Does forest extent affect salamander survival? Evidence from a long-term demographic study of a tropical newt.

ABSTRACT: Forest loss has been associated with reduced survival in many vertebrates, and previous research on amphibians has mostly focused on effects at early life stages. Paramesotriton hongkongensis is a tropical newt that breeds in streams but spends up to 10 months per year in terrestrial habitats. Populations are threatened by habitat degradation and collection for the pet trade, but the cryptic terrestrial lifestyle of this newt has limited our understanding of its population ecology, which inhibits development of a species-specific conservation plan. We conducted an eight-year (2007-2014) mark-recapture study on four P. hongkongensis populations in Hong Kong and used these data to evaluate relationships between forest cover, body size, and rainfall on survival and to estimate p

SUBMITTER: Lau A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5743689 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature