ORCID Profile
0000-0001-8116-6085
Current Organisation
James Cook University
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Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2006
DOI: 10.1071/PC060313
Abstract: A review of the current conservation status of Australian hibians was recently completed as part of a World Conservation Union (IUCN) sponsored Global Amphibian Assessment (GAA). Fifty of 216 hibian species (23%) in Australia are now recognized as threatened or extinct in accord with IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria. Here we report on the categories and criteria under which in idual species qualified for listing and provide a summary of supporting information pertaining to population and distribution declines. Major threatening processes contributing to listing of species are also reviewed.
Publisher: Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales
Date: 2008
DOI: 10.7882/AZ.2008.032
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 20-01-2009
Abstract: Suture zones, shared regions of secondary contact between long-isolated lineages, are natural laboratories for studying ergence and speciation. For tropical rainforest, the existence of suture zones and their significance for speciation has been controversial. Using comparative phylogeographic evidence, we locate a morphologically cryptic suture zone in the Australian Wet Tropics rainforest. Fourteen out of 18 contacts involve morphologically cryptic phylogeographic lineages, with mtDNA sequence ergences ranging from 2 to 15 per cent. Contact zones are significantly clustered in a suture zone located between two major Quaternary refugia. Within this area, there is a trend for secondary contacts to occur in regions with low environmental suitability relative to both adjacent refugia and, by inference, the parental lineages. The extent and form of reproductive isolation among interacting lineages varies across species, ranging from random admixture to speciation, in one case via reinforcement. Comparative phylogeographic studies, combined with environmental analysis at a fine-scale and across varying climates, can generate new insights into suture zone formation and to ersification processes in species-rich tropical rainforests. As arenas for evolutionary experimentation, suture zones merit special attention for conservation.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2004
DOI: 10.1071/ZO03035
Abstract: Glaphyromorphus clandestinus, sp. nov., is described from granite-slab habitat on Mt Elliot, north-eastern Queensland. This species can be distinguished from its congeners by a combination of the following characters: large size (SVL 72 mm), adpressed limbs of adult separated by noticeably more than the length of the forelimb, 26 mid-body scale rows, and flanks patterned with dark flecks forming a series of longitudinal lines. The distribution, habitat preferences and habits of this species are poorly known. Currently G. clandestinus is known from a single locality where in iduals have been found in an exposed area of exfoliating granite, set in a mosaic of rainforest and eucalyptus woodland. The discovery of this species brings to three the number of vertebrate species known to be endemic to Mt Elliot and highlights the evolutionary significance of this southerly outlier to the mountainous rainforest of the Wet Tropics.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 21-10-2013
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.3722.1.5
Abstract: In Australia, microhylid frogs are found almost exclusively in the tropical north-east, but in this region ersity is high. Sixteen species occur in the Wet Tropics region and a further six species are found further north on Cape York Peninsula. Most Australian microhylid species belong to the genus Cophixalus (18 species). The majority of these have highly localized distributions, with two-thirds being found on single mountain ranges. While most Cophixalus are small (10-29 mm snout to vent length) rainforest species, four differ dramatically in morphology and ecology, being large (30-53 mm) species that inhabit isolated areas ofjumbled boulder-pile habitat. Here I describe a new species of Cophixalus from boulder-pile habitat in the Melville Range on Cape Melville, north-east Cape York Peninsula. Cophixalus petrophilus sp. nov. is highly distinct from all congeners in morphology, colour pattern and mating call. This species is restricted to deeply piled granite boulder habitat that is largely devoid of vegetation. As for the other four boulder-pile Cophixalus, C. petrophilus sp. nov. is large and shows other similar morphological adaptations to this unique habitat (e.g., long limbs, large finger discs). However, it is notable in that it is the smallest of the boulder-pile species (26-32 mm) and it has particularly large eyes. I speculate that the latter trait is an adaptation to dimly lit conditions deep within the boulder-field. Cophixalus petrophilus sp. nov. was only found in exposed boulder habitat, whereas the co-occurring boulder species, C. zweifeli, was found using forested areas on and adjacent to the boulder-fields at night. Cape Melville is the only boulder-field with two co-occurring boulder Cophixalus and it appears that there is habitat partitioning between them. Cophixalus petrophilus sp. nov. has a highly localised distribution but appears common within this and is probably secure.
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Date: 02-2017
DOI: 10.1086/689820
Abstract: Species interactions can determine range limits, and parasitism is the most intimate of such interactions. Intriguingly, the very conditions on range edges likely change host-parasite dynamics in nontrivial ways. Range edges are often associated with clines in host density and with environmental transitions, both of which may affect parasite transmission. On advancing range edges, founder events and fitness/dispersal costs of parasitism may also cause parasites to be lost on range edges. Here we examine the prevalence of three species of parasite across the range edge of an invasive gecko, Hemidactylus frenatus, in northeastern Australia. The gecko's range edge spans the urban-woodland interface at the edge of urban areas. Across this edge, gecko abundance shows a steep decline, being lower in the woodland. Two parasite species (a mite and a pentastome) are coevolved with H. frenatus, and these species become less prevalent as the geckos become less abundant. A third species of parasite (another pentastome) is native to Australia and has no coevolutionary history with H. frenatus. This species became more prevalent as the geckos become less abundant. These dramatic shifts in parasitism (occurring over 3.5 km) confirm that host-parasite dynamics can vary substantially across the range edge of this gecko host.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 19-11-2014
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.3884.6.8
Abstract: Menetia timlowi Ingram 1977 has had a chequered generic history due to ambiguity in interpreting its various character states. Ingram (1977) assigned this species to Menetia on the strength of "the long narrow obliquely oriented first supraocular" and "enlarged upper circumoculars". In doing so, he admitted the possibility that M. timlowi "may in fact be a Carlia" but because "all Carlia, except burnetti, lack fused lower eyelids and have a typically anvil shaped presubocular", allocating timlowi to Menetia seemed the best available option. Ingram and Covacevich (1988) revisited the generic status of this species when resurrecting Lygisaurus from the synonymy of Carlia to accommodate a group of small leaf-litter dwelling skinks. In proposing the new combination L. timlowi (Ingram 1977), they considered the supraoculars to be transverse whereas Ingram had stated them to be oblique in his original species description.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 23-10-2013
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.3722.3.7
Abstract: Saproscincus skinks are restricted to wet forest habitats of eastern Australia. Eleven species have previously been described, with most having small distributions in disjunct areas of subtropical and tropical rainforest. The localized distributions and specific habitat requirements of Saproscincus have made them a key group for understanding the biogeographic history of Australia's rainforests. Here I describe a new species of Saproscincus from the Melville Range on Cape Melville, north-east Australia. The Melville Range is composed of boulder-fields and areas of rainforest in the uplands, and is highly isolated from other areas of elevated rainforest. All in iduals of the new species were found on a moist ridgeline, active on boulders under a rainforest canopy or on boulder-field immediately adjacent to rainforest. Saproscincus saltus sp. nov. is highly distinct in morphology and colour pattern. Of particular interest are its long limbs and digits compared to congeners, which in conjunction with the observed ecology, suggest a long history of association with rock. The discovery of S. saltus sp. nov. extends the distribution of the genus over 100 km north from the nearest congeners in the Wet Tropics region. This species brings the number of vertebrates known to be endemic to the Melville Range to six, which is remarkable for such a small area.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 07-12-2022
