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Author: Patrick Yamnik
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 104
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Book Description
Abstract: Amphibian populations are experiencing rapid declines throughout the world that are apparently driven by habitat loss and fragmentation. Of particular concern is the rapid loss of wetland habitats which serve as critical breeding habitat for many amphibian species. For many species we don't really understand the habitat requirements for reproduction. Many wetlands, especially small isolated wetlands, are being lost and replace with mitigation wetlands that may not provide the same quality habitat as the natural wetlands they replace. The spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) is a key example of an amphibian species that relies on small isolated wetlands for breeding habitat. Although the spotted salamander is not endangered, it can be used as a surrogate to study habitat availability and breeding behavior. The objective of this study is to determine what characteristics of wetlands are determinants of their use by spotted salamanders for breeding. I measured eight variables for 40 ponds at the University of Mississippi Biological Field Station during 2007, including pH, canopy cover, emergent vegetation, submerged vegetation, distance to the nearest forest, hydroperiod, fish abundance, and larval mole salamander (Ambystoma talpodideum) abundance. I then correlated these variables using Spearman rank correlations and non-metric multidimensional scaling with spotted salamander egg mass density and larval survival. Emergent vegetation, hydroperiod, and larval mole salamander abundance all appeared to be positively correlated with spotted salamander egg mass deposition and larval survival. Of these factors, emergent vegetation and hydroperiod are likely to be factors affecting site selection, while the positive correlation with the mole salamander abundance is likely due to similar breeding habitat preference by two species. Because the presence of emerge vegetation appeared to be the most significant factor driving egg mass deposition, I chose to manipulate this variable in 30 ponds for the 2008 breeding season. Ten ponds were placed into each of the following treatments: increased emergement vegetation, decreased emergent vegetation, and no manipulation of emergent vegetation to determine if salamanders would switch ponds to maximize reproductive success. There was no significant difference in the change of egg mass counts between years for the treatments. The lack of change was likely due to fidelity to the breeding pond by adult salamanders. This study suggest that emergent vegetation and hydroperiod are important pond characteristics assessed by spotted salamanders but that adult salamanders may continue to see ponds after the pond characteristics are altered. Censuses of spotted salamanders using egg mass counts may not be the most sensitive measure of environmental change due to strong breeding site fidelity.
Author: Patrick Yamnik
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 104
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Book Description
Abstract: Amphibian populations are experiencing rapid declines throughout the world that are apparently driven by habitat loss and fragmentation. Of particular concern is the rapid loss of wetland habitats which serve as critical breeding habitat for many amphibian species. For many species we don't really understand the habitat requirements for reproduction. Many wetlands, especially small isolated wetlands, are being lost and replace with mitigation wetlands that may not provide the same quality habitat as the natural wetlands they replace. The spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) is a key example of an amphibian species that relies on small isolated wetlands for breeding habitat. Although the spotted salamander is not endangered, it can be used as a surrogate to study habitat availability and breeding behavior. The objective of this study is to determine what characteristics of wetlands are determinants of their use by spotted salamanders for breeding. I measured eight variables for 40 ponds at the University of Mississippi Biological Field Station during 2007, including pH, canopy cover, emergent vegetation, submerged vegetation, distance to the nearest forest, hydroperiod, fish abundance, and larval mole salamander (Ambystoma talpodideum) abundance. I then correlated these variables using Spearman rank correlations and non-metric multidimensional scaling with spotted salamander egg mass density and larval survival. Emergent vegetation, hydroperiod, and larval mole salamander abundance all appeared to be positively correlated with spotted salamander egg mass deposition and larval survival. Of these factors, emergent vegetation and hydroperiod are likely to be factors affecting site selection, while the positive correlation with the mole salamander abundance is likely due to similar breeding habitat preference by two species. Because the presence of emerge vegetation appeared to be the most significant factor driving egg mass deposition, I chose to manipulate this variable in 30 ponds for the 2008 breeding season. Ten ponds were placed into each of the following treatments: increased emergement vegetation, decreased emergent vegetation, and no manipulation of emergent vegetation to determine if salamanders would switch ponds to maximize reproductive success. There was no significant difference in the change of egg mass counts between years for the treatments. The lack of change was likely due to fidelity to the breeding pond by adult salamanders. This study suggest that emergent vegetation and hydroperiod are important pond characteristics assessed by spotted salamanders but that adult salamanders may continue to see ponds after the pond characteristics are altered. Censuses of spotted salamanders using egg mass counts may not be the most sensitive measure of environmental change due to strong breeding site fidelity.
