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Society for Conservation Biology: 2002 Annual Meeting

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Society for Conservation Biology: 2002 Annual Meeting


Society for Conservation Biology 16th Annual Meeting July 14-July 19 2002
co-hosted by DICE and the British Ecological Society


Abstracts for Conservation and Amphibians and Reptiles
Session One

Wednesday 17th July, 13.30 - 15.00, Grimond Lecture Theatre 3

Chair: Barbara Livoreil




(BLOCK CAPITALS indicate the presenting author)


13.30 - 13.45
GREGORY, PATRICK T. Department of Biology, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 3020, Victoria, British Columbia V8W 3N5, Canada, <viper@uvic.ca>.

LANDSCAPES WITH REPTILES: SNAKES IN AN URBAN SETTING

Growth of urban areas results in loss of habitat for wild species, but diverse species can persist in such landscapes, especially if remaining habitat patches are large. The valley of Sixteen-Mile Creek in Oakville, Canada is a striking example of such a situation. Despite housing development to its edge, numerous species of native wildlife, both small and large, inhabit the valley. Among these are six species of snakes, including one (the water snake, Nerodia) no longer found anywhere else in the Greater Toronto Area. The six species are distributed unequally along the valley’s length. For example, the water snake is confined to the southern part of the valley, which has had the longest exposure to urban development, but is nonetheless abundant. Key features that support this fauna include: 1) fairly limited development in the valley bottom, save for public walking paths; 2) apparent availability of hibernating sites on the valley sides; 3) habitat connectivity provided by the waterway itself; 4) an abundance of cover, especially rocks. Because all six species use rocks and size of rock used is correlated with size of snake, manipulation of this kind of cover is a potentially valuable management and restoration tool.

13.45 - 14.00
LIVOREIL, BARBARA. Centre for Research and Conservation of Chelonians, Soptom, BP 24, 83590 Gonfaron, France, BLivoreil@aol.com.

FROM STAKEHOLDERS TO SHAREHOLDERS: INVOLVING THE PUBLIC IN ACTIONS FOR TORTOISE CONSERVATION


The challenge of Hermann’s tortoise conservation in France is a good example of the complex interactions between various stakeholders, from the Ministery of Environment to the local land owner, engaged in the dynamic process of the constant evolution of socio-economic context, scientific knowledge and individual awareness of environment and conservation.
On one hand, this species is protected through land management, projects of nature reserves, and collaboration between private land owners and wildlife experts. On the other hand, the general public unfortunately contributes to its disappearance in the wild because of gathering, and to the arousal of new threats onto populations because of uncontrolled releases of captive bred intergrades or exotic species, sometimes claiming this is to support the species. The high number of captive tortoises and turtles promoted the development of associations that have an increasing power in the management of pet tortoises. It is time to fill up the gap between general public and managers/scientists to save the few remaining wild populations of Hermann’s tortoises in a sustainable way. Associations could play the role of the matchmaker if they agree to collaborate and use a common language and ethics.



14.00 - 14.15
LARSEN, KARL, Bertram, Nadine and Lita Gomez. Department of Natural Resource Sciences, University College of the Cariboo, Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada V2C 5N3, klarsen@cariboo.bc.ca (KL and LG), Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V8W 3Y2 (NB).

HURDLES FACING THE CONSERVATION OF RATTLESNAKES AND GOPHER SNAKES IN WESTERN CANADA: CRYPTIC ANIMALS THAT PEOPLE FEAR.

The main threat facing rattlesnakes (Crotalus) and gopher snakes (Pituophus) in western Canada is increasing human activity, and unfortunately, this threat comes in two directions: one is the loss of habitat to development, the second is the direct aggression displayed towards the animals by humans. Both field investigations and education programs have been used to confront these problems. Radiotelemetry provides information that can be used in a pro-active fashion (e.g. den locations) but it reveals the difficulties in surveying for these animals when time constraints and ‘cook-book surveys’ are employed. Using temperature models to predict the best conditions for searching for the snakes also have been unsuccessful. Further, these animals usually are detected under anthropogenic cover, clouding the significance of the data. Gauging the distribution of the animals through public surveys appears not to be an option, as public identification of these animals is unreliable. Stemming fear and slaughter by humans is equally challenging: our research in schools suggests ‘snake presentations’ to children do not have a significant impact on their attitude, although there is a suggestion that younger generations are less fearful of snakes. A combination of field and innovative education programs likely are necessary to halt declines of these two species.



