Impact of UV-B exposure on amphibian embryos: linking species physiology and oviposition behaviour.

ABSTRACT: Increasing ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B) has recently captured the attention of ecologists as a key environmental stressor. Certain species may be particularly vulnerable as a result of either high natural exposure to UV-B or limited physiological capacity to withstand it. UV-B sensitivity has been examined at the cellular and individual level for a wide variety of taxa, but estimates of exposure to UV-B in natural systems are lacking and predictions of large-scale impacts are therefore limited. Here, we combine data on the physiological sensitivity to UV-B and patterns of field exposure across sites for embryos of several well-studied US Pacific Northwest amphibian species. We find substantial differences among species' physiological abilities to withstand UV-B and in the level of UV-B e

SUBMITTER: Palen WJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1564105 | biostudies-literature | 2005 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature