Are tropical oceanic islands overlooked? Knowledge gaps regarding the vulnerability of amphibians to global anthropogenic threats
Climate and land-use changes are major threats to amphibian conservation. However, amphibians on tropical oceanic islands appear to have been overlooked with regards to their vulnerability to global anthropogenic threats. Here we examine whether there are gaps in research evaluating the vulnerabilit...
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| author | Renoir J. Auguste Amy E. Deacon Mark F. Hulme |
| author_facet | Renoir J. Auguste Amy E. Deacon Mark F. Hulme |
| author_sort | Renoir J. Auguste |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Climate and land-use changes are major threats to amphibian conservation. However, amphibians on tropical oceanic islands appear to have been overlooked with regards to their vulnerability to global anthropogenic threats. Here we examine whether there are gaps in research evaluating the vulnerability of tropical oceanic island amphibians to climate and land-use changes. We carried out a systematic review of the literature on experimental studies published during 1 July 1998–30 June 2022, to evaluate whether there are knowledge gaps in relation to geographical scope, taxonomic representation, life stage assessment, the factors affecting amphibians and how species and populations respond to these factors. Of 327 articles on climate change and 451 on land-use change, the research of only 18 was carried out on tropical oceanic islands, only on anurans, and < 20% of the authors were affiliated with an oceanic island institution. These 18 studies were on only five islands, and the range of families and life stages assessed was limited. We also found uneven research into the factors affecting oceanic island amphibians and their responses; analyses involving the effect of temperature on amphibian range expansion or contraction were the most common, with few studies of the effects of salinity. The scarcity and unevenness of research from oceanic islands limit our understanding of the effects of climate and land-use changes on amphibians. We discuss potential reasons for these knowledge gaps and recommend ways to address them, such as more equitable distribution of resources and provision of training and research opportunities for island-based biologists. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8ed23f16f0094f68a17784547ce0d38f |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 0030-6053 1365-3008 |
| language | English |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
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| spelling | doaj-art-8ed23f16f0094f68a17784547ce0d38f2025-01-23T05:42:16ZengCambridge University PressOryx0030-60531365-300811010.1017/S0030605324000838Are tropical oceanic islands overlooked? Knowledge gaps regarding the vulnerability of amphibians to global anthropogenic threatsRenoir J. Auguste0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7132-3892Amy E. Deacon1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7739-2925Mark F. Hulme2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7211-3464All authors are affiliated with: Department of Life Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Saint Augustine, Trinidad and TobagoAll authors are affiliated with: Department of Life Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Saint Augustine, Trinidad and TobagoAll authors are affiliated with: Department of Life Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Saint Augustine, Trinidad and TobagoClimate and land-use changes are major threats to amphibian conservation. However, amphibians on tropical oceanic islands appear to have been overlooked with regards to their vulnerability to global anthropogenic threats. Here we examine whether there are gaps in research evaluating the vulnerability of tropical oceanic island amphibians to climate and land-use changes. We carried out a systematic review of the literature on experimental studies published during 1 July 1998–30 June 2022, to evaluate whether there are knowledge gaps in relation to geographical scope, taxonomic representation, life stage assessment, the factors affecting amphibians and how species and populations respond to these factors. Of 327 articles on climate change and 451 on land-use change, the research of only 18 was carried out on tropical oceanic islands, only on anurans, and < 20% of the authors were affiliated with an oceanic island institution. These 18 studies were on only five islands, and the range of families and life stages assessed was limited. We also found uneven research into the factors affecting oceanic island amphibians and their responses; analyses involving the effect of temperature on amphibian range expansion or contraction were the most common, with few studies of the effects of salinity. The scarcity and unevenness of research from oceanic islands limit our understanding of the effects of climate and land-use changes on amphibians. We discuss potential reasons for these knowledge gaps and recommend ways to address them, such as more equitable distribution of resources and provision of training and research opportunities for island-based biologists.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0030605324000838/type/journal_articleAnuransclimate changeconservation managementglobal threatsisland biodiversityland-use changeresearch gapssmall-island developing states |
| spellingShingle | Renoir J. Auguste Amy E. Deacon Mark F. Hulme Are tropical oceanic islands overlooked? Knowledge gaps regarding the vulnerability of amphibians to global anthropogenic threats Oryx Anurans climate change conservation management global threats island biodiversity land-use change research gaps small-island developing states |
| title | Are tropical oceanic islands overlooked? Knowledge gaps regarding the vulnerability of amphibians to global anthropogenic threats |
| title_full | Are tropical oceanic islands overlooked? Knowledge gaps regarding the vulnerability of amphibians to global anthropogenic threats |
| title_fullStr | Are tropical oceanic islands overlooked? Knowledge gaps regarding the vulnerability of amphibians to global anthropogenic threats |
| title_full_unstemmed | Are tropical oceanic islands overlooked? Knowledge gaps regarding the vulnerability of amphibians to global anthropogenic threats |
| title_short | Are tropical oceanic islands overlooked? Knowledge gaps regarding the vulnerability of amphibians to global anthropogenic threats |
| title_sort | are tropical oceanic islands overlooked knowledge gaps regarding the vulnerability of amphibians to global anthropogenic threats |
| topic | Anurans climate change conservation management global threats island biodiversity land-use change research gaps small-island developing states |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0030605324000838/type/journal_article |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT renoirjauguste aretropicaloceanicislandsoverlookedknowledgegapsregardingthevulnerabilityofamphibianstoglobalanthropogenicthreats AT amyedeacon aretropicaloceanicislandsoverlookedknowledgegapsregardingthevulnerabilityofamphibianstoglobalanthropogenicthreats AT markfhulme aretropicaloceanicislandsoverlookedknowledgegapsregardingthevulnerabilityofamphibianstoglobalanthropogenicthreats |