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3,120 results on '"SULLIVAN, BRIAN K."'

1. Genetic connectivity in the Arizona toad (Anaxyrus microscaphus): implications for conservation of a stream dwelling amphibian in the arid Southwestern United States

Author

Oyler-McCance, Sara J., Ryan, Mason J., Sullivan, Brian K., Fike, Jennifer A., Cornman, Robert S., Giermakowski, J. Tomasz, Zimmerman, Shawna J., Harrow, Rachel L., Hedwall, Shaula J., Hossack, Blake R., Latella, Ian M., Lovich, Robert E., Siefken, Sarah, Sigafus, Brent H., and Muths, Erin

Published
2024
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3. Taxonomic hypotheses and the biogeography of speciation in the Tiger Whiptail complex (Aspidoscelis tigris: Squamata, Teiidae)

Author

Chafin, Tyler K., Douglas, Marlis R., Anthonysamy, Whitney J.B., Sullivan, Brian K., Walker, James M., Cordes, James E., and Douglas, Michael E.

Subjects
climate change, mtDNA, southwestern United States, species concept, subspecies, whiptail lizards
Abstract

Biodiversity in southwestern North America has a complex biogeographic history involving tectonism interspersed with climatic fluctuations. This yields a contemporary pattern replete with historic idiosyncrasies often difficult to interpret when viewed from through the lens of modern ecology. The Aspidoscelis tigris (Tiger Whiptail) complex (Squamata: Teiidae) is one such group in which taxonomic boundaries have been confounded by a series of complex biogeographic processes that have defined the evolution of the clade. To clarify this situation, we first generated multiple taxonomic hypotheses, which were subsequently tested using mitochondrial DNA sequences (ATPase 8 and 6) evaluated across 239 individuals representing five continental members of this complex. We then evaluated the manner by which our models parsed phylogenetic and biogeographic patterns. We found considerable variation among species ‘hypotheses,’ which we interpret as reflecting inflated levels of inter-population genetic divergence caused by historical demographic expansion and contraction cycles. Inter-specific boundaries with A. marmoratus juxtaposed topographically with the Cochise Filter Barrier that separates Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts (interpreted herein as an example of ‘soft’ allopatry). Patterns of genetic divergence were consistent across the Cochise Filter Barrier, regardless of sample proximity. Surprisingly, this also held true for intraspecific comparisons that spanned the Colorado River. These in turn suggest geomorphic processes as a driver of speciation in the A. tigris complex, with intraspecific units governed by local demographic processes.

Published
2021

27. Is Mitigation Translocation an Effective Strategy for Conserving Common Chuckwallas?

Author

Rubke, Chad A, Leavitt, Daniel J., Crumbo, Woodrow L., Williams, Brock, Grimsley-Padron, Ashley A., Gade, Kristin J., Benford, Russell, Ingraldi, Michael F., Sullivan, Brian K., and O’Donnell, Ryan P.

Subjects
lizards, abundance, common chuckwalla, telemetry, Arizona, Sauromalus ater, mitigation translocation, mark-recapture, survival, Zoology, body mass, Other Animal Sciences
Abstract

Mitigation translocation remains a popular conservation tool despite ongoing debate regarding its utility for population conservation. To add to the understanding of the effectiveness of mitigation translocation, in 2017 and 2018 we monitored a population of protected common chuckwallas (Sauromalus ater) following translocation away from the area of construction of a new highway near the South Mountains, Phoenix, Arizona, USA. We removed chuckwallas from the construction right-of-way, paint-marked and pit-tagged them, and then released them in a nearby municipal preserve. We deployed very high frequency radio-telemetry transmitters on a sub-sample of 15 translocated adult chuckwallas. We monitored the radio-marked chuckwallas once a day at 1- to 3-day intervals for up to 46 days to document survival, body mass, and post-release movements. The average distance moved following translocation was 359 ± 53 m. Using minimum convex polygons, the average home range size of translocated lizards was 0.9 ± 0.3 ha, which was 18–45 times larger than expected for the species. Following translocations, we surveyed the translocation sites 1 month later and again 1 year later to determine the presence of translocated chuckwallas. Translocated individuals were rarely observed a second time: in 2017, only 11 of 160 translocated chuckwallas were seen again, and in 2018, only 11 of 192 translocated chuckwallas were detected. In the light of low recapture rate, consistent loss of body mass, and large movements of marked lizards, we conclude that survival of translocated chuckwallas was low over a single year. In the future, efficacy of mitigation translocation could be better evaluated by assessing the spatial ecology of both resident and translocated individuals simultaneously using radio-telemetry.

Published
2022
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