as seed dispersers (zoochory) has received increasing attention from researchers over the past 20 years, yet one category in particular, diploendozoochory, remains understudied. As the term implies, this is a two-phase seed dispersal system whereby a secondary seed predator (carnivorous vertebrate) consumes a primary seed predator or granivore (rodent and bird) with undamaged seeds in their digestive tract (mouth, cheek pouch, crop, stomach, or other organ), which are subsequently eliminated with feces. Surprisingly, although snakes are among the most abundant predators of granivorous vertebrates, they are the least studied group insofar as our knowledge of seed rescue and secondary dispersal in a diploendozoochorous system. Here, using live snake subjects of the Sonoran Desert (one viperid and two colubrid species) and seeds of the Foothill Palo Verde (Parkinsonia microphylla), a dominant tree of the same region, we experimentally tested germination frequency and rate, and seedling viability. Specifically, to mimic rodents with seed-laden cheek pouches, we tested whether wild-collected P. microphylla seeds placed in the abdomen of thawed laboratory mice and ingested by the snakes would retain their germination viability. Second, we examined whether seeds exposed to gut transit germinated at a greater frequency and rate than the controls. While we found strong statistical support for our first hypothesis, both aspects of the second one were not significant. Accordingly, we provide an explanation for these results based on specific life-history traits (dormant and non-dormant seeds) of P. microphylla. Our study provides support for the role of snakes as important agents of seed rescue and dispersal in nature, their potential as ecosystem engineers, and crucial evidence for the investment of field-based studies on diploendozoochorous systems in deserts and other ecosystems.
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Muñoz D, Miller D, Schilder R, Campbell Grant EH. Geographic variation and thermal plasticity shape salamander metabolic rates under current and future climates. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e8433. [PMID: 35136543 PMCID: PMC8809431 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8433] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2021] [Revised: 08/30/2021] [Accepted: 09/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Predicted changes in global temperature are expected to increase extinction risk for ectotherms, primarily through increased metabolic rates. Higher metabolic rates generate increased maintenance energy costs which are a major component of energy budgets. Organisms often employ plastic or evolutionary (e.g., local adaptation) mechanisms to optimize metabolic rate with respect to their environment. We examined relationships between temperature and standard metabolic rate across four populations of a widespread amphibian species to determine if populations vary in metabolic response and if their metabolic rates are plastic to seasonal thermal cues. Populations from warmer climates lowered metabolic rates when acclimating to summer temperatures as compared to spring temperatures. This may act as an energy saving mechanism during the warmest time of the year. No such plasticity was evident in populations from cooler climates. Both juvenile and adult salamanders exhibited metabolic plasticity. Although some populations responded to historic climate thermal cues, no populations showed plastic metabolic rate responses to future climate temperatures, indicating there are constraints on plastic responses. We postulate that impacts of warming will likely impact the energy budgets of salamanders, potentially affecting key demographic rates, such as individual growth and investment in reproduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Muñoz
- Department of Ecosystem Science and ManagementThe Pennsylvania State UniversityUniversity ParkPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - David Miller
- Department of Ecosystem Science and ManagementThe Pennsylvania State UniversityUniversity ParkPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - Rudolf Schilder
- Department of EntomologyDepartment of BiologyThe Pennsylvania State UniversityUniversity ParkPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - Evan H. Campbell Grant
- US Geological SurveyPatuxent Wildlife Research CenterSO Conte Anadromous Fish Research LabTurners FallsMassachusettsUSA
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6
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Moore SJ, Nicholson KE. Beneath the Leaf-Litter: Can Salamander Personality Influence Forest-Floor Dynamics? HERPETOLOGICA 2021. [DOI: 10.1655/herpetologica-d-19-00019.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Shaundon J.B. Moore
- Department of Biology, Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859, USA
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7
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Beard KH, Durham SL, Willig MR, Zimmerman JK. Lizard and frog removal increases spider abundance but does not cascade to increase herbivory. Biotropica 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.12909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Karen H. Beard
- Department of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center Utah State University Logan UT USA
| | | | - Michael R. Willig
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering Institute of the Environment University of Connecticut Storrs CT USA
| | - Jess K. Zimmerman
- Department of Environmental Sciences University of Puerto Rico San Juan, Puerto Rico USA
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8
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Abstract
Many species of salamanders (newts and salamanders per se) have a pivotal role in energy flow pathways as they include individuals functioning as prey, competitors, and predators. Here, I synthesize historic and contemporary research on the reciprocal ecological role of salamanders as predators and prey in aquatic systems. Salamanders are a keystone in ecosystem functioning through a combination of top–down control, energy transfer, nutrient cycling processes, and carbon retention. The aquatic developmental stages of salamanders are able to feed on a wide variety of invertebrate prey captured close to the bottom as well as on small conspecifics (cannibalism) or other sympatric species, but can also consume terrestrial invertebrates on the water surface. This capacity to consume allochthonous resources (terrestrial invertebrates) highlights the key role of salamanders as couplers of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems (i.e., aquatic–terrestrial linkages). Salamanders are also an important food resource for other vertebrates such as fish, snakes, and mammals, covering the energy demands of these species at higher trophic levels. This study emphasizes the ecological significance of salamanders in aquatic systems as central players in energy flow pathways, enabling energy mobility among trophic levels (i.e., vertical energy flow) and between freshwater and terrestrial habitats (i.e., lateral energy flow).
