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Accessible habitat delineated by a highway predicts landscape-scale effects of habitat loss in an amphibian community

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Abstract

Context

Habitat loss and habitat fragmentation negatively affect amphibian populations. Roads impact amphibian species through barrier effects and traffic mortality. The landscape variable ‘accessible habitat’ considers the combined effects of habitat loss and roads on populations.

Objectives

The aim was to test whether accessible habitat was a better predictor of amphibian species richness than separate measures of road effects and habitat loss. I assessed how accessible habitat and local habitat variables determine species richness and community composition.

Methods

Frog and tadpole surveys were conducted at 52 wetlands in a peri-urban area of eastern Australia. Accessible habitat was delineated using a highway. Regressions were used to examine relationships between species richness and eleven landscape and local habitat variables. Redundancy analysis was used to examine relationships between community composition and accessible habitat and local habitat variables.

Results

Best-ranked models of species richness included both landscape and local habitat variables. There were positive relationships between species richness and accessible habitat and distance to the highway, and uncertain relationships with proportion cover of native vegetation and road density. There were negative relationships between species richness and concreted wetlands and wetland electrical conductivity. Four species were positively associated with accessible habitat, whereas all species were negatively associated with wetland type.

Conclusions

Barrier effects caused by the highway and habitat loss have negatively affected the amphibian community. Local habitat variables had strong relationships with species richness and community composition, highlighting the importance of both availability and quality of habitat for amphibian conservation near major roads.

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Acknowledgments

I thank Josie Stokes and Shaun Walsh (New South Wales Roads and Maritime Services) for financial and logistical assistance; JS also provided valuable comments on the manuscript. Lee Harrison, Rodney Wattus, Briony Mitchell, Joanne Ainley and Caroline Wilson assisted with fieldwork. Rodney van der Ree provided support with initial planning of the study. Amy Hahs provided GIS support and helpful comments on the manuscript. I thank the landowners who kindly assisted with access to their properties. Phil Craven (NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service) provided information on local site conditions prior to fieldwork. Steve Swearer and James Shelley provided assistance with fish identification. The Baker Foundation provided additional support. This study was conducted under NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service scientific licence number SL101064, and NSW Department of Primary Industries animal ethics approval number 12/4900.

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  1. Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria c/o School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia

    Andrew J. Hamer

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Correspondence to Andrew J. Hamer.

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Hamer, A.J. Accessible habitat delineated by a highway predicts landscape-scale effects of habitat loss in an amphibian community. Landscape Ecol 31, 2259–2274 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-016-0398-2

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