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.13266
Abstract: The Mahogany Glider ( Petaurus gracilis ) is one of the most endangered marsupials in Australia. Its known distribution is an approximately 120 km strip of fragmented coastal woodland in north‐east Queensland, from north of Townsville to the Tully area. Records are clustered in a number of well‐surveyed areas, with significant areas of lowland habitat unsurveyed. Around 30% of historic records fall in areas that were subsequently cleared for farmland, and ongoing clearing and fragmentation of lowland sclerophyll forest continues within the potential distribution. Resolving the distribution is an urgent requirement to guide conservation but Mahogany Gliders are difficult to detect in the field. Species distribution modelling offers a technique for estimating the fine‐scale distribution and for targeting further field survey and conservation efforts. We used known occurrence records ( N = 481) to predict the distribution of Mahogany Gliders across the Wet Tropics bioregion. We used climatic, topographic and other environmental predictors to generate distribution models using Maxent and Random Forest algorithms, each with two bias correction methods. The predictions revealed that many unknown populations may exist within the currently defined distribution and in important areas beyond this (e.g. Hinchinbrook Island). There was reasonable congruence between models, and we include syntheses of the models to present the most likely current distribution. The most important predictor variables across the models were precipitation seasonality (high seasonality), elevation (generally m), soil type (hydrosols) and vegetation type (including Eucalyptus and Melaleuca woodlands). Our results identify core habitat and reveal key areas that require targeted field surveys. Importantly, the predicted suitable habitat is highly fragmented and ongoing conservation efforts need to improve habitat connectivity and limit further fragmentation.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 27-09-2018
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.4486.2.1
Abstract: We describe a new species of velvet gecko (Diplodactylidae: Oedura) from the sandstone ranges of central-north Queensland, Australia. Oedura argentea sp. nov. is a medium-sized (SVL 61–80 mm) gecko that is distinguished from its congeners by a combination of its relatively small size, a pattern of 5–6 dark-edged pale transverse bands from neck to pelvis, a silvery iris, a slender tail, a single cloacal spur, and in possessing 14–22 pre-cloacal pores in males. Oedura argentea sp. nov. is a sandstone specialist currently known only from the Gregory Range and nearby sandstone outcropping at Bulleringa National Park. Further surveys are required to determine the limits of distribution through this region. Oedura argentea sp. nov. is the fifth described species of Oedura in north-eastern Queensland. We also assess the name O. fracticolor De Vis, 1884 because it is an unresolved name pertaining to this general region. Based on colour-pattern and locality in the original description, we conclude that O. fracticolor is a senior synonym of O. castelnaui (Thominot, 1889) however, we propose that priority be overturned under Articles 23.9.1.1 and 23.9.1.2 of the ICZN (1999) and that the name O. fracticolor be regarded as nomen oblitum and O. castelnaui a nomen protectum.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 10-2013
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.3717.4.6
Abstract: Leaf-tailed geckos are a distinctive group of carphodactyline geckos of rainforests and rocky habitats of eastern Australia. Three genera are recognized: Phyllurus (9 species), Saltuarius (6 species) and Orraya (1 species). Leaf-tailed geckos have been the subject of much survey and taxonomic work because they are large, impressive geckos and generally have highly localized distributions. The six species comprising Saltuarius are distributed in rock outcrops and rainforests along the ranges from northern New South Wales to the Wet Tropics region of north-east Queensland. Here we report the discovery of a new Saltuarius species at Cape Melville, a rainforest outlier on Cape York Peninsula in north-east Queensland. The new species is assigned to Saltuarius based on morphological and genetic data. Saltuarius eximius sp. nov. is highly distinct from all congeners in many aspects of morphology. It has a very long slender form, with relatively longer limbs, lon- ger body, narrower body and narrower neck than all congeners. It also has a highly distinct head that is relatively smaller than that of all other Saltuarius, with very large eyes that are grey rather than patterned. The tail is large but with a relatively short attenuated tip. Saltuarius eximius sp. nov. appears to be highly localized to upland rainforest associated with boulder habitat in the Cape Melville Range. The unusual elongate form and large eyes of S. eximius sp. nov. likely reflect adaptation to deep boulder habitat. Two other new vertebrate species (a skink and a frog) were discovered in the rainforest and boulder-fields of Cape Melville during recent surveys, bringing the number of vertebrates known to be endemic to the Cape Melville Range to six (three frogs, two skinks and one gecko).
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 17-10-2007
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-09-2023
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 11-04-2014
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-09-2017
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.12416
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-2010
DOI: 10.1890/09-1069.1
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.1071/WR19201
Abstract: Abstract ContextFeral cats have been identified as a key threat to Australia’s bio ersity, particularly in arid areas and tropical woodlands. Their presence, abundance and potential impacts in rainforest have received less attention. AimsTo investigate the distribution and diet of feral cats (Felis catus) in upland rainforest of the Wet Tropics. MethodsWe collated available occurrence records from the Wet Tropics, and data from upland camera-trapping surveys over an 8-year period, to assess geographic and elevational distribution of feral cats in the bioregion. We also assessed the diet of feral cats from scats collected at upland sites. Key resultsFeral cats are widespread through the Wet Tropics bioregion, from the lowlands to the peaks of the highest mountains (& m), and in all vegetation types. Abundance appears to vary greatly across the region. Cats were readily detected during camera-trap surveys in some upland rainforest areas (particularly in the southern Atherton Tablelands and Bellenden Ker Range), but were never recorded in some areas (Thornton Peak, the upland rainforest of Windsor Tableland and Danbulla National Park) despite numerous repeated camera-trap surveys over the past 8 years at some of these sites. Scat analysis suggested that small mammals comprise ~70% of the diet of feral cats at an upland rainforest site. Multivariate analysis could not detect a difference in mammal community at sites where cats were detected or not. ConclusionsFeral cats are widespread in the Wet Tropics and appear to be common in some upland areas. However, their presence and abundance are variable across the region, and the drivers of this variability are not resolved. Small mammals appear to be the primary prey in the rainforest, although the impacts of cats on the endemic and threatened fauna of the Wet Tropics is unknown. ImplicationsGiven their documented impact in some ecosystems, research is required to examine the potential impact of cats on Wet Tropics fauna, particularly the many upland endemic vertebrates. Studies are needed on (1) habitat and prey selection, (2) population dynamics, and (3) landscape source–sink dynamics of feral cats in the Wet Tropics.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 17-01-2013
DOI: 10.1111/JEB.12035
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-08-2006
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-11-2022
DOI: 10.1007/S13127-022-00588-2
