|
|
|
Reptile and amphibian conservation papers from conference in Brazil Annual Meeting of the Society for Conservation Biology July 22, 2005 Below is a sampling of some of the reptile and amphibian conservation-related papers submitted for the conference. All descriptions are excepts from the official "Book of Abstracts" from the meeting. More abstracts. BRASILEIRO, CINTHIA A. Museu de História Natural, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Campinas, SP, CEP, Brazil, cinthia_brasileiro((AT))yahoo.com.br. There are approximately 120 islands in São Paulo State, southeastern Brazil. However, there are only anecdotal records of amphibians in only few of those islands. The aim of this study was to assess the richness of amphibians in 10 of those islands and provide some arguments to protect them. I visited islands between December 2001 and December 2004 (total of 24 trips) to collect amphibians and I also examined the specimens deposited in theXIX Annual Meeting of the Society for Conservation Biology ABSTRACTS Museu de Zoologia, USP. I have recorded 10 frog species including three undescribed species, Scinax spn1 (perpusillus group) from Queimada Grande; Scinax spn2 (perpusillus group) from Porcos Pequena and Cycloramphus spn (eleutherodactylus group) from Alcatrazes. Adenomera marmorata was recorded in nine islands; Thoropa miliaris on five and, Eleutherodactylus binotatus and Dendrophryniscus brevipolicatus were recorded on three islands. Three other species occur only in one island. The endemism and restricted distribution of these species may be an argument to request more protection to these islands from governmental authorities. It is urgent to assess the fauna and flor a from as many islands as possible. This knowledge is essential to claim to Government more protection to these fragile habitats. FAPESP, FUNDAÇÃO BOTICARIO and IDEA WILD support this study URBAN EXPANSION AND ECOLOGICAL PLANNING: AN ATTEMPT AT INTEGRATING AMPHIBIANS TO URBAN ENVIRONMENTS. SILVANO, DÉBORA L.; Leite, Felipe S. F.; Cienfuegos, Camilo; Resende, Saulo R. O. Sete Soluções e Tecnologia Ambiental, Av. Getúlio Vargas 1420, 16º andar, Savassi 30112-021 Belo Horizonte MG Brazil (DLS, CC, SROR), sete((AT))sete-sta.com.br; Laboratório de Ecologia Evolutiva de Anfíbios e Répteis, Mestrado em Zoologia de Vertebrados, PUC-Minas, Belo Horizonte, 30.535-610, MG, Brazil (FSFL) pjandaia((AT))yahoo.com.br. The southern portion of the Metropolitan Area of Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil, is under enormous strain deriving from urban expansion and consequent land speculation. The real Estate development, Vale dos Cristais, is located at an ecotone between the Cerrado and the Atlantic Forest biomes that was considered as a priority area for amphibian conservation in the State. In the aim of sustainable local use and occupation, multidisciplinary studies guided its ecological-urban planning. For amphibian studies we used direct search and complementary pitfall traps to better inventory the area that showed nineteen species; two of these species being regional endemic and eight known as typical forest species. The presence of these species support a civic scheme from anurofauna’s optics and make the implementation of a monitoring program necessary. In terms of the land development, the urban planning restricted the use of some areas not recommended for occupation, as well guaranteed the preservation of ca 250 hectars area, where a private reserve will be created. These actions are considered essential to maintain natural ecosystems and fauna corridors, assuring then the survival of the diverse amphibian species within this urban project LINKING AMPHIBIAN ECOTOXICOLOGY AND CONSERVATION BIOLOGY: A GLOBAL SYNTHESIS. SCHIESARI, LUIS; Grillitsch, Heinz; Grillitsch, Britta. Environmental Management, University of São Paulo (EACH/USP-Leste), Av. Arlindo Bétio s/n, 03828-080, São Paulo, SP, Brazil, lschiesa((AT))umich.edu (LS). Natural History Museum of Vienna, I. Department of Zoology, Burgring 7, A-1014, Vienna, Austria (HG). Aquatic Ecotoxicology, Department of Natural Sciences, University of Veterinary Medicine of Vienna, Josef Baumann-Gasse 1, A-1210, Vienna, Austria (BG). Understanding the causes of amphibian population declines represents a major challenge in conservation biology. Pollution is an important cause, threatening one-fifth of amphibian species in the world. Our aims were to characterize the state of knowledge, verify trends and potential research biases, and objectively assess future directions in the study of pollution impacts on amphibians. We compiled a global database from the ecotoxicological literature employing a well-defined search strategy (4000+ publications; Biosis and Medline; 1966-2004). We extracted from each publication the key biological (e. g. taxon, biogeographic realm) and ecotoxicological variables (e. g. toxicants, exposure