The role of pollutant accumulation in determining the use of stormwater ponds by amphibians

Gallagher, Matthew T.; Snodgrass, Joel W.; Brand, Adrianne B.; Casey, Ryan E.; Lev, Steven; Meter, Robin J. Van

doi:10.1007/s11273-014-9351-9

Cited by 44 publications

(47 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…As shown by Gallagher et al (2014), sensitive species such as the wood frog (R. sylvatica) occupy only ponds surrounded by a high proportion of forest cover, contrary to more tolerant species such as toads (Scher and Thièry, 2005;Simon et al, 2009). Thus, the literature review shows a correlation between the decrease in forest cover in the surrounding landscape and the decrease in the amphibian species richness identified in the ponds (Le Viol et al, 2009Simon et al, 2009).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On highways, Le Viol et al (2012) found 58% of permanent ponds and 42% of temporary ponds while Scher (2005) found 16% of permanent ponds, 66% of semipermanent ponds and 18% of temporary ponds. In urban areas, Gallagher et al (2014) found 36.5% of temporary ponds, 20.6 % of seasonal ponds and 42.8 % of quasi-permanent ponds while Holzer (2014) found 43.5 % of temporary ponds and 56.4% of permanent ponds. Dissolved oxygen levels are quite different.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…Scher and Thièry, 2005;Le Viol et al, 2009 Natterjack Toad (Bufo calamita) Scher and Thièry, 2005 Northern crested newt (Triturus cristatus) Gledhill et al, 2008 Northern crocket frog (Acris crepitans) Simon et al, 2009 Northern Leopard Frog (Lithobates pipiens) Bishop et al, 2000;Bateman, 2014;Gallagher et al, 2014 Northern red-legged frog (Rana aurora) Holzer, 2014 Northwestern salamander (Ambystoma gracile) Holzer, 2014 Pacific chorus frog (Pseudacris regilla) Holzer, 2014 Palmate newt (Triturus helveticus) Scher and Thièry, 2005;Le Viol et al, 2009 Parsley frog (Pelodytes punctatus) Scher and Thièry, 2005 Pickerel Frog (Rana palustris) Massal et al, 2007;Simon et al, 2009;McCarthy and Lathrop, 2011;Bateman, 2014 Pobblebonk (Limnodynastes dumerilii) Parris, 2006 Rough-skinned newt (Taricha granulosa) Holzer, 2014 Smooth newt (Lissotriton vulgaris) Gledhill et al, 2008Le Viol et al, 2009Pohl et al, 2015 Southern brown tree frog (Litoria ewingii) Parris, 2006;Hamer and Parris, 2011 Southern bullfrog (Lithobates grylio) Hamer and Parris, 2011 Southern leopard frog (Rana sphenocephala) Simon et al, 2009;Birx-Raybuck et al, 2010;McCarthy and Lathrop, 2011 Spotted marsh frog (Limnodynastes tasmaniensis) Parris, 2006 Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer) Bishop et al, 2000;Massal et al, 2007;Simon et al, 2009;Birx-Raybuck et al, 2010;McCarthy and Lathrop, 2011;…”

Section: Speciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In urban ponds, Gledhill et al (2008) found 50% but this difference can be due to the fact that only one publication mentions this rate for urban ponds. Finally, in urban ponds, (Scheffers and Paszkowski, 2013;Gallagher et al, 2014;Holzer, 2014) found on average 54 mg/kg of chromium, 29.6 mg/kg of nitrate, 51.3 mg/kg of copper, 212.5 mg/kg of zinc, 0.3 mg/kg of cadmium, 30.1 mg/kg of lead and 662 mg/kg of carbon-hydrogen. There is no data on highway ponds.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Fish are found in 28% of the highway ponds (Le Viol et al, 2009) and 25% of urban ponds (Holzer, 2014). Water features are often similar, with temperatures in temperate regions hovering around 16 • C in March (Scher, 2005;Gallagher et al, 2014), a slightly basic pH and a conductivity of around 0.80 mS/cm (e.g., Scher, 2005;Gledhill et al, 2008;Le Viol et al, 2012;Pohl et al, 2015). Whether on highways or in urban areas, a similar proportion of each category of ponds can be found, characterized by the variation of the water level.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Review of the Factors That Determine Whether Stormwater Ponds Are Ecological Traps And/or High-Quality Breeding Sites for Amphibians

Clevenot

Pech

2018

Front. Ecol. Evol.

