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Abstract
Amphibian species around the world are unusually vulnerable to a variety of threats, by no means all of which are properly understood. Volume 11 in this major series is published in parts devoted to the causes of amphibian decline and to conservation measures in regions of the world. This volume, Part 4 in the series, is concerned with Southern Europe (Italy, Malta, Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Albania, Greece, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Turkey, and Cyprus).
Each chapter has been written by experts from each country, describing the ecological background and the conservation status of affected species, with an emphasis on native species. As well as infectious diseases and parasites, threats take the form of introduced and invasive species, pollution, destruction and alteration of habitat, and climatic change. These are discussed as they affect each species. All these countries have monitoring schemes and conservation programs, whose origins and activities are described. Recommendations for action are also made.
Edited by leading scholars in the field, Volume 11, when complete, will provide a definitive survey of the amphibian predicament and a stimulus to further research with the objective of arresting the global decline of an entire class of animal.
This book very usefully compiles under a single cover a large body of information that would otherwise be widely dispersed between specialist journals and regional literature.
Richard A. Griffiths
Harold Heatwole is an ecologist and herpetologist. His first PhD (University of Michigan) dealt with habitat use by amphibians, but then he branched out and studied other taxa, mostly reptiles and amphibians, but also ants, tardigrades, and seabirds. He earned a second PhD in Botany with a dissertation on the dynamics of vegetation on coral cays on the Great Barrier Reef of Australia (University of Queensland). He completed his education with a PhD in Geography (James Cook University) and a DsC (University of New England, Australia). He had faculty appointments at the University of Puerto Rico, University of New England, and currently is Professor of Biology at North Carolina State University and Adjunct Professor of Zoology at the University of New England. He is editor in Chief of the journal Integrative and Comparative Biology. He is a Fellow of the Explorers Club.
John W. Wilkinson is a conservation biologist specializing in studying and monitoring amphibians and reptiles. He started working with herpetofauna whilst an undergraduate and now nobody will give him a proper job. For eight years he was International Coordinator of the Declining Amphibian Populations Task Force and is currently Science Program Manager for the charity Amphibian and Reptile Conservation. John's PhD thesis was on toad conservation - it just made him realize how much more there is to find out...
Table of Contents
| Section Title | Page | Action | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Table of contents | 5 | ||
| Contents of previous parts | 6 | ||
| Contributors | 9 | ||
| Editors’ preface | 11 | ||
| 39 The amphibians of the Italian region: A review of conservation status | 1 | ||
| I. Introduction | 1 | ||
| II. The status of the Italian amphibian fauna | 4 | ||
| III. Threats affecting the Italian batrachofauna | 5 | ||
| A. Habitat alteration and urbanization | 5 | ||
| B. The chytrid fungus in Italy and its significance for amphibian conservation | 6 | ||
| C. The introduced species | 7 | ||
| IV. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 9 | ||
| V. Conclusions | 10 | ||
| VI. Acknowledgements | 11 | ||
| VII. Addendum | 11 | ||
| VIII. References | 12 | ||
| 40 Amphibian conservation and declines in Malta | 17 | ||
| I. Introduction | 17 | ||
| II. Maltese amphibians | 18 | ||
| III. Conservation status and threats | 19 | ||
| IV. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 20 | ||
| V. Conclusions | 21 | ||
| VI. Acknowledgements | 22 | ||
| VII. References | 23 | ||
| 41 Conservation and declines of amphibians in Croatia | 25 | ||
| I. Introduction | 25 | ||
| II. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 28 | ||
| III. Red List | 30 | ||
| IV. Summary | 30 | ||
| V. Acknowledgements | 30 | ||
| VI. References | 31 | ||
| 42 Conservation and declines of amphibians in Slovenia | 32 | ||
| I. Introduction | 32 | ||
| II. Declining species | 33 | ||
| A. General pressures on amphibian populations in Slovenia | 33 | ||
| B. Declining amphibian species and species of special conservation concern | 34 | ||
| III. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 36 | ||
| A. Historical background of conservation measures and legislation for protecting amphibian species in Slovenia | 36 | ||
| B. Conservation measures | 36 | ||
| C. Monitoring activities | 38 | ||
| IV. Red List of Slovenian amphibians | 38 | ||
| V. Conclusion | 39 | ||
| VI. Acknowledgements | 40 | ||
| VII. References | 41 | ||
| 43 Conservation and decline of European amphibians: The Republic of Serbia | 45 | ||
| I. Introduction | 45 | ||
| A. General pressures on amphibian populations | 47 | ||
| II. Declining species and species of special concern for conservation | 49 | ||
| A. Declining amphibian species | 49 | ||
| B. Species of special concern for conservation | 50 | ||
| III. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 51 | ||
| IV. Species’ status | 52 | ||
| V. Summary | 52 | ||
| VI. Acknowledgements | 52 | ||
| VII. References | 53 | ||
| 44 Amphibian declines and conservation in Montenegro | 56 | ||
| I. Introduction | 56 | ||
| II. General pressures on amphibian populations worldwide | 57 | ||
| A. Habitat destruction | 57 | ||
| B. Introduced and invasive species | 57 | ||
| C. Climatic change | 57 | ||
| D. Over-harvesting | 58 | ||
| III. Species of special conservation concern in Montenegro | 58 | ||
| IV. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 59 | ||
| V. References | 61 | ||
| 45 Status of amphibians in Bosnia and Herzegovina | 62 | ||
| I. Introduction | 62 | ||
| II. Freshwater habitats | 62 | ||
| A. The Black Sea Basin | 62 | ||
| B. The Adriatic Basin | 63 | ||
| C. Lakes | 63 | ||
| D. Wetlands | 63 | ||
| E. Pressures on wetland ecosystems | 63 | ||
| III. The amphibians of Bosnia and Herzegovina | 65 | ||
| A. Pressures on the amphibian fauna | 65 | ||
| IV. References | 66 | ||
| 46 Conservation and protection status of amphibians in Macedonia | 67 | ||
| I. Introduction | 67 | ||
| A. Geographic features | 67 | ||
| B. Amphibian species in the FYR of Macedonia | 69 | ||
| C. Assessment | 69 | ||
| II. Threats to amphibians | 69 | ||
| III. Species of special concern for conservation | 71 | ||
| IV. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 71 | ||
| V. Conclusions | 71 | ||
| VI. References | 72 | ||
| 47 Amphibians of Albania | 74 | ||
| I. Introduction | 74 | ||
| II. Amphibian population declines in Albania | 75 | ||
| III. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 76 | ||
| IV. Summary of the species present in Albania and their status | 76 | ||
| V. Conclusions | 77 | ||
| VI. Acknowledgements | 77 | ||
| VII. References | 78 | ||
| 48 Declines and conservation of amphibians in Greece | 80 | ||
| I. Introduction | 80 | ||
| II. Species of special conservation concern | 82 | ||
| A. Pelophylax cerigensis (Beerli et al. 1994) | 82 | ||
| B. Bombina bombina (Linnaeus 1761) | 82 | ||
| C. Pelophylax cretensis (Beerli et al. 1994) | 82 | ||
| D. Lyciasalamandra luschani (Steindachner 1891) | 82 | ||
| E. Ichthyosaura alpestris (Laurenti 1768) | 83 | ||
| F. Rana temporaria (Linnaeus 1758) | 83 | ||
| G. Lyciasalamandra helverseni (Pieper 1963) | 83 | ||
| III. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 84 | ||
| IV. Conclusions | 84 | ||
| V. References | 85 | ||
| 49 Amphibian conservation anddecline in Romania | 87 | ||
| I. Introduction | 87 | ||
| A. Human footprint | 88 | ||
| B. Phylogeography | 88 | ||
| II. Species of special conservation concern | 89 | ||
| A. Taxonomic issues | 89 | ||
| B. Hybridization | 90 | ||
| C. Major threats | 91 | ||
| III. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 92 | ||
| A. Legislation and conservation policy | 92 | ||
| B. Red Lists | 92 | ||
| C. Conservation and taxonomy | 93 | ||
| D. Conservation strategies | 93 | ||
| IV. Conclusions | 94 | ||
| V. Acknowledgements | 94 | ||
| VI. References | 95 | ||
| 50 Conservation and decline of amphibians in Hungary | 99 | ||
| I. Introduction | 100 | ||
| A. The history of habitat destruction in Hungary | 100 | ||
| B. Legal protection of amphibian species in Hungary | 102 | ||
| II. Declining species of amphibians and species of special conservation concern | 102 | ||
| A. Salamandra salamandra | 103 | ||
| B. Triturus dobrogicus | 104 | ||
| C. Triturus carnifex | 105 | ||
| D. Ichthyosaura alpestris | 106 | ||
| E. Bombina variegata | 108 | ||
| F. Rana arvalis | 109 | ||
| G. Rana temporaria | 110 | ||
| III. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 110 | ||
| A. Role of NGOs in protection of amphibians | 110 | ||
| B. Mapping the Hungarian herpetofauna | 112 | ||
| C. Amphibian rescue actions | 113 | ||
| D. Frog tunnels | 114 | ||
| E. Monitoring programmes | 114 | ||
| IV. Conclusions | 118 | ||
| V. Acknowledgements | 119 | ||
| VI. References | 119 | ||
| 51 Conservation and declines of amphibians in Bulgaria | 131 | ||
| I. Introduction | 131 | ||
| A. Species list and recent changes | 131 | ||
| B. Species’ distribution and richness | 133 | ||
| II. Amphibian declines and species of special conservation concern | 135 | ||
| III. Conservation measures and monitoring programmes | 135 | ||
| IV. Conclusions | 137 | ||
| V. Acknowledgements | 137 | ||
| VI. References | 138 | ||
| 52 Amphibian conservation and decline in Turkey | 140 | ||
| I. Introduction | 140 | ||
| A. Causes of species richness in Turkey | 140 | ||
| B. The amphibian species of Turkey | 140 | ||
| II. Declining Turkish amphibians and species of special conservation concern | 142 | ||
| A. Declining amphibian species in Turkey | 142 | ||
| B. The reasons for amphibian decline in Turkey | 142 | ||
| C. Amphibian species of special conservation concern in Turkey | 143 | ||
| III. Conservation measures required | 145 | ||
| IV. Summary | 145 | ||
| V. References | 146 | ||
| 53 Conservation of amphibians in Cyprus | 148 | ||
| I. Introduction | 148 | ||
| II. Cypriot amphibians | 149 | ||
| A. Hyla savignyi | 149 | ||
| B. Bufotes viridis | 149 | ||
| C. Pelophylax bedriagae | 149 | ||
| III. Monitoring | 150 | ||
| IV. References | 151 | ||
| Index | 152 |