Amphibian situation in urban environment : history of the common toad Bufo bufo in Kraków (Poland)

Rapid urbanization processes are not neutral to the environment, especially amphibians. Their double-environment lifestyle makes them particularly vulnerable to negative changes in the environment. Inventory research on batrachofauna carried out in urban areas usually provides data on its current state, but there is little information about changes in its composition over the years. The aim of the study was to investigate the situation of amphibians in urban areas of Kraków (Poland) over the last 90 years. As an example of amphibian species the common toad Bufo bufo (Linnaeus, 1758) was selected, because of its widespread occurrence and high environmental plasticity. Three periods were chosen for the analysis: 1) before the Second World War (1928-1939), when the nature of the city seemed to be the least exposed to treats, 2) after the rapid urban transformation associated with the expansion of the territory of the city (1986 -1992), and 3) the present time. In order to determine the current situation of amphibians, in 2011-2012, 30 water bodies of Kraków were inventoried, with particular emphasis on the common toad. The occurrence of the same species in the city over the last 90 years was shown. The proportion of occupied habitat (POH) by the common toad (POH=0.57) is currently similar to the pre-Second World War proportion (POH=0.58). Between these two periods, there was a significant increase in the number of Bufo bufo in Kraków (POH=0.86). At that time the common toad was the only amphibian which increased, while the others declined. These results may suggest the high resistance of the species to the negative impact of urbanization during this period (loss and fragmentation of habitat and pollution). However, its resistance is limited, as evidenced by the recent decline of the species, just as most other amphibians of Kraków

Water quality of urban water bodies : a threat for amphibians?

Most studies on the effects of water quality on amphibians concern experimental conditions. The main aim of our study was to determine whether the quality of water bodies in urban environment may be a factor leading to local extinction of some amphibian species. We investigated the current amphibian richness in Kraków water bodies and the water quality of these water bodies. We compared our results with available historical data on amphibian richness in Kraków and we determined the number of amphibian species local extinction for each water body. Then, we compared water bodies with low amphibian extinction rates to water bodies with high amphibian extinction rates in respect to ten water quality chemical indicators. We found that the values of most chemical indicators were higher in water bodies with high amphibian extinction rates. The values of magnesium and chloride ion concentration, as well as conductivity appeared to differ the most between these two types of water bodies which is connected mainly with spring run-off into the water bodies. The results of this study demonstrate that water pollution may lead to local extinction of amphibian species

Flora of Pleśnianka drainage basin (Rożnów Foothills, Western Carpathians)

The paper contains data concerning the flora of northern part of the Rożnów Foothills, Pleśnianka drainage basin (Western Carpathians). The floristic list includes 438 plant species. The investigation brought some new information connected with rare plants for the area of the Ciężkowice-Rożnów Foothills and Carpathian Foothills

Locality of Ornithogalum umbellatum (Liliaceae) in the Carpathians

Ornithogalum umbellatum L. is protected and rare species in natural localities in Poland. It occurs mainly in central and western part of the country. Only one locality was historically known from the Carpathians (Zając & Zając 2001). It was described by Ciemięga (1960) from the Ciężkowice Foothills, but not confirmed by Kornaś et al. (1996). The new locality for this species have been found in the Rożnów Foothills, in the Pleśnianka drainage basin (EF 8604 of ATPOL square system, Fig. 1). The occurrence of small population discovered in 2008 in the Arrhenatheretum elatioris was confirmed in 2009 and 2011

Occurrence of the fire salamander Salamandra salamandra in the northern Rożnów Foothills

Na Pogórzu Rożnowskim opisano stanowisko salamandry plamistej Salamandra salamandra. Obecność dorosłych osobników oraz ich larw stwierdzono w miejscowościach Pleśna i Lubinka, około 10 km na południe od Tarnowa. Dorosłe salamandry zamieszkują tamtejsze grądy i buczyny, a w potokach Pleśnianka i Lubinka płynących przez te zbiorowiska leśne samice rodzą larwy. W celu uzyskania pierwszych danych ilościowych w maju 2011 roku przeprowadzono liczenie larw salamandry w obu potokach na 14 transektach o długości 100 m każdy. W potoku Pleśnianka odnotowano łącznie 403 larwy tego gatunku, natomiast w potoku Lubinka ich liczba wynosiła 46. Uzyskane wyniki sugerują, że salamandra plamista na badanym terenie jest stosunkowo liczna, co potwierdzają częste obserwacje dorosłych osobników.The site with fire salamander Salamandra salamandra was described in the Rożnów Foothills. The presence of adults and their larvae was found in the villages of Pleśna and Lubinka, about 10 km south of Tarnów. Adults live in oak-hornbeam forests and beech forests. In the Lubinka and Pleśnianka streams (within a distance of 1 km), which are flowing through forest communities, females give birth to larvae. In order to obtain the first quantitative data on the local population of the fire salamander, in May 2011, larvae were counted in the two streams along 14 transects, each 100 m long. In the Lubinka stream, the number of larvae exceed 46 individuals, while in the Pleśnianka stream, there were 403 larvae of the species. The results prove the presence of a relatively large population of the fire salamander in the study area, which is confirmed by frequent occurrence of adults