Abstract: The ersification processes underlying why Amazonia hosts the most species-rich vertebrate fauna on earth remain poorly understood. We studied the spatio-temporal ersification of a tree frog clade distributed throughout Amazonia (Anura: Hylidae: Osteocephalus , Tepuihyla , and Dryaderces ) and tested the hypothesis that Miocene mega wetlands located in western and central Amazonia impacted connectivity among major biogeographic areas during extensive periods. We assessed the group’s ersity through DNA-based (16S rRNA) species delimitation to identify Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs) from 557 in iduals. We then selected one terminal for each OTU ( n = 50) and assembled a mitogenomic matrix (~14,100 bp complete for 17 terminals) to reconstruct a Bayesian, time-calibrated phylogeny encompassing nearly all described species. Ancestral area reconstruction indicates that each genus was restricted to one of the major Amazonian biogeographic areas (western Amazonia, Guiana Shield and Brazilian Shield, respectively) between ~10 and 20 Mya, suggesting that they erged and ersified in isolation during this period around the Pebas mega wetland. After 10 Mya and the transition to the modern configuration of the Amazon River watershed, most speciation within each genus continued to occur within each area. In Osteocephalus , only three species expanded widely across Amazonia ( 6 Mya), and all were pond-breeders. Species with other breeding modes remained mostly restricted to narrow ranges. The spectacular radiation of Osteocephalus was probably driven by climatic stability, habitat ersity and the acquisition of new reproductive modes along the Andean foothills and western Amazonia. Our findings add evidence to the importance of major hydrological changes during the Miocene on biotic ersification in Amazonia.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 05-02-2018
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 13-06-2013
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2017
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 10-2016
Abstract: The effect of twenty-first-century climate change on bio ersity is commonly forecast based on modelled shifts in species ranges, linked to habitat suitability. These projections have been coupled with species–area relationships (SAR) to infer extinction rates indirectly as a result of the loss of climatically suitable areas and associated habitat. This approach does not model population dynamics explicitly, and so accepts that extinctions might occur after substantial (but unknown) delays—an extinction debt. Here we explicitly couple bioclimatic envelope models of climate and habitat suitability with generic life-history models for 24 species of frogs found in the Australian Wet Tropics (AWT). We show that (i) as many as four species of frogs face imminent extinction by 2080, due primarily to climate change (ii) three frogs face delayed extinctions and (iii) this extinction debt will take at least a century to be realized in full. Furthermore, we find congruence between forecast rates of extinction using SARs, and demographic models with an extinction lag of 120 years. We conclude that SAR approaches can provide useful advice to conservation on climate change impacts, provided there is a good understanding of the time lags over which delayed extinctions are likely to occur.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-07-2019
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-09-2011
DOI: 10.1111/J.1523-1739.2011.01728.X
Abstract: Species that are tolerant of broad environmental gradients may be less vulnerable to epizootic outbreaks of disease. Chytridriomycosis, caused by the fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, has been linked to extirpations and extinctions of hibian species in many regions. The pathogen thrives in cool, moist environments, and high hibian mortality rates have commonly occurred during chytridiomycosis outbreaks in hibian populations in high-elevation tropical rainforests. In Australia several high-elevation species, including the armored mist frog (Litoria lorica), which is designated as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), were believed to have gone extinct during chytridiomycosis outbreaks in the 1980s and early 1990s. Species with greater elevational ranges disappeared from higher elevations, but remained common in the lowlands. In June 2008, we surveyed a stream in a high-elevation dry sclerophyll forest and discovered a previously unknown population of L. lorica and a population of the waterfall frog (Litoria nannotis). We conducted 6 additional surveys in June 2008, September 2008, March 2009, and August 2009. Prevalences of B. dendrobatidis infection (number infected per total s led) were consistently high in frogs (mean 82.5%, minimum 69%) of both species and in tadpoles (100%) during both winter (starting July) and summer (starting February). However, no in iduals of either species showed clinical signs of disease, and they remained abundant (3.25 - 8.75 in iduals of L. lorica and 6.5-12.5 in iduals of L. nannotis found erson/100 m over 13 months). The high-elevation dry sclerophyll site had little canopy cover, low annual precipitation, and a more defined dry season than a nearby rainforest site, where L. nannotis was more negatively affected by chytridiomycosis. We hypothesize this lack of canopy cover allowed the rocks on which frogs perched to warm up, thereby slowing growth and reproduction of the pathogen on the hosts. In addition, we suggest surveys for apparently extinct or rare species should not be limited to core environments.
Publisher: Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales
Date: 2013
DOI: 10.7882/AZ.2013.012
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-2010
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 28-05-2013
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.3664.4.7
Abstract: Following the discovery of a new population of Phyllurus ossa on Whitsunday Island in the Cumberland Island Group, eastern Queensland, we conducted both genetic and morphological analyses to assess differences between all known populations. The analyses revealed three genetically distinct, morphologically diagnosable, geographical units. The differences are such that we recognise these as subspecies: Phyllurus ossa ossa restricted to the Mt Ossa/Mt Pelion/ Mt Charlton/ St Helens Gap area P. ossa hobsoni subsp. nov. on Mt Dryander and in the Conway Range and P. ossa tamoya subsp. nov. currently only known from Whitsunday Island. There are now 11 recognised taxa in Phyllurus. The three P. ossa subspecies are narrowly distributed and closely associated with exposed rock in low to mid-elevation vine forests. Their current distributions are shaped by past climate change that progressively contracted and fragmented the distribution of rainforests in eastern Australia. The recognition of these subspecies has land management/conservation implications.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 07-01-2021
DOI: 10.1093/ZOOLINNEAN/ZLAA167
Abstract: Selection for effective locomotion can lead to specialized morphological structures. Adhesive toepads, which have arisen independently in different lizard clades, facilitate the use of vertical and inverted substrates. Their evolution is poorly understood because functionally intermediate morphological configurations between padless and pad-bearing forms are rare. To shed light on toepad evolution, we assessed the subdigital morphology of phylogenetically distinct lineages of the Bynoe’s gecko species complex (Heteronotia binoei). Most populations of H. binoei are terrestrial, but two relatively distantly related saxicoline (rock-dwelling) lineages have enlarged terminal subdigital scales resembling toepads. We reconstructed the ancestral terminal subdigital scale size of nine lineages of H. binoei in eastern Australia, including these two saxicoline lineages. Additionally, we compared the subdigital microstructures of four lineages: the two saxicoline lineages and their respective terrestrial sister-lineages. Surprisingly, all four lineages had fully developed setae, but the setae of the two saxicoline lineages were significantly longer, branched more often and were more widely spaced than the terrestrial sister-lineages. We conclude that the saxicoline lineages represent ex les of parallel evolution of enlarged adhesive structures in response to vertical substrate use, and their morphology represents a useful model as an intermediate state in toepad evolution.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 10-11-2020
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.4877.2.4