14.15 - 14.30
BRISON, ANNE-LISE, Julien Cornut, Rémi Helder and Pierre Joly. UMR CNRS 5023 Ecology of Fluvial Hydrosystems, University of Lyon 1, 69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France, <annelise@freesurf.fr> (ALB, PJ), Centre de Recherche et de Formation en Eco-Ethologie, 08240 Boult-aux-Bois, France (JC, RH).

EFFICIENCY OF TEMPORARY ARTIFICIAL HABITATS FOR RESCUING AN ENDANGERED AMPHIBIAN DURING TIMBER HARVESTING

Substitutive habitats are of growing concern in amphibian conservation. The yellow-bellied toad (Bombina variegata L.) is a vulnerable species. It reproduces in unstable shallow ponds, often generated by human activities, such as wheel ruts on forest trails. However, forestry management practices can destroy brood, or damage habitat when occurring during the breeding period. In order to compensate for these negative impacts, we conducted experiments in a short-term management context. Artificial pools were created to offer alternative habitats during forestry works. We carried out a 2-step experiment to i) design suitable artificial pools for toad colonization, and ii) test the hypothesis that luminosity is a key factor in habitat selection. The artificial pools were installed in the vicinity of natural habitats. They successfully ensured immediate colonization, with variation according to pool design. In these artificial pools, occupancy and breeding over a 40-day period were highly correlated to the absence of shading. The spontaneous colonization of artificial pools probably relies on the propensity of the yellow-bellied toad to settle new habitat patches (pioneer behaviour). Our study highlights how substitutive pools can contribute to rescuing natural populations exposed to habitat destruction. It also pinpoints the importance of behavioural studies in conservation biology.



14.30 - 14.45
STORFER, ANDREW and James Jancovich. School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-4236, USA, <astorfer@wsu.edu>(AS); Department of Biology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1501, USA (JJ).

EMERGING DISEASES AND AMPHIBIAN DECLINES: SALAMANDER-VIRUS COEVOLUTION

Understanding causes and consequences of diminishing biodiversity and understanding the ecology and evolution of infectious diseases are two of eight grand challenges recently recognised by US National Research Council. We have compelling evidence that disease from chytrid fungal or ranaviral infections plays an important role in amphibian declines and extinctions among globally-distributed locations. Ranaviruses were isolated from tiger salamander populations ranging from Arizona to Saskatchewan, Canada, areas that experience frequent epizootics and consequent extreme population fluctuations. To investigate co-evolutionary patterns, we generated gene genealogies for both ranavirus isolates and salamander populations from these sites. Ranavirus phylogeographic analyses suggest recent spread and thus evidence of an emergent pathogen; the major capsid protein shows <1% sequence divergence among all sites; other genes show no variability. We have reconciled the viral gene genealogy with that generated from 900 bp of mtDNA sequence from tiger salamanders from the same localities to test for concordance. Some nodes on the reconciled tree show concordance, suggesting co-evolution between viruses and salamanders at some sites. Yet, other nodes show non-concordance, indicative of recent viral introductions. These data, in concert with discovery of infected salamanders from bait shops, support the possibility of anthropogenically-enhanced viral spread.



14.45 - 15.00
CUNNINGHAM, JESSE M., Aram JK Calhoun and William E. Glanz. University of Maine, 5722 Deering Hall, University of Maine, Orono, Maine 04469, USA, <jesse.cunningham@umit.maine.edu> (JC, AC) 5751 Murray Hall, University of Maine, Orono, Maine 04469, USA (WG).

THE EFFECT OF BEAVER ON THE SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION OF POND-BREEDING AMPHIBIAN SPECIES

Beaver, Castor Canadensis, increase spatial heterogeneity on a landscape scale by creating aquatic patches and reversing vegetative succession. Patterns of wetland colonisation and abandonment by beaver result in temporal changes in wetland size and hydroperiod, which consequently affect amphibian species assemblages. Egg mass, call, and larval surveys were conducted to document amphibian species assemblages at 72 wetland research sites in Acadia National Park, Mount Desert Island, Maine. Both beaver-modified and undisturbed sites were included in the study. Beaver-modified sites were further classified as active or abandoned. Large beaver wetlands (>1ha) generally had higher amphibian species richness. Bullfrog, Rana catesbeiana, breeding occurred only in active beaver sites >2ha in size with permanent water. Large active beaver wetlands did not support wood frog, Rana sylvatica, breeding, however, nearly 70% of abandoned beaver sites did. The spatial and temporal dynamics of beaver disturbance are likely to contribute significantly to the conservation of pond-breeding amphibian diversity in northern forested landscapes. Rather than viewing beaver as a nuisance, land managers should consider the positive role of beaver in creating and maintaining a diversity of habitat for amphibians and other wildlife.