Engineering a future for amphibians under climate change

Abstract

Summary1. Altered global climates in the 21st century pose serious threats for biological systems and practical actions are needed to mount a response for species at risk. 2. We identify management actions from across the world and from diverse disciplines that are applicable to minimizing loss of amphibian biodiversity under climate change. Actions were grouped under three thematic areas of intervention: (i) installation of microclimate and microhabitat refuges; (ii) enhancement and restoration of breeding sites; and (iii) manipulation of hydroperiod or water levels at breeding sites. 3. Synthesis and applications. There are currently few meaningful management actions that will tangibly impact the pervasive threat of climate change on amphibians. A host of potentially useful but poorly tested actions could be incorporated into local or regional management plans, programmes and activities for amphibians. Examples include: installation of irrigation sprayers to manipulate water potentials at breeding sites; retention or supplementation of natural and artificial shelters (e.g. logs, cover boards) to reduce desiccation and thermal stress; manipulation of canopy cover over ponds to reduce water temperature; and, creation of hydrologoically diverse wetland habitats capable of supporting larval development under variable rainfall

Predicted Changes in Climatic Niche and Climate Refugia of Conservation Priority Salamander Species in the Northeastern United States

“…At the local scale, adaptive management by developers, foresters, land trusts, and municipal planners that recognizes the importance of protecting microhabitat diversity and enhancement and restoration of breeding and refuge sites can help mitigate local effects of climate change [64]. At the landscape scale, public conservation lands provide a network of potential conservation priority areas to conserve and manage.…”

Decline of an endangered amphibian during an extreme climatic event

“…Actively mitigating the impact of habitat drying, through manipulating breeding habitat, may be critical for the future persistence of this species (cf. Shoo et al 2011). In North America and Europe habitat creation has been successfully used to increase abundance in threatened (Rannap et al 2009) and non-threatened amphibians (Vasconcelos and Calhoun 2006).…”

“…Climate extremes and climate change are likely to affect different amphibian species at various spatial scales (Shoo et al 2011). In Central America, amphibian declines have been connected with climate-driven reductions in leaf-litter microhabitat (Whitfield et al 2007), while in Europe, amphibian persistence during a climate extreme was related to landscape heterogeneity (Piha et al 2007).…”

“…Investigating how species respond to variations in climate may provide a valuable first step in understanding and predicting the effects of long-term climate change (Debinski et al 2006). This knowledge can then be used to develop tangible management responses such as habitat enhancement (Shoo et al 2011).…”

Efecto de los estadios sucesionales del bosque tropical seco sobre el microhabitat usado por Agalychnis dacnicolor (Anura: Phyllomedusidae) y Smilisca fodiens (Anura: Hylidae)

“…Los requerimientos del microhábitat para la mayoría de las especies de anfibios son virtualmente desconocidas lo que limita la implementación de estrategias encaminadas a su conservación en paisajes antropizados (Shoo et al, 2011). Nuestro estudio aporta información relevante sobre el microhábitat utilizado en respuesta a la sucesión secundaria del bosque tropical seco de dos especies sintópicas.…”