Abstract: The Einasleigh Uplands bioregion of central north Queensland, Australia, harbours a unique suite of reptiles that have begun to receive significant attention in the last 20 years. This has resulted in a number of new reptile species being described, and recognition that others await description. We describe a new species of Lucasium Wermuth, 1965 from the western Einasleigh Uplands. Lucasium iris sp. nov. is genetically distinct and morphologically diagnosable from all congeners by its large size, long and narrow tail, nares in contact with rostral scale, homogeneous body scales, distinct vertebral stripe, and paired, enlarged, apical subdigital lamellae. It is known from low rocky hills in a localised area of the Gregory Range, has the most restricted known distribution of any Lucasium, and is the only Lucasium endemic to Queensland. The new species appears most closely related to L. steindachneri (Boulenger, 1885), based on mitochondrial DNA sequences, but has a colour-pattern more similar to L. immaculatum Storr, 1988. All three of these species occur in the Einasleigh Uplands, but only L. steindachneri is known to occur in sympatry with L. iris sp. nov. In addition to the description of the new species, we present records of Lucasium immaculatum from the Einasleigh Uplands, which represent a significant known range extension.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Date: 22-12-2014
Publisher: Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales
Date: 2015
DOI: 10.7882/AZ.2014.041
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2021
DOI: 10.1071/PC20033
Abstract: Australia hosts approximately 10% of the world’s reptile species, the largest number of any country. Despite this and evidence of widespread decline, the first comprehensive assessment of the conservation status of Australian terrestrial squamates (snakes and lizards) was undertaken only recently. Here we apply structured expert elicitation to the 60 species assessed to be in the highest IUCN threat categories to estimate their probability of extinction by 2040. We also assessed the probability of successful reintroduction for two Extinct in the Wild (EW) Christmas Island species with trial reintroductions underway. Collation and analysis of expert opinion indicated that six species are at high risk (& %) of becoming extinct within the next 20 years, and up to 11 species could be lost within this timeframe unless management improves. The consensus among experts was that neither of the EW species were likely to persist outside of small fenced areas without a significant increase in resources for intense threat management. The 20 most imperilled species are all restricted in range, with three occurring only on islands. The others are endemic to a single state, with 55% occurring in Queensland. Invasive species (notably weeds and introduced predators) were the most prevalent threats, followed by agriculture, natural system modifications (primarily fire) and climate change. Increased resourcing and management intervention are urgently needed to avert the impending extinction of Australia’s imperilled terrestrial reptiles.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2004
DOI: 10.1071/ZO03056
Abstract: Despite a considerable surge in herpetological research in Australia over the last couple of decades the Australian microhylid frogs (Cophixalus and Austrochaperina) remain relatively poorly known. Herein I present the results of extensive fieldwork and molecular, morphological and call analysis with the aim of resolving taxonomy, call variation and distributions, and increasing our understanding of breeding biology. Analysis of 943 base pairs of mitochondrial 16S rRNA and 12S rRNA provides a well supported phylogeny that is largely consistent with current taxonomy. Levels of ergence between species are substantial and significant phylogeographic structuring is evident in C. ornatus, C. neglectus and C. aenigma, sp. nov. The description of C. concinnus was based on a mixed collection of two species from Thornton Peak and a new species is described to resolve this. C. aenigma, sp. nov., is described from high-elevation ( m) rainforest across the Carbine, Thornton, Finnigan and Bakers Blue Mountain uplands, north-east Queensland. C. concinnus is redescribed as a highly distinct species restricted to rainforest and boulder fields at the summit of Thornton Peak ( m). Despite protection in Daintree National Park in the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area, predictions of the impact of global warming suggest C. concinnus to be of very high conservation concern (Critically Endangered, IUCN criteria). The mating call of two species (C. mcdonaldi and C. exiguus) is described for the first time and high levels of call variation within C. ornatus, C. neglectus, C. hosmeri, C. aenigma and Austrochaperina fryi are presented. Such variation is often attributable to genetically ergent lineages, altitudinal variation and courtship however, in some instances (particularly within C. hosmeri) the source or function of highly distinct calls at a site remains obscure. Molecular, morphological and call analyses allow the clarification of species distributions, especially in the northern mountains of the Wet Tropics. Notes are presented on the breeding biology of C. aenigma, C. bombiens, C. concinnus, C. exiguus, C. infacetus, C. mcdonaldi, C. monticola, C. neglectus, C. ornatus and C. saxatilis, which are largely consistent with previous accounts: small terrestrial clutches usually attended by a male. Courtship behaviour in C. ornatus is described and the first records of multiple clutching in Australian microhylids are presented (for C. ornatus and C. infacetus).
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 04-10-2013
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 27-04-2011
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 20-04-2009
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2010
DOI: 10.1071/ZO10070
Abstract: Many threatened species occur as small, isolated populations. Understanding the extent and genetic distinctiveness of these populations is essential for management. Nangura spinosa is a critically endangered skink known from two small populations in dry rainforest in south-east Queensland. We conducted targeted surveys between 2001 and 2010 at the two known N. spinosa sites (Nangur National Park, Oakview National Park area) and in 22 nearby forest blocks with potentially suitable habitat. N. spinosa was found only at the two previously known sites, which are ~36 km apart. The skink appears to be declining at Nangur NP, to an estimated extent of occurrence of 7.4 ha and potentially no more than 35 adults. In contrast, we increase the extent of occurrence at Oakview to 360 ha, where the population is at least in the hundreds. Sequencing of two mtDNA genes revealed considerable genetic ergence between the two populations (3.8% for ND4 1.2% for 16S), suggesting an extended period of separation. Population fragmentation is therefore not the result of recent land clearing, but of long-term isolation by unsuitable habitat. Each population should be considered a distinct management unit. More data are required on population size and trends, recruitment and threats, particularly for the Nangur population.
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Date: 11-2011
DOI: 10.1086/662164
Abstract: It is well established from the fossil record and phylogeographic analyses that late Quaternary climate fluctuations led to substantial changes in species' distribution, but whether and how these fluctuations resulted in phenotypic ergence and speciation is less clear. This question can be addressed through detailed analysis of traits relevant to ecology and mating within and among intraspecific lineages that persisted in separate refugia. In a biogeographic system (the Australian Wet Tropics [AWT]) with a well-established history of refugial isolation during Pleistocene glacial periods, we tested whether climate-mediated changes in distribution drove genetic and phenotypic ergence in the rainforest frog Cophixalus ornatus. We combined paleomodeling and multilocus genetics to demonstrate long-term persistence within, and isolation among, one central and two peripheral refugia. In contrast to other AWT vertebrates, the three major lineages differ in ecologically relevant morphology and in mating call, reflecting ergent selection and/or genetic drift in the peripheral isolates. Divergence in mating call and contact zone analyses suggest that the lineages now represent distinct species. The results show that climate shifts can promote genetic and phenotypic ergence and, potentially, speciation and direct attention toward incorporating adaptive traits into phylogeographic studies to better resolve the mechanisms of speciation.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 03-1999
DOI: 10.1071/MU99009A
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-11-2017
DOI: 10.1002/ECY.2019
Publisher: Resilience Alliance, Inc.
