Premium
Determinants of tree frog calling ponds in a human‐transformed landscape
Author(s) -
Fischer Klaus,
Becker Marlen,
Becker Bianca A.,
Bensch Julia,
Böckers Andre,
Burmeister Martin,
Dombrowski Janine,
Donke Elisabeth,
Ermisch Rebecca,
Fritze Marcus,
Fritzsch Anna,
Hübler Nora,
Ide Marina,
Klockmann Michael,
Mielke Melanie,
Pfender David,
Schiffler Maria,
Schrödter Marlen,
Sund Lars,
Viertel Caroline,
Weise Elisabeth,
Werner Maike,
Winter Martin
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
ecological research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.628
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1440-1703
pISSN - 0912-3814
DOI - 10.1007/s11284-014-1238-y
Subject(s) - endangered species , habitat , geography , ecology , arable land , urbanization , vegetation (pathology) , overwintering , occupancy , shrub , agriculture , biology , pathology , medicine
Facing increasing human demands on Earth, understanding how endangered species may survive in isolated remnants of natural habitat within heavily transformed landscapes is key to contemporary conservation biology. Against this background we here investigate the factors affecting pond occupancy in the endangered European tree frog ( Hyla arborea L.) within an urban landscape, being located in north‐eastern Germany where the species is still fairly common. Our survey revealed that 58 out of 122 ponds were occupied by H. arborea . Ponds with a higher percentage of floating vegetation, being deeper and surrounded by higher percentages of crop fields and forests were more likely to be occupied, while factors associated with urbanization such as the percentage of built‐up area were strongly detrimental. Habitat requirements of H. arborea were complex as occurrence was simultaneously affected by different spatial scales, including the landscape scale, the immediate surroundings of ponds and the ponds themselves. H. arborea avoided highly urbanized areas, but occurred frequently in agricultural areas surrounding the city. The latter suggests that this species is fairly tolerant towards human‐induced transformations, and that vast arable fields yielded positive rather than negative effects on H. arborea occurrence. We conclude that the most important conservation issues for supporting H. arborea populations at the periphery of urbanized areas are (1) maintaining an open (agricultural) landscape structure, (2) providing undisturbed overwintering habitats, and (3) maintaining pond quality by halting shrub and tree encroachment.