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Stormwater ponds were originally constructed to control the quantity and quality of runoff on urban roads and highways before it was released to the environment. Often, stormwater ponds were designed in a technical feat of civil engineering, with no particular ecological or landscape objective in mind. Nevertheless, they are colonized spontaneously by diverse species, including amphibians. Through an initial review of the scientific literature, the objective of this study was to understand which factors determine whether a pond can be considered as an ecological trap or a valuable breeding site for amphibians. The first step was to question the role of the pond environment as a major factor in its colonization by amphibians, demonstrating that not all ponds are colonized by the same variety of species. The internal factors in the ponds that define them as ecological traps or sustainable breeding sites for amphibians was also considered. After confirming the functional and structural similarity between highway and urban stormwater ponds, 25 publications were compared, with study sites mostly located in Europe and North America, which concern the colonization of stormwater ponds by amphibians in urban or highway areas. Several factors were identified that may affect the ecological viability of these basins: (1) the factors related to the shape of the ponds (inclination of the banks, materials used, etc.,); (2) the biotic factors (aquatic vegetation, presence of predators, etc.,); (3) the abiotic factors (luminosity, water level in the ponds, etc.,); and (4) water pollutants. The low number of publications on this subject, as well as the low variety in the location of study sites, only allow cautious conclusions to be drawn. In particular, stormwater ponds located in highly anthropogenic landscapes can be both ecological traps and suitable habitats for amphibian breeding. This depends on the species that colonize each pond, many internal factors, and the environmental context in which it is embedded. Additional research is therefore needed in other parts of the world-particularly in amphibian biodiversity hotspots-as well as other impact factors such as the effects of different maintenance practices.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Speciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

A Review of the Factors That Determine Whether Stormwater Ponds Are Ecological Traps And/or High-Quality Breeding Sites for Amphibians

Clevenot

Pech

2018

Front. Ecol. Evol.

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Stormwater wetlands can function as ecological traps for urban frogs

Sievers

Parris

Swearer

et al. 2018

Ecological Applications

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Around cities, natural wetlands are rapidly being destroyed and replaced with wetlands constructed to treat stormwater. Although the intended purpose of these wetlands is to manage urban stormwater, they are inhabited by wildlife that might be exposed to contaminants. These effects will be exacerbated if animals are unable to differentiate between stormwater treatment wetlands of varying quality and some function as "ecological traps" (i.e., habitats that animals prefer despite fitness being lower than in other habitats). To examine if urban stormwater wetlands can be ecological traps for frogs, we tested if survival, metamorphosis-related measures, and predator avoidance behaviors of frogs differed within mesocosms that simulated stormwater wetlands with different contaminant levels, and paired this with a natural oviposition experiment to assess breeding-site preferences. We provide the first empirical evidence that these wetlands can function as ecological traps for frogs. Tadpoles had lower survival and were less responsive to predator olfactory cues when raised in more polluted stormwater wetlands, but also reached metamorphosis earlier and at a larger size. A greater size at metamorphosis was likely a result of increased per capita food availability due to higher mortality combined with eutrophication, although other compensatory effects such as selective-mortality removing smaller individuals from low-quality mesocosms may also explain these results. Breeding adults laid comparable numbers of eggs across wetlands with high and low contaminant levels, indicating no avoidance of the former. Since stormwater treatment wetlands are often the only available aquatic habitat in urban landscapes we need to better understand how they perform as habitats to guide management decisions that mitigate their potential ecological costs. This may include improving wetland quality so that fitness is no longer compromised, preventing colonization by animals, altering the cues animals use when selecting habitats, pretreating contaminated water prior to release, providing off-line wetlands nearby, or simply not constructing stormwater treatment wetlands in sensitive areas. Our study confirms the potential for urban stormwater treatment wetlands to function as ecological traps and highlights the need for greater awareness of their prevalence and impact at landscape scales.

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Potential effects of traffic noise on anuran call characteristics in Louisiana, USA during winter

Kunberger,

Price,

Crawford

et al. 2024

Ecology and Evolution

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Urban environments expose wildlife to levels of anthropogenic noise they would not experience in rural areas (e.g., traffic noise), and research suggests that many species adjust their acoustic signals for optimal transmission in urban soundscapes. However, our understanding of anuran (order Anura) responses to noise pollution in urban environments of the southeastern United States is limited, particularly for species that can breed during winter. Our goal was to examine how vocal anuran advertisement call characteristics during winter varied with increasing distance from roadways in bottomland hardwoods of Louisiana, USA. We deployed acoustic recording units at two sites (i.e., rural and urban) perpendicular to Interstate 10 at 200‐, 400‐, and 600‐m intervals (i.e., close, middle, and far) from November 2019 to January 2020. We detected Cajun Chorus Frogs (Pseudacris fouquettei) and Cricket Frogs (Acris spp.) at our rural site, and only detected Cricket Frogs at our urban site. At the rural site, Cajun Chorus Frogs produced longer duration notes at the far location compared to the middle location. At the urban site, Cricket Frogs produced higher dominant frequency calls at the close location compared to the far and middle locations and longer duration notes at the far location compared to the close location. We were unable to account for additional factors in our models (e.g., temperature, noise levels), but our results generally align with previous research. Our study provides baseline data for future research to examine the potential effects of traffic noise on winter advertisement calls in locations with similar environmental conditions and species.

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The role of pollutant accumulation in determining the use of stormwater ponds by amphibians

Cited by 44 publications

References 59 publications

A Review of the Factors That Determine Whether Stormwater Ponds Are Ecological Traps And/or High-Quality Breeding Sites for Amphibians

A Review of the Factors That Determine Whether Stormwater Ponds Are Ecological Traps And/or High-Quality Breeding Sites for Amphibians

Stormwater wetlands can function as ecological traps for urban frogs

Potential effects of traffic noise on anuran call characteristics in Louisiana, USA during winter

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