Date: 2010
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Date: 08-2019
DOI: 10.1086/704059
Abstract: Animals use mating traits to compete for, attract, and choose mates. Because mating traits influence mate choice, the ergence of mating traits between populations can result in reproductive isolation. This can occur without associated morphological ergence, producing reproductively isolated cryptic species that are visually indistinguishable. Thus, identifying the mating traits in morphologically conservative groups is key to resolving ersity and speciation processes. Lizards contain many such groups, with phylogeographic studies often revealing highly ergent but morphologically cryptic lineages within species. Considering that cryptic lizard species can be sympatric but morphologically indistinguishable, we hypothesize that candidate species will exhibit ergent pheromones and that pheromones will have typically erged more than morphology. To test this, we used gas chromatography to characterize pheromones (epidermal pore secretions) from 10 genetically ergent lineages of the Bynoe's gecko (
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 24-01-2015
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 04-07-2011
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2010
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2018
DOI: 10.1071/ZO18036
Abstract: North Queensland harbours many microendemic species. These species are of conservation concern due to their small and fragmented populations, coupled with threats such as fire and climate change. We aimed to resolve the distribution and population genetic structure in two localised Phyllurus leaf-tailed geckos: P. gulbaru and P. amnicola. We conducted field surveys to better resolve distributions, used Species Distribution Models (SDMs) to assess the potential distribution, and then used the SDMs to target further surveys. We also sequenced all populations for a mitochondrial gene to assess population genetic structure. Our surveys found additional small, isolated populations of both species, including significant range extensions. SDMs revealed the climatic and non-climatic variables that best predict the distribution of these species. Targeted surveys based on the SDMs found P. gulbaru at an additional two sites but failed to find either species at other sites, suggesting that we have broadly resolved their distributions. Genetic analysis revealed population genetic structuring in both species, including deeply ergent mitochondrial lineages. Current and potential threats are overlain on these results to determine conservation listings and identify management actions. More broadly, this study highlights how targeted surveys, SDMs, and genetic data can rapidly increase our knowledge of microendemic species, and direct management.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2019
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2020
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 31-07-2015
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.3994.2.3
Abstract: The genus Liburnascincus is composed of saxicoline skinks restricted to northeast Australia. This small radiation consists of one widespread species, L. mun ensis, found in a variety of rocky habitats in eastern Queensland, and two localized species, L. coensis and L. scirtetis, restricted to granite boulder habitats on Cape York Peninsula, in north Queensland. Here we describe a fourth species, L. artemis sp. nov., from the Bamboo Range, a low rocky range on Cape York. As for other Liburnascincus, the new species is a saxicoline skink that is active on boulder surfaces primarily early and late in the day. Liburnascincus artemis sp. nov. is most similar to L. mun ensis but can be diagnosed based on longer limbs, higher toe and finger lamellae counts, lower midbody scale count, and other aspects of morphology, scalation and colour pattern. Liburnascincus artemis sp. nov. is currently known from a very small area but further surveys will likely extend the range. It is geographically separated from L. mun ensis to the south by unsuitable habitat in the Laura region, but it may abut the range of L. coensis to the north. Despite a small distribution, L. artemis sp. nov. occurs at high density at the known sites and appears to be currently secure. In this paper we also discuss the distributions and biogeography of Liburnascincus more broadly.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 04-04-2018
Abstract: As we collect range-wide genetic data for morphologically-defined species, we increasingly unearth evidence for cryptic ersity. Delimiting this cryptic ersity is challenging, both because the ergences span a continuum and because the lack of overt morphological differentiation suggests ergence has proceeded heterogeneously. Herein, we address these challenges as we diagnose and describe species in three co-occurring species groups of Australian lizards. By integrating genomic and morphological data with data on hybridization and introgression from contact zones, we explore several approaches-and their relative benefits and weaknesses-for testing the validity of cryptic lineages. More generally, we advocate that genetic delimitations of cryptic ersity must consider whether these lineages are likely to be durable and persistent through evolutionary time.
Publisher: Queensland Museum
Date: 29-01-2018
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 14-02-2018
DOI: 10.1017/S003118201800015X
Abstract: Host–parasite dynamics can play a fundamental role in both the establishment success of invasive species and their impact on native wildlife. The net impact of parasites depends on their capacity to switch effectively between native and invasive hosts. Here we explore host-switching, spatial patterns and simple fitness measures in a slow-expanding invasion: the invasion of Asian house geckos ( Hemidactylus frenatus ) from urban areas into bushland in Northeast Australia. In bushland close to urban edges, H. frenatus co-occurs with, and at many sites now greatly out-numbers, native geckos. We measured prevalence and intensity of Geckobia mites (introduced with H. frenatus ), and Waddycephalus (a native pentastome). We recorded a new invasive mite species, and several new host associations for native mites and geckos, but we found no evidence of mite transmission between native and invasive geckos. In contrast, native Waddycephalus nymphs were commonly present in H. frenatus , demonstrating this parasite's capacity to utilize H. frenatus as a novel host. Prevalence of mites on H. frenatus decreased with distance from the urban edge, suggesting parasite release towards the invasion front however, we found no evidence that mites affect H. frenatus body condition or lifespan. Waddycephalus was present at low prevalence in bushland sites and, although its presence did not affect host body condition, our data suggest that it may reduce host survival. The high relative density of H. frenatus at our sites, and their capacity to harbour Waddycephalus , suggests that there may be impacts on native geckos and snakes through parasite spillback.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 06-08-2007
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 17-08-2020
Abstract: Large predators are particularly susceptible to population declines due to large area requirements, low population density, and conflict with humans. Their low density and secretive habits also make it difficult to know the spatial extent, size, and connectivity of populations declines hence can go unnoticed. Here, we quantified decline in a large marsupial carnivore, the spotted-tailed quoll (Dasyurus maculatus gracilis), endemic to the Wet Tropics rainforest of northeast Australia. We compiled a large database of occurrence records and used species distributional modeling to estimate the distribution in four time periods (Pre-1956, 1956–1975, 1976–1995, 1996–2016) using climate layers and three human-use variables. The most supported variables in the distribution models were climatic, with highly suitable quoll habitat having relatively high precipitation, low temperatures, and a narrow annual range in temperature. Land-use type and road density also influenced quoll distribution in some time periods. The modeling revealed a significant decline in the distribution of D. m. gracilis over the last century, with contraction away from peripheral areas and from large areas of the Atherton Tablelands in the center of the distribution. Tests of the change in patch availability for populations of 20, 50, and 100 in iduals revealed a substantial (17–32%) decline in available habitat for all population sizes, with a particular decline (31–40%) in core habitat (i.e., excluding edges). Six remaining populations were defined. Extrapolating capture–recapture density estimates derived from two populations in 2017 suggests these populations are small and range from about 10 to 160 in iduals. Our total population estimate sums to 424 in iduals, but we outline why this estimate is positively skewed and that the actual population size may be & 300 in iduals. Continued decline and apparent absence in areas of highly suitable habitat suggests some threats are not being captured in our models. From our results, we provide management and research recommendations for this enigmatic predator.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2020
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 06-2021
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PBIO.3001210
