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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 33(4)

Fluctuating asymmetry of the frog Crinia signifera in response to logging

Bonnie Lauck
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School of Zoology, University of Tasmania, Private Bag 05, Hobart, Tas. 7001, Australia. Email: vlauck@postoffice.utas.edu.au

Wildlife Research 33(4) 313-320 https://doi.org/10.1071/WR04107
Submitted: 3 November 2004  Accepted: 17 March 2006   Published: 27 June 2006

Abstract

Fluctuating asymmetry has been proposed as an indicator of environmental stress and population health. However, a notable feature of research examining the relationship between fluctuating asymmetry and population fitness is that of inconsistency. Logging dramatically alters habitat and has the potential to increase or decrease environmental stress. To evaluate the response of fluctuating asymmetry to logging, I conducted research to determine whether fluctuating asymmetry differs in the frog Crinia signifera captured at logged and unlogged sites and if any differences were correlated with body size or body condition. There was a decrease in fluctuating asymmetry but also a decrease in body size and body condition as a result of logging. I also investigated whether any relationship existed between the subtle asymmetry of individuals and the following indicators of fitness: clutch size, clutch mass, average egg mass, testes size, body size and body condition. There was no significant relationship between subtle asymmetry and the fitness indicators.


Acknowledgments

Funding for this project was provided by a WARRA grant from Forestry Tasmania. Many thanks to my supervisor, Roy Swain, for his support. I am also grateful for all the help given to me by the support staff at the School of Zoology. Staff from Forestry Tasmania were also of great assistance many times throughout the project. In particular, I thank Dick Bashford for supplying the frog specimens used in Study 2. Discussions with Ross Alford, Frank Lemckert, Mel Pyrah and Chantelle Sinclair helped throughout the course of the study. Valuable comments on drafts of this manuscript were provided by Roy Swain, Ross Alford, Geoffrey Clarke, Rich Palmer and an anonymous referee. Thanks also to Paul McBain, for help in the field and Leon Barmuta for statistical assistance. The project was conducted under University of Tasmania Ethics Permit No. A0006021. I was supported by an Australian Postgraduate Award.


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