Species loss in developed landscapes: an experimental evaluation

Biological Sciences, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL, USA
School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
DOI
10.7287/peerj.preprints.601v1
Subject Areas
Conservation Biology, Ecology
Keywords
amphibian, occupancy, range limit, pond, experiment, suburban, translocation
Copyright
© 2014 Shepack et al.
Licence
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, reproduction and adaptation in any medium and for any purpose provided that it is properly attributed. For attribution, the original author(s), title, publication source (PeerJ PrePrints) and either DOI or URL of the article must be cited.
Cite this article
Shepack A, Freidenburg K, Skelly D. 2014. Species loss in developed landscapes: an experimental evaluation. PeerJ PrePrints 2:e601v1

Abstract

Conversion of landscapes for human uses is widely associated with loss of biodiversity. Here we focus on limits to distribution defined by intensity of landscape development. Using a translocation experiment, we ask does degradation of wetland habitat contribute to species loss? Wood frog larvae (Rana sylvatica = Lithobates sylvaticus), were reared within enclosures in 7 ponds harboring populations of wood frogs and in 5 ponds where they are absent. Survival, growth rate, and development rate were equivalent between ‘present’ and ‘absent’ ponds. While it is clear that landscapes surrounding ‘absent’ ponds had been heavily influenced by human use, we find no evidence that such wetlands provide inferior habitat for wood frog recruitment. Their absence in human altered landscapes may stem from influences outside of pond basins. The results provide a caution to the typically unexamined presumption that relictual habitats in developed landscapes are degraded in their utility for wildlife.

Author Comment

This preprint has been submitted to PLOS ONE for review.

Supplemental Information

Table S1. Data from 12 ponds included in a translocation experiment to explore performance of an amphibian

Ponds were either occupied by wood frogs (Present) or not (Absent). For each pond the proportion of the landscape developed within 200 m of the shoreline is given. Three ponds dried before the conclusion of the experiment. For the remainder, final survival, Gosner developmental stage and body mass (g) responses are presented.

DOI: 10.7287/peerj.preprints.601v1/supp-1