Abstract: Global bio ersity loss is a profound consequence of human activity. Disturbingly, bio ersity loss is greater than realized because of the unknown number of undocumented species. Conservation fundamentally relies on taxonomic recognition of species, but only a fraction of bio ersity is described. Here, we provide a new quantitative approach for prioritizing rigorous taxonomic research for conservation. We implement this approach in a highly erse vertebrate group—Australian lizards and snakes. Of 870 species assessed, we identified 282 (32.4%) with taxonomic uncertainty, of which 17.6% likely comprise undescribed species of conservation concern. We identify 24 species in need of immediate taxonomic attention to facilitate conservation. Using a broadly applicable return-on-investment framework, we demonstrate the importance of prioritizing the fundamental work of identifying species before they are lost.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 04-2019
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.4576.1.6
Abstract: Recent surveys of rocky rainforest in the Townsville region have found additional populations of Phyllurus geckos. One of these populations was discovered at The Pinnacles, an isolated area of habitat in between the distributions of P. gulbaru and P. amnicola. Genetic and morphological data shows that this population is most similar to P. gulbaru Hoskin, Couper & Schneider, 2003 but ergent in a number of traits. Here we describe this population as a new species, P. pinnaclensis sp. nov., based on genetic ergence and differences in a number of morphometric and scalation traits from other populations of Phyllurus. Phyllurus pinnaclensis sp. nov. appears to be restricted to a few small areas of deeply layered rock with associated dry rainforest. This habitat is fire-sensitive and increased frequency and intensity of fires (due to late season burns and high fuel loads of invasive grasses) threatens to reduce and fragment these dry rainforest patches. Other threats include potential future invasion of the habitat by introduced Asian House Geckos (Hemidactylus frenatus Duméril & Bibron, 1836) and illegal collecting. Given the very small and fragmented distribution and potential reduction in habitat area due to fire, P. pinnaclensis sp. nov. warrants a Critically Endangered listing. Resolving the distributional change of dry rainforest in the Townsville region in recent decades, particularly in regards to fire, is key to resolving the status of this and other locally threatened taxa that depend on this habitat.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 30-11-2018
DOI: 10.1002/EAP.1824
Abstract: The need to proactively manage landscapes and species to aid their adaptation to climate change is widely acknowledged. Current approaches to prioritizing investment in species conservation generally rely on correlative models, which predict the likely fate of species under different climate change scenarios. Yet, while model statistics can be improved by refining modeling techniques, gaps remain in understanding the relationship between model performance and ecological reality. To investigate this, we compared standard correlative species distribution models to highly accurate, fine-scale, distribution models. We critically assessed the ecological realism of each species' model, using expert knowledge of the geography and habitat in the study area and the biology of the study species. Using interactive software and an iterative vetting with experts, we identified seven general principles that explain why the distribution modeling under- or overestimated habitat suitability, under both current and predicted future climates. Importantly, we found that, while temperature estimates can be dramatically improved through better climate downscaling, many models still inaccurately reflected moisture availability. Furthermore, the correlative models did not account for biotic factors, such as disease or competitor species, and were unable to account for the likely presence of micro refugia. Under-performing current models resulted in widely ergent future projections of species' distributions. Expert vetting identified regions that were likely to contain micro refugia, even where the fine-scale future projections of species distributions predicted population losses. Based on the results, we identify four priority conservation actions required for more effective climate change adaptation responses. This approach to improving the ecological realism of correlative models to understand climate change impacts on species can be applied broadly to improve the evidence base underpinning management responses.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 10-2014
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.3869.3.2
Abstract: Carlia skinks are widespread in New Guinea, Wallacea, and northern and eastern Australia. Most Australian species occur in dry woodlands and savannas or marginal rainforest habitats associated with these. There are two rainforest species, parapatrically distributed in coastal mid-eastern Queensland (C. rhomboidalis) and the Wet Tropics of north-eastern Queensland (C. rubrigularis). These two sister species share a diagnostic morphological trait in having the interparietal scale fused to the frontoparietal. Here I describe a third species in this group, Carlia wundalthini sp. nov., from rainforest uplands of the Melville Range, a rainforest isolate 170 km north of the Wet Tropics. This species is diagnosable on male breeding colouration, morphometrics and scalation. The description of C. wundalthini sp. nov. brings the number of vertebrate species known to be endemic to the rainforest and boulder-fields of Cape Melville to seven. Carlia wundalthini sp. nov. is distinct among these endemics in being the only one that does not appear to be directly associated with rock, being found in rainforest leaf-litter.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 29-09-2014
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.3869.1.1
Abstract: Tropical rainforest is largely restricted in Australia to the fairly continuous Wet Tropics region and disconnected patches to the north on Cape York. The Wet Tropics is relatively well explored and studied, whereas the rainforests of Cape York have received less attention due to their remoteness. Here we describe two new species of Glaphyromorphus skinks from rainforest areas on Cape York. The two new species are most similar to each other and to G. fuscicaudis and G. nigricaudis, but both are readily diagnosed on numerous traits. Glaphyromorphus othelarrni sp. nov. is diagnosed from all similar species by its supralabial count (typically 8 vs 7), high number of subdigital lamellae beneath the 4th finger (14-15 vs 85 mm) and slender body shape, low number of subdigital lamellae beneath the 4th toe (17-20 vs generally 20 or more), and head and body pattern. Both species also differ from each other and similar congeners in other aspects of body shape, scalation and colour pattern. Glaphyromorphus othelarrni sp. nov. is restricted to boulder-strewn rainforest of the Melville Range, whilst Glaphyromorphus nyanchupinta sp. nov. is known only from upland rainforest in the McIlwraith Range. We discuss patterns of rainforest vertebrate endemism on Cape York, and the importance of lithorefugia in generating these.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-01-2022
DOI: 10.1007/S10531-022-02360-6
Abstract: Invasive ants are among the world’s most damaging invasive species, often directly or indirectly affecting native fauna. Insecticidal baits are the main method for suppressing or eradicating invasive ant populations, but their use must be considered against potential for unintended effects on native organisms. The invasive yellow crazy ant ( Anoplolepis gracillipes ) is widespread in the tropics, particularly on islands, where they have displaced a range of invertebrates. Effects of this ant on vertebrates, and in continental ecosystems generally, are less studied. We investigated the effects of yellow crazy ants and bait application on rainforest skinks and their invertebrate prey. We compared skink and skink prey abundance across four replicated rainforest site categories: high and low yellow crazy ant sites had both been baited but differed in yellow crazy ant activity control sites had never had yellow crazy ants or been baited and buffer sites had never had yellow crazy ants but had been baited. We recorded significantly lower abundance of two small skink species ( Lygisaurus laevis and Saproscincus tetradactylus ) in high yellow crazy ant sites compared to all other site categories. The differences persisted even after baiting reduced yellow crazy ant activity by 97.8% ± 0.04% (mean ± SD). A larger rainforest skink species ( Carlia rubrigularis ) was not negatively affected by yellow crazy ant invasion. Skink prey abundance was significantly lower in high yellow crazy ant sites compared to control sites and low yellow crazy ant sites, but not compared to buffer sites. These differences did not persist following baiting. We found no evidence that baiting negatively affects skinks or their invertebrate prey. Our data suggest that yellow crazy ants, but not the bait used to treat them, pose a direct threat to small rainforest skinks.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 20-08-2021
DOI: 10.1071/PC21019
