Population declines of a widespread amphibian in agricultural landscapes
Contact us if these videos are not relevant.
Contact us if these videos are not relevant.
View abstract on PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.Biodiversity loss is linked to modern farming. The spined toad (Bufo spinosus) shows declining populations in agricultural areas, indicating unknown factors are impacting this amphibian.
Area Of Science
- Ecology
- Environmental Science
- Conservation Biology
Background
- Modern agricultural practices are a suspected driver of biodiversity loss.
- Understanding the impact of agriculture on species persisting in farmlands is crucial for conservation.
- The spined toad (Bufo spinosus) is a widespread amphibian potentially affected by agricultural changes.
Purpose Of The Study
- To assess the presence, abundance, and population trends of the spined toad (Bufo spinosus) in Western France.
- To investigate the relationship between spined toad populations and agricultural intensity.
- To identify potential factors contributing to biodiversity loss in agricultural landscapes.
Main Methods
- Field surveys were conducted across a habitat gradient from preserved forests to intensive agricultural sites.
- Presence and abundance of spined toads were recorded in reproductive ponds.
- Population trends were analyzed over recent years.
Main Results
- Spined toad presence and abundance were significantly lower in ponds surrounded by intensive agriculture.
- A marked decline in spined toad populations was observed in farmland habitats.
- These findings suggest unknown factors are currently impacting this widespread amphibian.
Conclusions
- Intensive agriculture negatively affects spined toad populations.
- Ongoing population declines indicate emerging threats to amphibians in agricultural landscapes.
- Further research is needed to identify the specific factors causing these declines and inform conservation strategies.
Contact us if these videos are not relevant.
Contact us if these videos are not relevant.
Related Concept Videos
Conservation of declining population focuses on ways of detecting, diagnosing, and halting a population decline. The approach uses methods to prevent populations from going extinct.
Conservation efforts often utilize scientific approaches to identify the reasons, or the agents, causing the population to decline. This approach then devises steps to remove, oppose, or neutralize the agents.
Conservation efforts may also introduce a test group to determine the probable cause of the decline. The...
There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species that adapted to the new conditions. In the current geological epoch, the Holocene, there is a sixth extinction event in progress. This mass extinction has been attributed to human activities and is thus provisionally called the Anthropocene. In 2019 the human population reached 7.7 billion people and is projected to comprise 10 billion by...
Habitat fragmentation describes the division of a more extensive, continuous habitat into smaller, discontinuous areas. Human activities such as land conversion, as well as slower geological processes leading to changes in the physical environment, are the two leading causes of habitat fragmentation. The fragmentation process typically follows the same steps: perforation, dissection, fragmentation, shrinkage, and attrition.
Perforation and dissection often occur during the initial stages of...
Though evaporation from plant leaves drives transpiration, it also results in loss of water. Because water is critical for photosynthetic reactions and other cellular processes, evolutionary pressures on plants in different environments have driven the acquisition of adaptations that reduce water loss.
In land plants, the uppermost cell layer of a plant leaf, called the epidermis, is coated with a waxy substance called the cuticle. This hydrophobic layer is composed of the polymer cutin and...
Small population sizes put a species at extreme risk of extinction due to a lack of variation, and a consequent decrease in adaptability. This weakens the chances of survival under pressures such as climate change, competition from other species, or new diseases. Large populations are more likely to survive pressures such as these, as such populations are more likely to harbor individuals that have genetic variants that are adaptive under new stresses. Small populations are much less...
Water plays a significant role in the life cycle of plants. However, insufficient or excess of water can be detrimental and pose a serious threat to plants.
Under normal conditions, water taken up by the plant evaporates from leaves and other parts in a process called transpiration. In times of drought stress, water that evaporates by transpiration far exceeds the water absorbed from the soil, causing plants to wilt. The general plant response to drought stress is the synthesis of hormone...