New locality of the common spadefoot Pelobates fuscus in southern Poland

Grzebiuszka ziemna Pelobates fuscus (Laurenti, 1768) jest płazem szeroko rozpowszechnionym na niżowych obszarach Polski. W ostatnich latach notuje się spadek liczebności jej populacji, szczególnie w południowej części kraju. W lipcu 2013 roku w Sterkowcu (woj. małopolskie, powiat brzeski) stwierdzono nowe stanowisko grzebiuszki ziemnej. Kijanki tego gatunku przebywały w obszernym, płytkim rozlewisku znajdującym się przy lesie sosnowym. Zbiornik ten stanowił zatem miejsce rozrodu grzebiuszki, a tereny go otaczające – jej siedlisko lądowe. W rozlewisku odnotowano liczne kijanki (od 3 do 4 tys.), które przeobraziły się w osobniki młodociane, co świadczy o dużym prawdopodobieństwie sukcesu rozrodczego tamtejszej populacji. Wartość przyrodniczą opisanego stanowiska podnosi również obecność pięciu innych rozradzających się tam gatunków płazów: traszki zwyczajnej Lissotriton vulgaris, traszki grzebieniastej Triturus cristatus, żaby zwinki Rana dalmatina, żaby trawnej Rana temporaria i kumaka nizinnego Bombina bombina.Th e common spadefoot Pelobates fuscus (Laurenti, 1768) is an amphibian widespread in the lowland areas of Poland (Profus, Sura 2003). In recent years, there has been a global decline in the population size, especially in the southern part of the country (Nyström et al. 2002; Świerad 2003). In July 2013, a new locality of the spadefoot has been found in the village Sterkowiec (Gmina Brzesko, Małopolska Province, southern Poland). Many tadpoles of the species occurred in a large, shallow backwater located near a pine forest. Th is observation indicates that the reservoir is a breeding reservoir for the common spadefoot, and the surrounding area is its potential terrestrial habitat. Numerous tadpoles occurred in the fl ood waters, which later developed intojuveniles and this indicates a high reproductive success of the local population. The natural value of the site is represented also by the occurrence of fi ve other breeding amphibian species

A preliminary report of amphibian mortality patterns on railways

<p>In contrast to road mortality, little is known about amphibian railroad mortality. The aim of this study was to quantify amphibian mortality along a railway line as well as to investigate the relationship between the availability of breeding sites in the surrounding habitats and the monthly variation of amphibian railway mortality. The study was conducted from April to July 2011 along 45 km of the railway line Kraków - Tarnów (Poland, Małopolska province). Three species were affected by railway mortality: <em>Bufo bufo,</em> <em>Rana temporaria</em> and <em>Pelophylax</em> kl. <em>esculentus</em>. Most dead individuals (77%) were adult common toads. The largest number (14) of amphibian breeding sites was located in the most heterogeneous habitats (woodland and rural areas), which coincides with the sectors of highest amphibian mortality (42% of all accidents). As in the case of roads, spring migration is the period of highest amphibian mortality (87% of all accidents) on railroads. Our findings suggest that railroad mortality depends on the agility of the species, associated primarily with the ability to overcome the rails.</p

The occurrence of Epipactis purpurata in the Rożnów Foothills (Western Carpathians)

Kruszczyk siny Epipactis purpurata Sm. należy do chronionych i rzadkich w skali kraju gatunków z rodziny storczykowatych. W 2009 roku na Pogórzu Rożnowskim znaleziono trzy stanowiska kruszczyka sinego, niepodawanego dotychczas z tego mezoregionu. Populacje gatunku rosły w lasach grądowych. Zagrożeniem dla tego taksonu jest mała liczebność populacji oraz infekcja grzybami patogenicznymi.Epipactis purpurata Sm. is one of the protected and rare Orchidaceae species in Poland. Three sites of the species were found in the Rożnów Foothills in 2009 (Western Carpathians). It is a new species in the Rożnów Foothills (Fig. 1). Epipactis purpurata grew in the forest communities of the Tilio-Carpinetum association. Its three populations differed in respect of the number of stems: from 1 (the 3rd site) and 3 (the second site) to 20 (the 1st site). It could be assumed that the population condition depends on forest management, because of the species sensitivity to light. Currently, the serious threat is related to a small number of observed stems at the 2nd and the 3rd site and fungal infection