Abstract: More than a third of the world’s hibian species are listed as Threatened or Extinct, with a recent assessment identifying 45 Australian frogs (18.4% of the currently recognised species) as ‘Threatened’ based on IUCN criteria. We applied structured expert elicitation to 26 frogs assessed as Critically Endangered and Endangered to estimate their probability of extinction by 2040. We also investigated whether participant experience (measured as a self-assigned categorical score, i.e. ‘expert’ or ‘non-expert’) influenced the estimates. Collation and analysis of participant opinion indicated that eight species are at high risk ( % chance) of becoming extinct by 2040, with the disease chytridiomycosis identified as the primary threat. A further five species are at moderate–high risk (30–50% chance), primarily due to climate change. Fourteen of the 26 frog species are endemic to Queensland, with many species restricted to small geographic ranges that are susceptible to stochastic events (e.g. a severe heatwave or a large bushfire). Experts were more likely to rate extinction probability higher for poorly known species (those with experts), while non-experts were more likely to rate extinction probability higher for better-known species. However, scores converged following discussion, indicating that there was greater consensus in the estimates of extinction probability. Increased resourcing and management intervention are urgently needed to avert future extinctions of Australia’s frogs. Key priorities include developing and supporting captive management and establishing or extending in-situ population refuges to alleviate the impacts of disease and climate change.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 28-09-2020
DOI: 10.1071/ZO21017
Abstract: Australian lizards are a erse group distributed across the continent and inhabiting a wide range of environments. Together, they exhibit a remarkable ersity of reproductive morphologies, physiologies, and behaviours that is broadly representative of vertebrates in general. Many reproductive traits exhibited by Australian lizards have evolved independently in multiple lizard lineages, including sociality, complex signalling and mating systems, viviparity, and temperature-dependent sex determination. Australian lizards are thus outstanding model organisms for testing hypotheses about how reproductive traits function and evolve, and they provide an important basis of comparison with other animals that exhibit similar traits. We review how research on Australian lizard reproduction has contributed to answering broader evolutionary and ecological questions that apply to animals in general. We focus on reproductive traits, processes, and strategies that are important areas of current research, including behaviours and signalling involved in courtship mechanisms involved in mating, egg production, and sperm competition nesting and gestation sex determination and finally, birth in viviparous species. We use our review to identify important questions that emerge from an understanding of this body of research when considered holistically. Finally, we identify additional research questions within each topic that Australian lizards are well suited for reproductive biologists to address.
Publisher: PeerJ
Date: 27-09-2021
DOI: 10.7717/PEERJ.12013
Abstract: Globally, hibian species have suffered drastic population declines over the past 40 years. Hundreds of species are now listed as Critically Endangered, with many of these considered “possibly extinct”. Most of these species are stream-dwelling frogs inhabiting remote, montane areas, where remnant populations are hard to find using traditional surveys. Environmental DNA (eDNA) could revolutionize surveys for ‘missing’ and endangered hibian populations by screening water s les from downstream sections to assess presence in the upstream catchments. However, the utility of this survey technique is dependent on quantifying downstream detection probability and distances. Here we tested downstream detection distances in two endangered stream frogs ( Litoria lorica and L. nannotis ) that co-occur in a remote stream catchment in north-east Australia, and for which we know precise downstream distributional limits from traditional surveys. Importantly, the two last populations of L. lorica persist in this catchment: one small (~1,000 frogs) and one very small (~100 frogs). We conducted eDNA screening at a series of sites kilometers downstream from the populations using precipitation from two fixed water volumes (15 and 100 mL) and via water filtering (mean 1,480 L). We detected L. nannotis and the small L. lorica population (~1,000 frogs) at most s ling sites, including 22.8 km downstream. The filtration method was highly effective for far-downstream detection, as was precipitation from 100 mL water s les, which also resulted in consistent detections at the far-downstream sites (including to 22.8 km). In contrast, we had limited downstream detection success for the very small L. lorica population (~100 frogs). The ecological aspects of our study system, coupled with thorough traditional surveys, enabled us to measure downstream eDNA detection distances with accuracy. We demonstrate that eDNA from a small population of approximately 1,000 frogs can be detected as far as 22.8 km downstream from the population. Water filtration is considered best for eDNA detection of rare aquatic species—indeed it was effective in this study—but we also achieved far-downstream detections when precipitating eDNA from 100 mL water s les. Collecting small water volumes for subsequent precipitation in the lab is more practical than filtration when surveying remote areas. Our downstream detection distances ( km) suggest eDNA is a valuable tool for detecting rare stream hibians. We provide recommendations on optimal survey methods.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2018
DOI: 10.1071/ZO18041
Abstract: Amphibian chytridiomycosis disease has caused widespread declines and extinctions of frogs in cool, wet habitats in eastern Australia. Screening suggests that the disease does not yet occupy all areas modelled to be environmentally suitable, including rainforests on Cape York Peninsula. Cape Melville is an area of rainforest with several endemic frogs, including the stream-associated Melville Range treefrog (Litoria andiirrmalin), which is deemed at particular risk of disease impacts. We tested 40 L. andiirrmalin for chytrid infection by PCR and found them all to be negative. In conjunction with previous testing at another high-risk location, McIlwraith Range, this suggests that endemic rainforest frogs on Cape York have been spared the introduction of chytridiomycosis. We discuss how the disease could get to these areas, what can be done to reduce the risk, and suggest an emergency procedure should it be introduced.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-03-2010
DOI: 10.1111/J.1461-0248.2010.01448.X
Abstract: A species may overlap with a mosaic of species across its geographic range. Many types of species interaction cause selection on mating traits, but their role in generating within-species ergence has been neglected. The pattern of reproductive character displacement (RCD) has been classically attributed to reinforcement, a process driven by selection against hybridisation. Recent reinforcement research shows that sexual isolation can result between displaced and non-displaced populations. We argue that RCD (and hence potentially speciation) among populations can be generated by a variety of fundamental species interactions beyond reinforcement. We unify these interactions under one process of mating trait ergence and speciation ('RCD speciation'). This process can occur in many geographic settings. Because selection is acting directly on mating traits, rapid speciation can result involving little differentiation in other traits. This pattern of ersification is seen in many groups and regions, and has previously been attributed to sexual selection alone.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2021
DOI: 10.1071/WR20003
Abstract: Abstract ContextAcoustic communication is common in some animal groups, with an underlying function typically associated with mating or territoriality. Resolving the function of calls is valuable both in terms of understanding the fundamental biology of the species and, potentially, for applied reasons such as detection. Early detection is a key step in exclusion and eradication of invasive species, and calling behaviour can be used in this regard. The Asian house gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus) is one of a minority of lizards that uses acoustic communication. However, despite how conspicuous the call is, its function remains poorly resolved. It is also one of the world’s most invasive species, with exclusion via early detection being the key form of control. AimsThe aim was to resolve calling patterns and underlying function of the loud, multiple-chirp call (‘chik, chik, chik…’) in H. frenatus, in the context of using the results for developing effective methods for detection of new and establishing populations. MethodsThe calls of wild H. frenatus were recorded to assess peaks in calling activity. Also, laboratory experiments were performed to determine which in iduals call, what causes them to call and the degree of call variation among in iduals. Key resultsAssessment of calling behaviour in the wild revealed greater calling activity in warmer months, and five- to 10-fold peaks in calling activity at sunset and 30min before sunrise. Laboratory experiments revealed that calls were uttered exclusively by males and primarily by adults (although juveniles can call). Males called more when they were paired with females as opposed to other males. Calls differed among geckos, including the expected negative correlation between dominant frequency and body size. ConclusionsThe results suggest that the multiple-chirp call functions as a territory or sexual broadcast by males, perhaps containing information such as body size. ImplicationsDetection success can be maximised by performing acoustic surveys (by human or machine) during the calling peaks at 30min before sunrise and at sunset, particularly during warm nights. However, these surveys will only be effective for detecting adult males. The results also suggest that good quality recordings could potentially be used to identify in idual geckos.
