Red hot frogs:Identifying the Australian frogs most at risk of extinction

More than a third of the world’s amphibian species are listed as Threatened or Extinct, with a recent assessment identifying 45 Australian frogs (18.4% of the currently recognised species) as ‘Threatened’ based on IUCN criteria. We applied structured expert elicitation to 26 frogs assessed as Critically Endangered and Endangered to estimate their probability of extinction by 2040. We also investigated whether participant experience (measured as a self-assigned categorical score, i.e. ‘expert’ or ‘non-expert’) influenced the estimates. Collation and analysis of participant opinion indicated that eight species are at high risk (>50% chance) of becoming extinct by 2040, with the disease chytridiomycosis identified as the primary threat. A further five species are at moderate–high risk (30–50% chance), primarily due to climate change. Fourteen of the 26 frog species are endemic to Queensland, with many species restricted to small geographic ranges that are susceptible to stochastic events (e.g. a severe heatwave or a large bushfire). Experts were more likely to rate extinction probability higher for poorly known species (those with <10 experts), while non-experts were more likely to rate extinction probability higher for better-known species. However, scores converged following discussion, indicating that there was greater consensus in the estimates of extinction probability. Increased resourcing and management intervention are urgently needed to avert future extinctions of Australia’s frogs. Key priorities include developing and supporting captive management and establishing or extending in-situ population refuges to alleviate the impacts of disease and climate change

The herpetofauna of Kioloa, New South Wales: baseline observational data collected 30 years ago and inspired by R. E. Barwick

There is increasing concern about the global decline of amphibians and reptiles. One problem with documenting declines and identifying underlying causes is the absence of historical data to compare to current data. Here we provide historic data for Kioloa on the south-eastern coast of New South Wales. In this region considerable clearing of natural forest and woodland and creation of farmland ponds took place during the second half of the 20th century. The Australian National University has a field station at Kioloa and R.E. Barwick introduced us to the field station and what was known of the herpetofauna in the mid-1980s. We undertook detailed observational surveys of the herpetofauna at this time and we revisited the area at other times, focusing on the coastal habitats. We found 13 species of frogs and 11 species of reptiles. Three further frog species and one reptile species known to occur in the area in the 1980s were not detected by us. More recently, one further frog species and six reptile species were added to the list, raising the total to 17 frog and 18 reptile species. The number and composition was similar to other locations of coastal New South Wales, except for some of the rarely encountered species. No strictly forest-dependent species were observed in the partially cleared survey area and such species presumably had already disappeared from these areas already before we commenced our observations. The frog Pseudophryne bibronii was still common in tall open-forest but was uncommon in partially cleared areas. Six species of frogs and one species of reptile presumably benefited from the anthropogenic habitat modifications. No declines of common species of reptiles occurred between the mid-1980s and 1993 but all species of frogs were very rare in 1993 due to very dry conditions. Litoria aurea, a threatened species of frog that was widespread in the mid-1980s, survives (2012) only at one site in the area. </jats:p

A new species of frog in the Litoria ewingii species group (Anura: Pelodryadidae) from south-eastern Australia

Mahony, Michael, Moses, Bede, Mahony, Stephen V., Lemckert, Frank L., Donnellan, Stephen (2020): A new species of frog in the Litoria ewingii species group (Anura: Pelodryadidae) from south-eastern Australia. Zootaxa 4858 (2): 201-230, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4858.2.

Taxonomic revision of south-eastern Australian giant burrowing frogs (Anura: Limnodynastidae: Heleioporus Gray)

Mahony, Michael J., Penman, Trent, Bertozzi, Terry, Lemckert, Frank, Bilney, Rohan, Donnellan, Stephen C. (2021): Taxonomic revision of south-eastern Australian giant burrowing frogs (Anura: Limnodynastidae: Heleioporus Gray). Zootaxa 5016 (4): 451-489, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5016.4.

Toe-clipping as an acceptable method of identifying individual anurans in mark recapture studies

This publication does not have an abstract

Toe clipping of Anurans for mark-recapture studies: acceptable if justified. That’s what we said!

Parris and McCarthy (2008) have over-simplified the arguments\ud of Phillott et al. (2007) that toe-clipping is an acceptable method of marking anurans. We discussed six points in defending toe clipping as a marking method

Distinct roles for lymphotoxin-α and tumor necrosis factor in organogenesis and spatial organization of lymphoid tissue

Specialized roles for the pro-inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and lymphotoxin (LT) were characterized in TNF/LTα−/− and TNF−/− mice established by direct gene targeting of C57BL/6 ES cells. The requirement for LT early in lymphoid tissue organogenesis is shown to be distinct from the more subtle and varied role of TNF in promoting correct microarchitectural organization of leukocytes in LN and spleen. Development of normal Peyer's patch (PP) structure, in contrast, is substantially dependent on TNF. Only mice lacking LT exhibit retarded B cell maturation in vivo and serum immunoglobulin deficiencies. A temporal hierarchy in lymphoid tissue development can now be defined, with LT being an essential participant in general lymphoid tissue organogenesis, developmentally preceeding TNF that has a more varied and subtle role in promotion of correct spatial organization of leukocytes in LN and spleen. PP development in TNF−/− mice is unusual, indicating that TNF is a more critical participant for this structure than it is for other lymphoid tissues