A Dataset of Amphibian Species in U.S. National Parks.

National parks and other protected areas are important for preserving landscapes and biodiversity worldwide. An essential component of the mission of the United States (U.S.

Using physiological conditions to assess current and future habitat use of a Subarctic frog.

Species with especially close dependence on the environment to meet physiological requirements, such as ectotherms, are highly susceptible to the impacts of climate change. Climate change is occurring rapidly in the Subarctic and Arctic, but there is limited knowledge on ectotherm physiology in these landscapes. We investigated how environmental conditions and habitat characteristics influence the physiological conditions and habitat use of wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) in a Subarctic landscape near Churchill, Manitoba (Canada).

Metal accumulation varies with life history, size, and development of larval amphibians.

Amphibian larvae are commonly used as indicators of aquatic ecosystem health because they are susceptible to contaminants. However, there is limited information on how species characteristics and trophic position influence contaminant loads in larval amphibians. Importantly, there remains a need to understand whether grazers (frogs and toads [anurans]) and predators (salamanders) provide comparable information on contaminant accumulation or if they are each indicative of unique environmental processes and risks.

Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal) not detected in an intensive survey of wild North American amphibians.

The salamander chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans [Bsal]) is causing massive mortality of salamanders in Europe. The potential for spread via international trade into North America and the high diversity of salamanders has catalyzed concern about Bsal in the U.S.

A distance-performance trade-off in the phenotypic basis of dispersal.

Across taxa, individuals vary in how far they disperse, with most individuals staying close to their origin and fewer dispersing long distances. Costs associated with dispersal (e.g.

Interspecific interactions are conditional on temperature in an Appalachian stream salamander community.

Differences in the rates of responses to climate change have the potential to disrupt well-established ecological interactions among species. In semi-aquatic communities, competitive asymmetry based on body size currently maintains competitive exclusion and coexistence via interference competition. Elevated temperatures are predicted to have the strongest negative effects on large species and aquatic species.

Complex inter-Kingdom interactions: carnivorous plants affect growth of an aquatic vertebrate.

Coexistence of organisms in nature is more likely when phenotypic similarities of individuals are reduced. Despite the lack of similarity, distantly related taxa still compete intensely for shared resources. No larger difference between organisms that share a common prey could exist than between carnivorous plants and animals.

Additive impacts of experimental climate change increase risk to an ectotherm at the Arctic's edge.

Globally, Arctic and Subarctic regions have experienced the greatest temperature increases during the last 30 years. These extreme changes have amplified threats to the freshwater ecosystems that dominate the landscape in many areas by altering water budgets. Several studies in temperate environments have examined the adaptive capacity of organisms to enhance our understanding of the potential repercussions of warming and associated accelerated drying for freshwater ecosystems.

Partitioning the non-consumptive effects of predators on prey with complex life histories.

Non-consumptive effects (NCEs) of predators on prey can be as strong as consumptive effects (CEs) and may be driven by numerous mechanisms, including predator characteristics. Previous work has highlighted the importance of predator characteristics in predicting NCEs, but has not addressed how complex life histories of prey could mediate predator NCEs. We conducted a meta-analysis to compare the effects of predator gape limitation (gape limited or not) and hunting mode (active or sit-and-pursue) on the activity, larval period, and size at metamorphosis of larval aquatic amphibians and invertebrates.

Nonconsumptive effects in a multiple predator system reduce the foraging efficiency of a keystone predator.

Many studies have demonstrated that the nonconsumptive effect (NCE) of predators on prey traits can alter prey demographics in ways that are just as strong as the consumptive effect (CE) of predators. Less well studied, however, is how the CE and NCE of multiple predator species can interact to influence the combined effect of multiple predators on prey mortality. We examined the extent to which the NCE of one predator altered the CE of another predator on a shared prey and evaluated whether we can better predict the combined impact of multiple predators on prey when accounting for this influence.

Evaluating the effects of trophic complexity on a keystone predator by disassembling a partial intraguild predation food web.

1. Many taxa can be found in food webs that differ in trophic complexity, but it is unclear how trophic complexity affects the performance of particular taxa. In pond food webs, larvae of the salamander Ambystoma opacum occupy the intermediate predator trophic position in a partial intraguild predation (IGP) food web and can function as keystone predators.