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Simbula G, Bissattini AM, Vignoli L. Linking agricultural practices to lizard trophic behaviour: An ecological approach. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 830:154822. [PMID: 35341838 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2021] [Revised: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Among intensive agricultural practices, pesticides, mowing, and heavy agricultural machineries have become an important tool to maximize harvesting and secure animal husbandry. However, they are also cause of agricultural ecosystem decline, often leading to degradation of key micro-habitat features for many species, higher predation risk and lower food availability. We investigated the diet and foraging ecology of the Italian wall lizard in agricultural areas to determine whether different management practices (conventional, organic, and control) can affect (i) the structure of the trophic niche of the species; (ii) prey diversity, the degree of individual specialization, and the overall population feeding strategy; (iii) lizards' health status. Faecal pellets were collected for diet composition analyses, while prey diversity in the environment was estimated by placing adhesive traps. Lizards' body condition did not differ among management type although males from control field resulted slightly larger than those from conventional and organic areas. The species showed a generalist (conventional and organic areas) and mixed (control area) feeding strategy with a preference for coleopterans. Although a different prey diversity was found in control areas compared to organic and conventional ones, diet composition and the importance of specific food items was similar among management types. This may suggest that management activities may have affected the overall prey availability and indirectly influenced lizard trophic behaviour. Our study provides a comprehensive knowledge on the feeding ecology of P. siculus in managed habitats, which may have useful implications for the overall conservation of lizards in agricultural environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Simbula
- Dipartimento di Scienze, Università Roma Tre, Viale G. Marconi 446, 00146 Rome, Italy.
| | | | - Leonardo Vignoli
- Dipartimento di Scienze, Università Roma Tre, Viale G. Marconi 446, 00146 Rome, Italy
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Sunny A, Domínguez-Vega H, Caballero-Viñas C, Ramírez-Corona F, Suárez-Atilano M, González-Fernández A. A Salamander tale: Relative abundance, morphometrics and microhabitat of the critically endangered Mexican salamander Pseudoeurycea robertsi (Taylor, 1939). HERPETOZOA 2021. [DOI: 10.3897/herpetozoa.34.e54926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Roberts’ False Brook Salamander (Pseudoeurycea robertsi) is a critically endangered plethodontid salamander, endemic to the Nevado de Toluca Volcano (NTV), Mexico. Little is known about the biology and ecology of this species, including its microhabitats. Thus, this study aimed to collect basic information about P. robertsi. We sampled fourteen forested sites in the NTV; to corroborate the correct identification of the species we used genetic data, we assessed the variation in head morphometric measurements and dorsal colouration patterns amongst localities and the microhabitat features associated with P. robertsi presence. Of the four potential salamander species, P. robertsi was the most abundant (89.80%) and widely distributed (approximately within 130 km2) salamander in the NTV. We did not find significant variations in morphometry; however, we found significant differences in dorsal patterns between populations (in the number and size of segments of the dorsal stripe). The average total length for 185 adults was 89.15 mm (38.7–117.9 mm); we found seven patterns of dorsal stripe. We found 98% of P. robertsi individuals under the bark of fallen logs in Abies religiosa and A. religiosa-Pinus sp. forests, with a higher number of detected salamanders in naturally-fallen logs than in cut logs (34% vs. 10%). Thus, keeping well-preserved A. religiosa forests and retaining fallen logs is essential to P. robertsi conservation.