scenarios, effects), which were crossed with data from the Global Amphibian Assessment. Trends indicate deficiencies affecting causal explanation of declines and risk assessment. Biogeographical and taxonomic biases are strong with less than 5% of species studied, a single genus (Rana) accounting for one-fourth of all published papers, and less than 1% of neotropical species studied although eight of the top ten countries in threatened species are neotropical. Finally, although declines may have multiple causes, few studies tested interactions among different stressors. We conclude that research at the amphibian ecotoxicology-conservation biology interface should emphasize the interactive effects of pollutants and other abiotic and biotic stressors in threatened faunas COUNTRYSIDE BIOGEOGRAPHY IN REPTILE AND AMPHIBIAN COMMUNITIES IN SOUTHERN COSTA RICA: CONSERVATION VALUE OF HUMAN DOMINATED LANDSCAPES. SANTOS, GEORGINA; Pacheco, Jesús; Ceballos, Gerardo; Mendoza-Quijano, Fernando; Daily, Gretchen; Ehrlich, Paul. Museo de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias, A. P. 70-399 e Instituto de Ecología, A. P. 70-275, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México D. F., 04510, México (GS, JP & GC) Instituto Tecnológico de Huejutla, Hidalgo (FMQ). Center for Conservation Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, U. S. A. (GD & PE). The future of biological diversity in the tropics depends largely on the conservation value of human-dominated lands. In this study we investigated the distribution of amphibians and reptiles in five habitats of southern Costa Rica: relatively extensive forest (227 ha), coffee plantation, pasture, coffee with adjacent forest remnant (<35 ha), and pasture with adjacent forest remnant (<35 ha). Species richness, composition, and abundance varied significantly with habitat type and distance from the extensive forest. Additionally, we recorded the local extinction of at least 5 species, likely as a result of human induced changes such as forest fragmentation, introduced diseases, and global warming. Of the 67 amphibian and reptile species recorded in our plots, most species (48, 68%) were found in forests and forest fragments, 36 (50%) in coffee plantations, and 38 (51%) in pastures. Additionally, 20 were recorded exclusively in extensive forest and forest fragments, 8 in coffee, and 8 in pastures. Our results were comparable to a similar study of mammals: relative continuous forest and small forest patches in combination with coffee plantations are important for the maintenance of the region´s biological diversity, despite large scale negative human activities NATURAL PROTECTED AREAS AND THE CONSERVATION OF AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES IN MEXICO: PRIORIZING SPECIES AND AREAS FOR CONSERVATION STRATEGIES. Santos, Georgina; PACHECO, JESÚS; Ceballos, Gerardo. Museo de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias, A. P. 70-399 (GS). Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México D. F. 04510. México. Main goal in the establishment of natural protected areas (NPA) is to preserve ecosystems and biodiversity associated in order to perpetuate the natural evolutionary processes. Successful results can be attained identifying priority areas for conservation that best represent the biological diversity and can optimize resources. This study evaluates the efficiency of the NPA’s for the conservation of the Mexican amphibians and reptiles. These groups are highly diverse in Mexico, reaching 1164 species (360 amphibians and 804 reptiles) with high endemism (60%, 241, and 450 respectively). Thirty-four inventory lists of herpetofauna from Protected Areas were compiled and conservation status, geographic range, and endemism of the species were considered as the main features to build a hierarchical system resulting in the identification of priority species for conservation. The complimentary study of these NPA’s reveals that 56% of the Mexican herpetofauna are excluded from the NPA’s, being critical for amphibians, where only 38% have protected populations. The complimentary analysis reveals that 31 reserves are necessary to protect the herpetofauna included in the NPA’s. Efficient strategies for planning reserves are necessary to guarantee the preservation of the priority and non priority species of the Mexican herpetofaun THE GENETIC RECOVERY OF AMPHIBIAN POPULATIONS TO HABITAT FRAGMENTATION. MEYER, SHAVONNE; Green, David M. Redpath Museum, Department of Biology, McGill University, 859 Sherbrooke St. West, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, shavonne.meyer((AT))mail.mcgill.ca (SM, DMG). Forest fragments are often deforested and then allowed to recover in order for future deforestation events to occur. There is a need to know how the populations within these forests are able to resist or recover from these events. We sampled populations of two amphibian species of different