Humphrey, JE and Ward, CFM orcid.org/0000-0001-8362-4713 (2018) Madagascan day geckos (Phelsuma spp.) exhibit differing responses along a gradient of land-use change. Tropical Conservation Science, 11. pp. 1-10. ISSN 1940-0829
Abstract
Madagascar is a key priority for global conservation efforts, as much of its diverse and highly endemic biota is threatened by deforestation. Despite this threat, there are limited data on the responses and tolerances of herpetofaunal species to landscape change. This study investigated the response of Madagascan day geckos (Phelsuma spp.) to deforestation in Nosy Be, Madagascar. We selected six sites along a gradient of land-use change: two in Sambirano rainforest (“Forest”), two in secondary, fragmented forest (“Fragment”), and two in agricultural plantations (“Orchard” and “Cropland”). We conducted a series of time-constrained searches at each site. The mean encounter rate of Phelsuma geckos (geckos detected per person/hour) was greater in agricultural sites than Forest sites, but no difference was detected between Forest and Fragment or Fragment and agricultural areas. Three species were encountered more frequently in agricultural land than forested sites, but this was not true for Phelsuma seippi, an endangered species on the IUCN Red List. These results suggest that adaptive, generalist species may benefit from anthropogenic land-use change, whereas specialist species will suffer. Our study emphasizes the importance of extending research beyond the borders of protected forests to include anthropogenically disturbed areas.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | (c) The Author(s) 2018. Creative Commons CC-BY: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage). |
Keywords: | land-use change; deforestation; habitat disturbance; gecko; conservation |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > School of Earth and Environment (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 01 Feb 2018 14:38 |
Last Modified: | 01 May 2018 12:41 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | SAGE |
Identification Number: | 10.1177/1940082918760282 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:126883 |