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9
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Do Terrestrial Salamanders Indicate Ecosystem Changes in New England Forests? FORESTS 2019. [DOI: 10.3390/f10020154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Long-term ecological research (LTER) and monitoring programs accrue invaluable ecological data that inform policy and improve decisions that enable adaptation to and mitigation of environmental changes. There is great interest in identifying ecological indicators that can be monitored easily and effectively to yield reliable data about environmental changes in forested ecosystems. However, the selection, use, and validity of ecological indicators to monitor in LTER programs remain challenging tasks for ecologists and conservation biologists. Across the eastern United States of America, the foundation tree species eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carrière) is declining and dying from irruptions of a non-native insect, the hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae Annand). We use data from the Harvard Forest LTER site’s Hemlock Removal Experiment together with information from other eastern US LTER sites to show that plethodontid salamanders can be reliable indicators of ongoing ecological changes in forested ecosystems in the eastern USA. These salamanders are abundant, they have a history of demographic stability, are both predators and prey, and can be sampled and monitored simply and cost-effectively. At the Harvard Forest LTER, red-backed salamanders (Plethodon cinereus Green) were strong indicators of intact forests dominated by eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis); their high site fidelity and habitat specificity yielded an indicator value (robust Dufrêne and Legendre’s “IndVal”) for this species of 0.99. Eastern red-spotted newts (Notopthalmus viridescens viridescens Rafinesque) were better indicators of nearby stands made up of young, mixed hardwood species, such as those which replace hemlock stands following adelgid infestation. At the Hubbard Brook and Coweeta LTER sites, plethodontid salamanders were associated with intact riparian habitats, which may also be dominated by eastern hemlock. We conclude that plethodontid salamanders satisfy most criteria for reliable ecological indicators of environmental changes in eastern US forests.
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10
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Baecher JA, Richter SC. Environmental gradients in old-growth Appalachian forest predict fine-scale distribution, co-occurrence, and density of woodland salamanders. Ecol Evol 2018; 8:12940-12952. [PMID: 30619595 PMCID: PMC6308888 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.4736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2018] [Revised: 07/18/2018] [Accepted: 09/14/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Woodland salamanders are among the most abundant vertebrate animals in temperate deciduous forests of eastern North America. Because of their abundance, woodland salamanders are responsible for the transformation of nutrients and translocation of energy between highly disparate levels of trophic organization: detrital food webs and high-order predators. However, the spatial extent of woodland salamanders' role in the ecosystem is likely contingent upon the distribution of their biomass throughout the forest. We sought to determine if natural environmental gradients influence the fine-scale distribution and density of Southern Ravine Salamanders (Plethodon richmondi) and Cumberland Plateau Salamanders (P. kentucki). We addressed this objective by constructing occupancy, co-occurrence, and abundance models from temporally replicated surveys within an old-growth forest in the Cumberland Plateau region of Kentucky. We found that Plethodon richmondi had a more restricted fine-scale distribution than P. kentucki (mean occupancy probability [ψ ¯ ^ ] = 0.737) and exhibited variable density, from <250 to >1000 individuals per hectare, associated with increased soil moisture and reduced solar exposure due to slope face. While more ubiquitously distributed (ψ ¯ ^ = 0.95), P. kentucki density varied from <400 to >1,000 individuals per hectare and was inversely related to increased solar exposure from canopy disturbance and landscape convexity. Our data suggest co-occurrence patterns of P. richmondi and P. kentucki are influenced primarily by abiotic conditions within the forest, and that populations likely occur independently and without evidence of biotic interaction. Given the critical role that woodland salamanders play in the maintenance of forest health, regions that support large populations of woodland salamanders, such as those highlighted in this study-mesic forest stands on north-to-east facing slopes with dense canopy and abundant natural cover, may provide enhanced ecosystem services and support the stability of the total forest.
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Affiliation(s)
- J. Alex Baecher
- Department of Biological Sciences and Division of Natural AreasEastern Kentucky UniversityRichmondKentucky
| | - Stephen C. Richter
- Department of Biological Sciences and Division of Natural AreasEastern Kentucky UniversityRichmondKentucky
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11
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Ockleford C, Adriaanse P, Berny P, Brock T, Duquesne S, Grilli S, Hernandez-Jerez AF, Bennekou SH, Klein M, Kuhl T, Laskowski R, Machera K, Pelkonen O, Pieper S, Stemmer M, Sundh I, Teodorovic I, Tiktak A, Topping CJ, Wolterink G, Aldrich A, Berg C, Ortiz-Santaliestra M, Weir S, Streissl F, Smith RH. Scientific Opinion on the state of the science on pesticide risk assessment for amphibians and reptiles. EFSA J 2018; 16:e05125. [PMID: 32625798 PMCID: PMC7009658 DOI: 10.2903/j.efsa.2018.5125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Following a request from EFSA, the Panel on Plant Protection Products and their Residues developed an opinion on the science to support the potential development of a risk assessment scheme of plant protection products for amphibians and reptiles. The coverage of the risk to amphibians and reptiles by current risk assessments for other vertebrate groups was investigated. Available test methods and exposure models were reviewed with regard to their applicability to amphibians and reptiles. Proposals were made for specific protection goals aiming to protect important ecosystem services and taking into consideration the regulatory framework and existing protection goals for other vertebrates. Uncertainties, knowledge gaps and research needs were highlighted.
