Herpetofaunal Colonization Patterns of Atlantic Coast Barrier Islands

Gibbons, J. Whitfield; Coker, John W.

doi:10.2307/2424945

Cited by 24 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 11 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Stuart et al, 2004), we wish to call attention to two, in our opinion, significant points. First, the Southern Leopard Frog has been historically reported from the two eastern shore counties of Virginia, which form the southern extent of the Delmarva Peninsula (Northampton and Accomack) (Conant, 1945;Gibbons Coker, 1978;Conant et al, 1990;Roble et al, 2000; this study). The Delmarva Peninsula represents the northern portion of the Middle Atlantic Coastal Plains ecoregion, a highly threatened area that harbors a diverse biotic assemblage (Ray, 1991) that has been recently elevated to a Global Biodiversity Hotspot as the North American Coastal Plain (Noss et al, 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Reproduction and growth of the Southern Leopard Frog, Lithobates sphenocephalus utricularius (Harlan, 1825), in Virginia: implications for seasonal shifts in response to global climate change

Hughes

Meshaka²,

Delis³

2017

bah

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

An examination of 750 museum specimens of the Southern Leopard Frog (Lithobates sphenocephalus) collected during 1938-1989 from eastern Virginia (USA) provided comparative life-history data from the northeastern portion of this species geographic range. Individuals were collected in all months except December. Testis size was largest and incidence of gravid females was highest during fall and spring. In both sexes, fat storage was lowest during late-winter-spring, which is indicative of increased activity and commencement of breeding. Incidence of food in stomachs was lowest in late winter and relatively high thereafter, especially in males. Geographic trends in five lifehistory traits were corroborated for the Southern Leopard Frog in this study, including breeding season, egg size, mean adult body size, sexual size dimorphism, and larval metamorphosis season. In response to hotter summers and milder winters, as predicted to occur with climate change, the reproductive characteristics for this species in Virginia will likely shift to resemble contemporary reproductive patterns of southern populations.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Reproduction and growth of the Southern Leopard Frog, Lithobates sphenocephalus utricularius (Harlan, 1825), in Virginia: implications for seasonal shifts in response to global climate change

Hughes

Meshaka²,

Delis³

2017

bah

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Southern toad ( Anaxyrus terrestris ) tadpoles were collected for experiments on 27 May 2011 from an isolated freshwater wetland in Francis Marion National Forest, Charleston County, South Carolina (+32°5632.23, –79°492.05) in the tidally influenced Wando River watershed. Anaxyrus terrestris is abundant throughout the coastal plain of the southeastern United States, including maritime forests and barrier islands ; thus, some populations may be vulnerable to habitat salinization. Because A. terrestris commonly occurs in human‐influenced habitats, including suburban and agricultural landscapes , populations are also likely to be exposed to pesticides and other pollutants.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of interactive effects of elevated salinity and three pesticides on life history and behavior of southern toad (Anaxyrus terrestris) tadpoles

Wood

Welch

2015

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Because habitats are increasingly exposed to multiple stressors simultaneously, assessing the interactive effects of stressors is crucial for understanding how populations respond to human-altered habitats. Salinization of freshwater habitats is increasing and has the potential to interact with other stressors. Chemical pollutants also contribute to habitat degradation in freshwater environments, and both salinity and various pesticides can harm amphibians. The present study used a factorial experiment to investigate the effect of elevated salinity alone and in combination with each of 3 pesticides-atrazine, carbaryl, and glyphosate-on life history and behavior of southern toad larvae (Anaxyrus terrestris). Tadpoles were negatively affected by elevated salinity and by exposure to the insecticide carbaryl, with the most deleterious outcomes associated with both stressors combined. Carbaryl exposure led to reduced survival as well as sublethal effects on growth, activity and feeding behavior, escape response swimming, and time to metamorphosis. Tadpoles reared at elevated salinity were also smaller and less active, and ultimately metamorphosed later and at smaller size. Together, carbaryl and elevated salinity had a synergistic effect, resulting in particularly poor growth, depressed activity and feeding, and sluggish escape swimming among tadpoles exposed to both stressors simultaneously. These results suggest that both elevated salinity and carbaryl represent threats for amphibian populations and that pesticide exposure in salinized habitats may pose a particularly high risk.

show abstract

“…A . mississippiensis individuals are also common inhabitants on barrier islands [48, 49]. These individuals of A .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alligators in the abyss: The first experimental reptilian food fall in the deep ocean

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The high respiration rates of the deep-sea benthos cannot be sustained by known carbon supply pathways alone. Here, we investigate moderately-sized reptilian food falls as a potential alternative carbon pathway. Specifically, three individual carcasses of Alligator mississippiensis were deployed along the continental slope of the northern Gulf of Mexico at depths of ~2000m in early 2019. We posit the tough hide of alligators would impeded scavengers by limiting access to soft tissues of the alligator fall. However, the scavengers began consuming the food fall 43 hours post-deployment for one individual (198.2cm, 29.7kg), and the carcass of another individual (175.3 cm, 19.5kg) was completely devoid of soft tissue at 51 days post-deployment. A third individual (172.7cm, 18.5kg) was missing completely after 8 days, with only the deployment harness and weight remaining drug 8 meters away, suggesting a large elasmobranch scavenger. Additionally, bones recovered post-deployment reveal the first observations of the bone-eating Osedax in the Gulf of Mexico and are confirmed here as new to science. The findings of this study indicate the quick and successful utilization of terrestrial and aquatic-based carbon food sources in the deep marine environment, though outcome variability may be high.

show abstract

Herpetofaunal Colonization Patterns of Atlantic Coast Barrier Islands

Cited by 24 publications

References 11 publications

Reproduction and growth of the Southern Leopard Frog, Lithobates sphenocephalus utricularius (Harlan, 1825), in Virginia: implications for seasonal shifts in response to global climate change

Reproduction and growth of the Southern Leopard Frog, Lithobates sphenocephalus utricularius (Harlan, 1825), in Virginia: implications for seasonal shifts in response to global climate change

Assessment of interactive effects of elevated salinity and three pesticides on life history and behavior of southern toad (Anaxyrus terrestris) tadpoles

Alligators in the abyss: The first experimental reptilian food fall in the deep ocean

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About