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Moskowitz NA, Dorritie B, Fay T, Nieves OC, Vidoudez C, 2017 Biology Class CRL, 2017 Biotechnology Class M, Fischer EK, Trauger SA, Coloma LA, Donoso DA, O’Connell LA. Land use impacts poison frog chemical defenses through changes in leaf litter ant communities. NEOTROPICAL BIODIVERSITY 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/23766808.2020.1744957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Tammy Fay
- Masconomet Regional High School, Boxford, MA USA
| | | | - Charles Vidoudez
- Small Molecule Mass Spectrometry Facility, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | | | - Eva K. Fischer
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Sunia A. Trauger
- Small Molecule Mass Spectrometry Facility, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Luis A. Coloma
- Centro Jambatu De Investigación Y Conservación De Anfibios, Fundación Jambatu, San Rafael, Quito, Ecuador
| | - David A. Donoso
- Departamento De Biología, Escuela Politécnica Nacional, Quito, Ecuador
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Sunny A, Duarte-deJesus L, Aguilera-Hernández A, Ramírez-Corona F, Suárez-Atilano M, Percino-Daniel R, Manjarrez J, Monroy-Vilchis O, González-Fernández A. Genetic diversity and demography of the critically endangered Roberts' false brook salamander (Pseudoeurycea robertsi) in Central Mexico. Genetica 2019; 147:149-164. [PMID: 30879155 DOI: 10.1007/s10709-019-00058-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2018] [Accepted: 03/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Land use changes are threatening the maintenance of biodiversity. Genetic diversity is one of the main indicators of biological diversity and is highly important as it shapes the capability of populations to respond to environmental changes. We studied eleven populations of Pseudoeurycea robertsi, a micro-endemic and critically endangered species from the Nevado de Toluca Volcano, a mountain that is part of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, Mexico. We sequenced the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene from 71 individuals and genotyped 9 microsatellites from 150 individuals. Our results based on the cytochrome b showed two divergent lineages, with moderate levels of genetic diversity and a recently historical demographic expansion. Microsatellite-based results indicated low levels of heterozygosity for all populations and few alleles per locus, as compared with other mole salamander species. We identified two genetically differentiated subpopulations with a significant level of genetic structure. These results provide fundamental data for the development of management plans and conservation efforts for this critically endangered species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Armando Sunny
- Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Biológicas Aplicadas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Instituto Literario #100, Colonia Centro, 50000, Toluca, Mexico State, Mexico.
| | - Luis Duarte-deJesus
- Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Biológicas Aplicadas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Instituto Literario #100, Colonia Centro, 50000, Toluca, Mexico State, Mexico
| | - Arlene Aguilera-Hernández
- Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Biológicas Aplicadas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Instituto Literario #100, Colonia Centro, 50000, Toluca, Mexico State, Mexico
| | - Fabiola Ramírez-Corona
- Taller de Sistemática y Biogeografía, Departamento de Biología Evolutiva, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Marco Suárez-Atilano
- Departamento de Ecología de la Biodiversidad, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Ruth Percino-Daniel
- Departamento de Ecología de la Biodiversidad, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Javier Manjarrez
- Laboratorio de Biología Evolutiva, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Instituto Literario #100, Colonia Centro, 50000, Toluca, Mexico State, Mexico
| | - Octavio Monroy-Vilchis
- Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Biológicas Aplicadas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Instituto Literario #100, Colonia Centro, 50000, Toluca, Mexico State, Mexico
| | - Andrea González-Fernández
- Laboratorio de Biología Evolutiva, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Instituto Literario #100, Colonia Centro, 50000, Toluca, Mexico State, Mexico
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Huckembeck S, Winemiller KO, Loebmann D, Garcia AM. Trophic Ecology of Two Sympatric Frogs with Contrasting Morphology and Habitat Use in a Subtropical Wetland. HERPETOLOGICA 2018. [DOI: 10.1655/herpetologica-d-17-00069.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sônia Huckembeck
- Oceanography Institute, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Campus Carreiros: Av. Itália km 8, Rio Grande do Sul, 96203-900, Brazil
| | - Kirk O. Winemiller
- Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-2258, USA
| | - Daniel Loebmann
- Biological Science Institute, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, 96203-900, Brazil
| | - Alexandre M. Garcia
- Oceanography Institute, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Campus Carreiros: Av. Itália km 8, Rio Grande do Sul, 96203-900, Brazil
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