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12
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Hickerson CAM, Anthony CD, Walton BM. Eastern Red-backed Salamanders Regulate Top-Down Effects in a Temperate Forest-Floor Community. HERPETOLOGICA 2017. [DOI: 10.1655/herpetologica-d-16-00081.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Carl D. Anthony
- Department of Biology, John Carroll University, University Heights, OH 44118, USA
| | - B. Michael Walton
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA
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13
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Using Spatial Capture–Recapture to Elucidate Population Processes and Space-Use in Herpetological Studies. J HERPETOL 2016. [DOI: 10.1670/15-166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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14
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Siddig AAH, Ellison AM, Mathewson BG. Assessing the impacts of the decline of
Tsuga canadensis
stands on two amphibian species in a New England forest. Ecosphere 2016. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.1574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed A. H. Siddig
- Faculty of Forestry University of Khartoum Khartoum North Khartoum State Sudan
- Harvard Forest Harvard University 324 N. Main Street Petersham Massachusetts 01366 USA
- Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences University of British Columbia 2424 Main Mall Vancouver British Columbia V6T 1Z4 Canada
| | - Aaron M. Ellison
- Harvard Forest Harvard University 324 N. Main Street Petersham Massachusetts 01366 USA
| | - Brooks G. Mathewson
- Harvard Forest Harvard University 324 N. Main Street Petersham Massachusetts 01366 USA
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15
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Matsui M. Food Partitioning in Three Syntopic Frogs in a Bornean Plantation. CURRENT HERPETOLOGY 2016. [DOI: 10.5358/hsj.35.83] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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16
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Sitvarin MI, Rypstra AL, Harwood JD. Linking the green and brown worlds through nonconsumptive predator effects. OIKOS 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.03190] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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17
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Cameron AC, Hickerson CAM, Anthony CD. Plethodon cinereus(Eastern Red-Backed Salamander) Not Affected by Long-Term Exposure to Soil Liming. Northeast Nat (Steuben) 2016. [DOI: 10.1656/045.023.0106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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18
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Milanovich JR, Peterman WE. Revisiting Burton and Likens (1975): Nutrient Standing Stock and Biomass of a Terrestrial Salamander in the Midwestern United States. COPEIA 2016. [DOI: 10.1643/ot-14-180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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19
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Advancing Terrestrial Salamander Population Ecology: The Central Role of Imperfect Detection. J HERPETOL 2015. [DOI: 10.1670/14-100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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20
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Semlitsch R, O’Donnell K, Thompson F. Abundance, biomass production, nutrient content, and the possible role of terrestrial salamanders in Missouri Ozark forest ecosystems. CAN J ZOOL 2014. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2014-0141] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The transfer of energy and nutrients largely depends on the role of animals in the movement of biomass between trophic levels and ecosystems. Despite the historical recognition that amphibians could play an important role in the movement of biomass and nutrients, very few studies have provided reliable estimates of abundance and density of amphibians to reveal their true importance. Here, we provide robust estimates of abundance and density of a dominant species, the Southern Redback Salamander (Plethodon serratus Grobman, 1944), in the oak forest ecosystem of the Ozark Highlands in Missouri. We then use the abundance and density estimates to calculate biomass and nutrient content of salamanders at our study sites in the Ozark forests. Salamanders at the Sinkin Experimental Forest comprise a large amount of protein, energy, and nutrients that greatly exceed estimates derived some 35 years ago in the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, New Hampshire. Our estimates (7 300 – 12 900 salamanders·ha−1) are 2–4 times greater than the values reported by Burton and Likens (1975a, Ecology, 56: 1068–1080; 1975b, Copeia, 1975: 541–546). Furthermore, we show that density estimates of other small plethodontid species reported in the literature are nearly an order of magnitude greater than that reported by Burton and Likens. We believe this indicates that previous results have underestimated the importance of salamander biomass, nutrient, and energy flux, and their functional role in regulating invertebrates and carbon retention in forest ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- R.D. Semlitsch
- Division of Biological Sciences, 105 Tucker Hall, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
| | - K.M. O’Donnell
- Division of Biological Sciences, 105 Tucker Hall, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
| | - F.R. Thompson
- USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station, 202 ABNR, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
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21
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Slow Lives in the Fast Landscape: Conservation and Management of Plethodontid Salamanders in Production Forests of the United States. FORESTS 2014. [DOI: 10.3390/f5112750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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