dispersal tendencies: the wood frog (Rana sylvatica), and the redbacked salamander (Plethodon cinereus), from sites in three localities of different fragmentation histories in Monteregie, Quebec. Tissue samples were taken for DNA analysis using 6 microsatellite loci to detect fine-scale genetic differentiation between sites for each species, with respect to the distances between sites, and for each locality. We found that fine-scale genetic differentiation is apparent at the spatial scales tested and the magnitude of these differences is greater for the poorer disperser, the greater distances between sites, and the locality that is presently most fragmented. We also found that the genetic differences observed at each locality indicate that after the forests have had some time to re-grow, amphibian populations were able to recover genetically from some of the differentiationABSTRACTS Universidade de Brasília, Brazil, July 2005 that occurred during times of fragmentation, although this is less evident for P. cinereus, the poorer disperser MANAGEMENT AND CONSERVATION REQUIREMENTS FOR KOMODO DRAGON POPULATIONS IN KOMODO NATIONAL PARK, INDONESIA. JESSOP, TIM S.; Imansyah, Jeri; Purwandana, Deni; Rudiharto, Heru; Ciofi, Claudio. Beckmann centre for Conservation and Research ofXIX Annual Meeting of the Society for Conservation Biology ABSTRACTS Endangered Species, Zoological Society of San Diego, 1500 San Pasqual Road, Escondido, Ca, USA (TSJ, JI, DP), tjessop((AT)) sandiegozoo.org. Komodo National Park, Flores, Nusa Tenggara Timor, Indonesia (HR). Department of Animal Biology and Genetics, University of Florence, Via Romana 17, 50125 Florence, Italy (CC). Within archipelagos, populations may exhibit intraspecific differences requiring plasticity in management and conservation practices. Four of the five island populations of the Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis) reside within the world heritage listed Komodo National Park, in eastern Indonesia. To identify current management and conservation requirements for the park’s dragon populations a concerted long term research program has been established. Our results indicate that major differences in demography and ecology exist between dragon populations on the 2 large islands of Komodo and Rinca and the 2 small islands of Motang and Kode. Specifically, island area influences prey diversity and availability which, in turn, influences the density, growth and body size of dragons. The Motang Island population, estimated at 51± 6 post-hatchling individuals, has recorded a recent reduction in catch per unit effort, body condition and changes in population size structure. Such changes have resulted from a decreased abundance in the Timor deer, due to suspected poaching. Increased resource security and potential augmentation of prey density may be required to conserve this population. Overall, differences among island populations indicate that Komodo dragon related management activities within Komodo National Park must increasingly operate at an island level to maximize conservation efforts THE DECLINING AMPHIBIAN POPULATIONS TASK FORCE (DAPTF): ACHIEVEMENTS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS. MCKAY, JEANNE; Halliday, Tim. The Declining amphibian Populations Task Force (DAPTF), Department of Biological Sciences, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, UK daptf((AT))open.ac.uk. Since the first World Congress of Herpetology in 1989, it was clear that amphibians were threatened worldwide and that many of the environmental threats transcended national boundaries, notably climate change and infectious disease. To address these problems, a truly global organisation was required and in 1991, the Declining Amphibian Task Force (DAPTF) was established by the Species Survival Commission (SSC) of the World Conservation Union (IUCN). The DAPTF operates through a global network of issue-based Working Groups focused on specific topics including: disease and pathology, monitoring techniques, chemical contaminants, climatic and atmospheric change and captive breeding. We also support Regional Working Groups representing over 90 different regions to collect data on amphibian declines and their causes. To continue building a truly global assessment of the amphibian decline phenomenon, we would like to expand our work in Africa, Asia and the Far East and make our various funding initiatives available to more people around the world. Since 1989, we have developed a more complete picture of the global pattern of decline resulting in the IUCN’s Global Amphibian Assessment and our own Declining Amphibian Database. These enable us to identify specific regions and amphibian taxa that most urgently require our attention SUSCEPTIBILITY OF NATIVE AMPHIBIANS TO CHYTRIDIOMYCOSIS IN THE VENEZUELAN ANDES. HAN, BARBARA A.; Nava, Francisco; La Marca, Enrique; Lampo, Margarita; Blaustein, Andrew R. Oregon State Universit Cordley Hall Corvallis, OR 97331 USA (BAH, ARB) hanba((AT))science.oregonstate.edu. Universidad de Los Andes, Departamento de Geografía, Mérida, Venezuela (FN, EL). Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Científicas, Departamento de Ecología, Km 11 carretera Panamericana, Caracas 1020-A Venezuela (ML). Amphibian chytridiomycosis is a globally emerging infectious disease of amphibians. Following the recent identification of the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis in Venezuela the numbers of species affected by chytridiomycosis and the rate of spread remain without estimate. The presence of an invasive disease vector, the American bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana), and high amphibian biodiversity in this region combine to present a significant conservation concern. We inoculated tadpoles of five native anurans (Hyla crepitans, Hyla meri densis, Bufo marinus, Mannophryne collaris and Physalaemus pustulosus) in the laboratory to quantitatively characterize chytridiomycosis using time to metamorphosis, infection severity, and mortality to assess potential disease concern in these species. These species exhibit various altitudinal ranges, and Hyla meridensis is sympatric with American bullfrogs. We present evidence that species ecology may play a significant role in the disease ecology of chytridiomycosis in this region, and cosmopolitan and low elevation species exhibit lower susceptibility to chytridiomycosis. This study presents the first assessment of chytridiomycosis risk to native species of the Venezuelan Andes TRANSLOCATION AS A RECOVERY STRATEGY FOR THE CRITICALLY ENDANGERED TURKS AND CAICOS IGUANA. GERBER, GLENN P.; Alberts, Allison C. Center for Conservation and Research for Endangered Species,ABSTRACTS Universidade de Brasília, Brazil, July 2005 Zoological Society of San Diego, 15600 San Pasqual Valley Road, Escondido, CA 92027-7000, USA, ggerber((AT))sandiegozoo.org. In response to threats from introduced mammalian predators and human development, Turks and Caicos iguanas (Cyclura carinata) were translocated in January 2002 and 2003 from two large but threatened island populations to four small protected islands with suitable habitat but lacking extant iguana populations. Translocation islands received 18-82 adult iguanas of equal sex ratio from one of the two source islands, depending upon their area (1-12 ha) and estimated adult carrying capacity. Source and translocated populations were monitored 2-3 times annually between 2002 and 2005. By five months post-translocation adult iguanas on translocation islands had established normal movement patterns and were exhibiting normal or increased growth rates relative to source populations. Successful reproduction has occurred on all translocation islands each year since reintroduction and iguanas hatched on translocation islands are exhibiting growth rates 2-4 times that of juveniles the same age on source islands. This has resulted in a decrease in age at maturity on translocation islands, relative to source islands, from 6-7 years to 2-4 years. We attribute increased growth rates on translocation islands to decreased intra-specific competition (i. e., density), relative to source populations, and predict that growth rates will return to baseline as carrying capacities are approached EFFECT OF FRAGMENTATION ON THE DIVERSITY AND BODY SIZE OF CLOUD FOREST FROGS (AMPHIBIA: ANURA) FROM THE CENTRAL ANDES OF COLOMBIA. GALEANO, SANDRA; Urbina, Jenny. Grupo Herpetológico de Antioquia, Universidad de Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia, spgaleano((AT))yahoo.com (SG, JU). Fragmentation is one of the most severe threats affecting biodiversity worldwide; however, much of the research on this has been biased taxonomically and geographically. The highly fragmented Andean cloud forests harbor an extremely rich and unique anurofauna, yet it is unknown how landscape changes in this ecosystem impact these amphibians. We assessed the effect of fragmentation on the habitat, diversity, and body size of forest anurans from the Central Andes of Colombia. To do so, we selected six forest patches of varying size where we measured environmental and habitat features, and sampled frogs during the wet and dry seasons of 2002. We used ordination analyses techniques (PCA, CCA) to evaluate how habitat differences among patches influence the variation in species diversity and body size. Species richness was not related to patch area despite cumulative numbers of captured individuals being larger in large fragments. Relative abundances showed differential responses to fragmentation according with particular habitat characteristics. Only an endemic beaked toad (Rhamphophryne macrorhina) exhibited larger body sizes at small patches. Our results indicate that taking patch area alone is an unreliable way to elucidate the fragmentation effects on anurans since