1. Indiscriminate feeding by an alien population of the spotted-thighed frog (Litoria cyclorhyncha) in southern Australia and potential impacts on native biodiversity.
- Author
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Taylor, Christine M., Keppel, Gunnar, O'Sullivan, Shaun, Peters, Stefan, Kerr, Gregory D., and Williams, Craig R.
- Subjects
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FROG populations , *BIOLOGICAL invasions , *COMPETITION (Biology) , *BIODIVERSITY , *MICE , *GASTROINTESTINAL contents , *FISH food - Abstract
Litoria cyclorhyncha (Hylidae) is native to southern Western Australia, but a naturalised population has established on the Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. We investigated the diet of this exotic population to assess potential impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems. Seventy-six frogs were collected from three different habitats and their diet items assigned to parataxonomic units (PU) within orders. Stomach contents were diverse, containing 467 prey items from 19 orders and 135 PU, with extrapolation suggesting a diet of ~200 PU. Shannon diversity estimates of prey items consumed produced different rankings for the three habitats at the PU and order level. Therefore, estimates at the order level may not be representative of the actual diversity of prey items. L. cyclorhyncha consumed mainly arthropods and low numbers of conspecific young frogs, geckos and a juvenile house mouse. This generalist, indiscriminate predatory diet is similar to that of other hylids and implies that the species poses a risk to native biodiversity and ecosystem processes by predation and competition. Therefore, further spread of this species needs to be prevented. Our findings can inform effective policies and management actions to mitigate future impacts of L. cyclorhyncha. The spotted-thighed frog (Litoria cyclorhyncha) is native to southern Western Australia, but has established an introduced population in South Australia. To determine the potential effects of the frog on other species and ecosystems, we analysed stomach contents of frogs in the introduced population and found it to be feeding indiscriminately on diverse fauna, potentially impacting on other species by predation and competition. Therefore, the spotted-thighed frog constitutes a potential threat to the native biodiversity of south-eastern Australia. Photo by C. M. Taylor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2019
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