Dataset Information

Seasonal differences in climate change explain a lack of multi-decadal shifts in population characteristics of a pond breeding salamander.

ABSTRACT: There is considerable variation among studies that evaluate how amphibian populations respond to global climate change. We used 23 years of annual survey data to test whether changes in climate have caused predictable shifts in the phenology and population characteristics of adult spotted salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) during spring breeding migrations. Although we observed year-to-year correlation between seasonal climate variables and salamander population characteristics, there have not been long-term, directional shifts in phenological or population characteristics. Warm winters consistently resulted in early migration dates, but across the 23-year study, there was no overall shift towards warmer winters and thus no advanced migration timing. Warm summers and low variability in summer temperatures were correlated with large salamander body sizes, yet an overall shift towards increasing body sizes was not observed despite rising summer temperatures during the study. This was likely due to the absence of long-term changes of within-year variation in summer temperatures, which was a stronger determinant of body size than summer temperature alone. Climate-induced shifts in population characteristics were thus not observed for this species as long-term changes in important seasonal climate variables were not observed during the 23-years of the study. Different amphibian populations will likely be more resilient to climate change impacts than others, and the probability of amphibians exhibiting long-term population changes will depend on how seasonal climate change interacts with a species' life history, phenology, and geographic location. Linking a wide range of seasonal climatic conditions to species or population characteristics should thus improve our ability for explaining idiosyncratic responses of species to climate change.

SUBMITTER: Kirk MA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6730874 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Seasonal differences in climate change explain a lack of multi-decadal shifts in population characteristics of a pond breeding salamander.

Kirk Mark A MA Galatowitsch Mark L ML Wissinger Scott A SA

PloS one 20190906 9

There is considerable variation among studies that evaluate how amphibian populations respond to global climate change. We used 23 years of annual survey data to test whether changes in climate have caused predictable shifts in the phenology and population characteristics of adult spotted salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) during spring breeding migrations. Although we observed year-to-year correlation between seasonal climate variables and salamander population characteristics, there have not be ...[more]

PMID: 31491025

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Project description:Abstract Aim To test whether the occupancy of shorebirds has changed in the eastern Canadian Arctic, and whether these changes could indicate that shorebird distributions are shifting in response to long‐term climate change. Location Foxe Basin and Rasmussen Lowlands, Nunavut, Canada. Methods We used a unique set of observations, made 25 years apart, using general linear models to test if there was a relationship between changes in shorebird species' occupancy and their species temperature Index, a simple version of a species climate envelope. Results Changes in occupancy and density varied widely across species, with some increasing and some decreasing. This is despite that overall population trends are known to be negative for all of these species based on surveys during migration. The changes in occupancy that we observed were positively related to the species temperature index, such that the warmer‐breeding species appear to be moving into these regions, while colder‐breeding species appear to be shifting out of the regions, likely northward. Main Conclusions Our results suggest that we should be concerned about declining breeding habitat availability for bird species whose current breeding ranges are centered on higher and colder latitudes. We used a unique set of observations, made 25 years apart, using general linear models to test if there was a relationship between changes in shorebird species' occupancy and their species temperature index, a simple version of a species' climate envelope. The changes in occupancy that we observed were positively related to the species temperature index, such that the warmer‐breeding species appear to be moving into these regions, while colder‐breeding species appear to be shifting out of the regions, likely northward. Our results suggest that we should be concerned about declining breeding habitat availability for bird species whose current breeding ranges are centered on higher and colder latitudes.

Dataset Information

Seasonal differences in climate change explain a lack of multi-decadal shifts in population characteristics of a pond breeding salamander.

Publications

Seasonal differences in climate change explain a lack of multi-decadal shifts in population characteristics of a pond breeding salamander.

Similar Datasets

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