Author: Nicholas Gervais
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :
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Book Description
"Declines in amphibian populations have been noted since the late 1980's with many of the causes linked to habitat contamination and destruction by natural and anthropogenic sources. Amphibians with bi-phasic life histories have been thought to be particularly vulnerable to negative environmental conditions but there is much evidence of their resilience and capacity to survive in degraded or contaminated environments. Larval amphibians in small permanent or ephemeral ponds may be particularly vulnerable to altered environmental conditions and may face the greatest pressure to adapt. In Chapter 1, I briefly review the evidence of amphibian declines and how populations may adapt to and overcome assorted negative environmental factors. In Chapter 2, I investigated the phenomenon of adaptation in a particular circumstance. I collected Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) egg masses from a population breeding in a naturally acidic pond called Bat Lake, as well as four other populations living in lakes closer to pH neutral. To determine if the salamanders were adapted to their particular breeding lakes, I used common garden experiments in the lab where I raised larvae from each of the lakes in the waters from all the other lakes, as well as their own and compared the survival rates, size at metamorphosis and time to metamorphosis. Bat Lake larvae grew larger and survived longer in their acidic native breeding pond water than in the waters of other lakes suggesting they are adapted to their native pond waters. The larvae from the other lake populations showed similar results and fared better in their native waters than in the Bat Lake water. Based on these results, in Chapter 3, I tested if pH, specifically, was causal. I raised larvae from the five populations in waters of different pH (4.0, 5.5, 7.0), reasoning that if the Bat Lake population was more adapted to the high acidity compared to the other populations, the larvae from Bat Lake should demonstrate higher fitness correlates at lower pH than larvae of other populations. In this experiment, the Bat Lake larvae survived longer and grew larger in the highly acidic water than did larvae from the other populations. My results are consistent with natural selection for tolerance of low pH conditions tolerance among Bat Lake Spotted Salamander larvae and indicate that the salamanders from Bat Lake potentially exhibit signs of local adaption to the highly acidic conditions in which they live. This study was unable, however to prove whether this adaptation was due to evolutionary change, phenotypic plasticity, maternal effects or some other unknown factor. " --
Author: Shannon Elisabeth Pittman
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Electronic Dissertations
Languages : en
Pages : 200
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Human-induced habitat change is widely regarded as a primary factor threatening the persistence of species. One major consequence of habitat alteration is its effect on the movement behavior of individuals. Spotted salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) are forest-dependent, pond-breeding amphibians. I used a combination of empirical studies of juvenile spotted salamander movement and individual-based modeling to investigate the influence of habitat amount and arrangement on juvenile salamander survival. Salamanders moved straighter and with fewer turns through field habitat compared to both forest and early successional habitat. Movement in forest was well approximated by a correlated random walk. Salamanders oriented movement toward forest when released at most 10 m from the forest edge. Different movement strategies were optimal under different habitat modification scenarios. The strength of movement bias toward habitat had a significant effect on the probability of individuals locating habitat. The degree to which movement bias affected the probability of locating habitat differed based on assumptions of habitat clumping and density-dependent mortality. My results indicated that the amount and configuration of habitat surrounding wetlands affect optimal movement behavior, and habitat managers should consider the configuration of habitat surrounding wetlands when designing conservation measures.
