Article Review: Quantitative recommendations for amphibian terrestrial habitat conservation derived from habitat selection behavior

 Authors Indermaur and Schmidt focused their research on taking conservation research results and making direct conclusions that can be easily put into action by conservation managers. The authors noted that much research has been done on aquatic environments and how species rely on them, but little has been done on the terrestrial habitat requirements. Indermaur and Schmidt studied habitat dependence of Bufo [Anaxyrus] bufo and Bufo [Anaxyrus] viridis to quantify their habitat requirements of a single resource. Their main point of habitat interest were wood deposits (WD). Wood deposits (as seen in the image below) are left by the natural flooding of rivers. 

 Looking at first individual requirements for a single resource (WD), and then at the population level requirements, after first estimating population size in an area, the authors were able to estimate the number and size of WD required for each A. bufo and A. viridis. The results show that A. viridis prefers smaller WD than A. bufo, meaning that various WD sizes would be required to suit the preferences of all species in an area. It is also noted that home range of each species decreased with the increased size of WD. This was interesting because based on their findings, the authors concluded that there is a need for many more WD than was previously thought and therefore currently available. By allowing for more natural flow regimes, WD can be increased in number and size variation, therefore providing a more suitable habitat for a variety of terrestrial species that depend on WD. 
 The concept of evaluating the significance of one environmental resource can prove to be very beneficial for the wellbeing of many species in a given area. By directly stating what needs to be done after research is carried out, conservation managers can immediately begin to work towards to survival of many environmentally dependent herps (and other species for the matter).


Lukas Indermaur and Benedikt R. Schmidt
Ecological Applications 
http://www.esajournals.org.nuncio.cofc.edu/doi/pdf/10.1890/10-2047.1


Another very interesting abstract that I came across has to do with a brand new way to mark plethodontids without having to mark and recapture. I could not find the full text article anywhere for free, but here is the citation information anyway for anyone who is interested!

Connette, Grant M. Successful use of a passive integrated transponder (PIT) system for below-ground detection of plethodontid salamanders. WILDLIFE RESEARCH. Vol. 39 No. 1. 2012 p. 1 - 6.