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Date: 08-10-2019
DOI: 10.11646/ZOOTAXA.4683.2.4
Abstract: Inland eastern Australia has a complex array of habitats, driven by variation in topography, geology and moisture. This broad region is relatively poorly surveyed compared to coastal eastern Australia and likely contains significant numbers of undescribed reptiles. Oedura monilis is found through much of this region but has been shrouded in taxonomic uncertainty since its original description. Here I assess variation across the range of ‘O. monilis’ and show that it consists of two species: a widespread species in the northern half of the range and a widespread species in the southern half of the range. These two species are readily diagnosed by colour pattern and aspects of shape and scalation. I show that the name O. monilis applies to the northern species. I also show that the name O. attenboroughi Wells & Wellington applies to the northern populations, making it a junior synonym of O. monilis. I describe the southern widespread species as Oedura elegans sp. nov.. I also describe two new, highly localised species from inland eastern Queensland that are allied to O. monilis: Oedura picta sp. nov. from a rocky range in the Moranbah–Dysart region, and Oedura lineata sp. nov. from brigalow forest remnants in the Arcadia Valley. These two species are distinct for colour pattern and aspects of size, shape and scalation. Oedura lineata sp. nov. has a very small and fragmented range, and is restricted to a highly threatened habitat type. It therefore warrants conservation attention. I also provide more detailed diagnoses for O. coggeri Bustard and O. tryoni De Vis, and demonstrate that the name O. ocellata Boulenger is a junior synonym of O. tryoni.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2021
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2003
DOI: 10.1071/ZO02072
Abstract: Phyllurus gulbaru, sp. nov., is a highly distinct species of leaf-tailed gecko restricted to rocky rainforest of Pattersons Gorge, north-west of Townsville. The possession of a cylindrical, non-depressed, tapering original and regenerated tail separates P. gulbaru from all congeners except P. caudiannulatus. From this species P. gulbaru is separated by having a partially ided, as opposed to fully ided, rostral scale. Furthermore, the very small spinose body tubercles of P. gulbaru are in marked contrast to the large spinose body scales of P. caudiannulatus. An analysis of 729 bp of mitochondrial 12S rRNA and cytochrome b genes reveals P. gulbaru to be a deeply ergent lineage with closer affinities to mid-east Queensland congeners than the geographically neighbouring P. amnicola on Mt Elliot. In conservation terms, P. gulbaru is clearly at risk. Field surveys of Pattersons Gorge and the adjacent ranges indicate that this species is restricted to a very small area of highly fragmented habitat, of which only a small proportion receives a degree of protection in State forest. Further, there is ongoing, unchecked destruction of dry rainforest habitat by fire. Under current IUCN criteria, P. gulbaru warrants an Endangered (B1, 2) listing.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 17-01-2023
DOI: 10.1007/S10592-022-01499-7
Abstract: The Kuranda Treefrog occurs in tropical north-east Australia and is listed as Critically Endangered due to its small distribution and population size, with observed declines due to drought and human-associated impacts to habitat. Field surveys identified marked population declines in the mid-2000s, culminating in very low abundance at most sites in 2005 and 2006, followed by limited recovery. Here, s les from before (2001–2004) and after (2007–2009) this decline were analysed using 7132 neutral genome-wide SNPs to assess genetic connectivity among breeding sites, genetic erosion, and effective population size. We found a high level of genetic connectivity among breeding sites, but also structuring between the population at the eastern end of the distribution (Jumrum Creek) versus all other sites. Despite finding no detectable sign of genetic erosion between the two times periods, we observed a marked decrease in effective population size (Ne), from 1720 in iduals pre-decline to 818 post-decline. This mirrors the decline detected in the field census data, but the magnitude of the decline suggested by the genetic data is greater. We conclude that the current effective population size for the Kuranda Treefrog remains around 800 adults, split equally between Jumrum Creek and all other sites combined. The Jumrum Creek habitat requires formal protection. Connectivity among all other sites must be maintained and improved through continued replanting of rainforest, and it is imperative that impacts to stream flow and water quality are carefully managed to maintain or increase population sizes and prevent genetic erosion.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.1071/AM19017
Abstract: We compared two bait station techniques for determining the sex and identifying in idual spotted-tailed quolls (Dasyurus maculatus gracilis) using images taken by camera traps. One method used bait in a plastic mesh bag and the other was a new method using a raised bait canister to entice the quolls to stand on their hind legs and present their ventral surface to the camera. In iduals were identified from multiple images of their unique spot pattern, and sex was determined from ventral images. The bait bag method was better for detecting quolls and both methods performed similarly in allowing observers to identify in iduals from images. However, the bait canister method was superior for determining sex of in iduals. Using this new bait canister method, in idual identification was possible in 202 out of 206 detection events and the sex of 81% (47 of 58) of identified in iduals was confidently assigned from multiple detections. This bait station design can therefore provide additional data on in idual quolls and reduces the need for more invasive live-trapping techniques. This methodology could be adapted for other mammals in Australia and worldwide.
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 03-01-2017
No related grants have been discovered for Conrad Hoskin.