Author: Christopher A. Phillips
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Breeding
Languages : en
Pages : 238
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Book Description
Author: Noah Charney
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Salamander populations
Languages : en
Pages : 132
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Book Description
Mole salamanders (Ambystoma) and woodfrogs (Lithobates sylvaticus) are abundant in New England and depend on ephemeral wetlands for breeding. Their aquatic habitats have been well studied and are protected by several local and regional regulations. State endangered species laws also protect marbled salamanders (A. opacum), Jefferson salamanders (A. jeffersonianum), and blue-spotted salamanders (A. laterale). However, these amphibians spend most of their adult lives in terrestrial habitats that remain poorly protected and elusive to researchers. In chapter 1, I developed a novel technique using passive integrated transponders for tracking small animals. I used this technique to track marbled salamanders walking up to 200 m from their breeding pond during post-breeding migrations. In Chapter 2, I examined the importance of multiple habitat variables for predicting the distributions of woodfrogs and spotted salamanders at 455 ponds in western Massachusetts. Based on a variable-comparison technique I developed, the best predictor for either species of amphibian was the amount of forest in the surrounding vii landscape. Both species were found more frequently in upland forests where the ponds are least protected by state and federal wetland regulations. In chapter 3, I used my data from chapter 2 and three other similar data sets to conduct an analysis of spatial scale and to parameterize a recently published resistant kernel model. The complex model parameterized by an expert panel did significantly worse than the null model. The distributions of both amphibians were best predicted by measuring the landscape at very large scales (over 1000 m). The most effective scales for conservation may be largest for organisms of intermediate dispersal capability. I n chapter 4, I explored the evolution and genetics of the Jefferson/blue-spotted/unisexual salamander complex. I framed research into the fascinating unisexual reproductive system with a model that relates nuclear genome replacement, positive selection on hybrids, and biogeography of the species complex. I parameterized this model using genetic data taken from salamanders spanning Massachusetts and an individual-based breeding simulation. If paternal genomes are transmitted to offspring with the frequencies reported from laboratory experiments, then my model suggests that there must be strong selection favoring unisexuals with hybrid nuclei.
Author: C. Kenneth Dodd
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199541191
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 585
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Book Description
Describes the latest methodologies used to study the ecology of amphibians throughout the world. Each of the 27 chapters explains a research approach or technique, with emphasis on careful planning and the potential biases of techniques. Statistical modelling, landscape ecology, and disease are covered for the first time in a techniques handbook.
Author: Peter Cornell Jr Trenham
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 218
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Book Description
Author: Bryan Steven Windmiller
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Ambystoma
Languages : en
Pages : 368
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Book Description
Spotted salamanders, like all vernal pool amphibians, cannot be adequately conserved through the current wetlands regulatory model, which excludes human impacts from wetlands while permitting wholesale destruction of surrounding terrestrial habitat. Wetlands are inextricably linked to the surrounding landscape through the migrations of species such as the spotted salamander. The conservation of "wetlands-dependent" wildlife will require a broader and more flexible approach to ecosystem conservation than has hitherto been attempted.
Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Hydrology
Languages : en
Pages : 760
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Author: Michael S. Osbourn
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Electronic Dissertations
Languages : en
Pages : 155
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The initial juvenile movement phase represents the first stage of the multi-phase process of natal dispersal. My objective was to investigate how alterations in forest habitat quality impact initial juvenile movement success and behavior. I conducted a mark-recapture study of juvenile Spotted Salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) and Green Frogs (Lithobates clamitans) within experimental forest arrays. Spotted Salamander movement success was significantly greater in partial-cut treatments than the control or clearcut treatments. Green Frog movement success was greatest in the control forest. A greater proportion of both Spotted Salamander and Green Frog juveniles, initially moving through open-canopy habitats, redirected their movements toward forests. I next sought to identify how fine-scale habitat quality affects juveniles' decisions to cease moving away from their natal pond and settle. By using experimental enclosures, I attempted to isolate the effects of forest canopy and microhabitat manipulations on salamander settling decisions relative to unmanipulated forest controls. For Spotted Salamanders and Ringed Salamanders (A. annulatum) settling probability decreased with forest canopy removal and compacted soils. Spotted salamander settling probability increased with higher refuge densities.