multiple environmental and habitat variables do influence diversity and abundance EFFECTS OF THE FRAGMENTATION OF ATLANTIC FOREST IN THE STATE OF ALAGOAS (NORTHEASTERN BRAZIL) ON THE DIVERSITY OF SPECIES OF LIZARDS AND SNAKES. FREIRE, ELIZA M. X.; Caramaschi, Ulisses; Rodrigues, Miguel T.; Silva, Selma T. Departamento de Botânica, Ecologia e Zoologia, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN, 59072-790, Brazil, elizajuju((AT))ufrnet.br. Departamento de Vertebrados do Museu Nacional da UFRJ, Quinta da Boa Vista, São Cristóvão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. Departamento de Zoologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Museu de História Natural da Universidade Federal de Alagoas, Maceió, AL, Brazil. The Atlantic Forest of the Brazil has become fragmented and reduced to about 7% of its original size. In the Northeastern Region the most significant remnants are in the States of Bahia (6%) and Alagoas (2%). An inventory was carried out between 1993 an in different-sized forest fragments in the state of Alagoas, occupying a total of 2,950 man-hours of fieldwork. The diversity of species was ascertained and areas were compared applying Shannon ’s diversity index and Hutcheson’s t-test. A large diversity of species was observed and, furthermore, 19% of the species were endemic to the northern part of the Atlantic Forest, indeed two of them are new to science and the smallest area exhibited the highest diversity index. To re-evaluate these results, further studies were carried out in two of the previous areas and two new areas, during 1,100 man-hours of work. The results confirmed greater diversity in the smaller area. Despite this fact being important for the conservation of forest fragments, it should be noted that the maintenance of this diversity is not guaranteed, because the populations of these fragments may not be viable in the long term CONSERVATION OF A LARGE FRUGIVOROUS MONITOR LIZARD IN THE PHILIPPINES. BENNETT, DANIEL. School of Biology, University of Leeds, UK. Frugivory is a rare strategy amongst lizards but in the Philippines Islands a group of large (>9kg) Varanus lizards have evolved to be specialized frugivores in dipterocarp forest. Efforts to understand their ecology and promote their conservation have been hampered by their highly arboreal and secretive behaviour. Here I report on the behavioural ecology of a population of Varanus olivaceus in fragmented forest on Polillo Island, Quezon Province, Philippines, that have been the subject of a non-destructive and largely non-intrusive study instigated in 1999. Despite the large numbers of fruit types available to animals in dipterocarp forest the lizards feed mainly on fruit from just four genera They act as unique dispersers of Pandanus seeds which results in high densities of these plants along hillslopes and ridges, which in turn has important implications of other fauna and flora dependant on Pandanus microhabitats. Their inability to fly means that large frugivorous lizards are more vulnerable to forest fragmentation than sympatric frugivores (birds and bats), but the results of this study indicate that populations can be maintained in disturbed forest if a few key resources are maintained. AMPHIBIAN COMMUNITY STRUCTURE IN A MOSAIC LANDSCAPE. BECKER, CARLOS GUILHERME; Fonseca, Carlos Roberto. Laboratório de Interação Animal - Planta, Centro 2, UNISINOS, São Leopoldo, RS, 93022-000, Brazil, cfonseca((AT))bios.unisinos.br. We evaluated how the replacement of Araucaria Forest by tree monocultures affects the community structure of litter amphibians. The study was carried out in the Floresta Nacional de São Francisco de Paula (Southern Brazil) that is a mosaic landscape composed by Araucaria Forest and tree monocultures of Araucaria angustifolia, Pinus, and Eucalyptus. The distinctive use of these habitats by amphibian community was evaluated selecting three one-hectare areas for each habitat. In each area, five pitfall traps with drift fences were randomly installed. Bimonthly censuses were carried out from October 2003 to December 2004, with a total effort of 1440 traps. day. In total, 241 individuals of seven species were recorded; Bufo ictericus and Physalaemus lisei being the most abundant species. The diversity and species richness of amphibians were significantly higher in Araucaria For- est and monocultures of Eucalyptus than in areas of Araucaria and Pinus, despite there was no difference in abundance among habitats. Species composition differed slighlty among habitats, however, mostly due to rarer species. The presence of a matrix of Araucaria Forest nearby tree monocultures tends to minimize their negative impact to the amphibian community. Society for Conservation Biology - Brasilia 2005 News index | RSS | Add to MyYahoo! Advertisements: Organic Apparel from Patagonia | Insect-repelling clothing |
MONGABAY.COM
T-SHIRTS 
CALENDARS 
CANVAS BAGS 
|
|
|
