Free Standard AU & NZ Shipping For All Book Orders Over $80!
Register      Login
Wildlife Research Wildlife Research Society
Ecology, management and conservation in natural and modified habitats
Shopping Cart: ( empty )
You are here: Home > Journals > WR > WR09060
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 36(6)

Predicting the ecological impact of cane toads (Bufo marinus) on threatened camaenid land snails in north-western Australia

David Pearson A , Matthew Greenlees B , Georgia Ward-Fear B and Richard Shine B C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Department of Environment and Conservation, PO Box 51, Wanneroo, 6946 WA, Australia.

B School of Biological Sciences, Heydon-Laurence Building A08, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

C Corresponding author. Email: rics@bio.usyd.edu.au

Wildlife Research 36(6) 533-540 https://doi.org/10.1071/WR09060
Submitted: 17 May 2009  Accepted: 9 July 2009   Published: 29 September 2009

Abstract

The spread of cane toads (Bufo marinus) through north-western Australia may threaten populations of endemic camaenid land snails because these snails exhibit restricted geographic distributions, low vagility and ‘slow’ life-histories. We conducted laboratory trials to determine whether toads would consume camaenids if they encountered them, and conducted field surveys to evaluate the likelihood of such encounters (on the basis of habitat overlap). In laboratory trials with 13 camaenid species, cane toads were more likely to consume camaenids than were two species of native frogs that we tested (Cyclorana australis, Litoria caerulea). However, field surveys suggested that many camaenids are active on vertical surfaces in limestone outcrops, and cane toads rarely venture into these habitats. Although the preferred habitats and activity patterns of camaenids thus reduce their vulnerability to cane toads, we recommend regular surveys of toad and snail numbers to monitor toad impacts. Given the restricted distributions of threatened saxicoline camaenid species in the Kimberley, localised management of grazing stock and fire is feasible to maintain vine-thicket vegetation cover and snail populations, as well as reducing open habitats favoured by toads.


Acknowledgements

For funding, we thank the Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation, the Australian Reptile Park, the Federal Department of Environment, and the Australian Research Council. Many thanks go to Vince Kessner for his assistance in the collection of snails from Kimberley sites. Lauren Brown and Bill Stewart helped with field equipment and logistics.


References

Alford R. A. , Cohen M. P. , Crossland M. R. , Hearnden M. N. , and Schwarzkopf L. (1995). Population biology of Bufo marinus in northern Australia. In ‘Wetland Research in the Wet–Dry Tropics of Australia’. (Ed. C. M. Finlayson.) pp. 173–181. Supervising Scientist Report No. 101. (Office of the Supervising Scientist: Canberra.)

Bailey, P. (1976). Food of the marine toad, Bufo marinus, and six species of skink in a cacao plantation in New Britain, Papua New Guinea. Australian Wildlife Research 3, 185–188.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Dickman C. R. (1996). ‘Overview of the Impacts of Feral Cats on Australian Native Fauna.’ (Australian Nature Conservation Agency: Canberra.)

Doody, J. S. , Green, B. , Sims, R. , Rhind, D. , West, P. , and Steer, D. (2006). Indirect impacts of invasive cane toads (Bufo marinus) on nest predation in pig-nosed turtles (Carettochelys insculpta). Wildlife Research 33, 349–354.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Graham G. , and White K. (Eds) (1999). Discussion document on the proposed conservation areas associated with Ord Stage Two Development – Kununurra, WA. Unpublished report. Department of Conservation and Land Management, Perth.

Grant, G. S. (1996). Prey of introduced Bufo marinus on American Samoa. Herpetological Review 27, 67–69.
Lever C. (2001). ‘The Cane Toad: The History and Ecology of a Successful Colonist.’ (Westbury Academic and Scientific Publishing: Otley, UK.)

Mack, R. N. , Simberloff, D. , Lonsdale, W. M. , Evans, H. , Clout, M. , and Bazzaz, F. (2000). Biotic invasions: causes, epidemiology, global consequences and control. Issues in Ecology 5, 1–20.
McLeod R. (2004). ‘Counting the Cost: Impact of Invasive Species in Australia.’ (Cooperative Research Centre for Pest Animal Control: Canberra.)

Molloy K. L. , and Henderson W. R. (Eds) (2006). ‘Science of Cane Toad Invasion and Control’. Proceedings of the Invasive Animals CRC/CSIRO/QLD NRM&W cane toad workshop, Brisbane, June 2006. (Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre: Canberra.)

Mungomery, R. W. (1936). A survey of the feeding habits of the giant toad (Bufo marinus L.), and notes on its progress since its introduction into Queensland. Proceedings of the Queensland Society of Sugar Cane Technologists 1936, 63–74.
Parrish R. , Sherley G. , and Aviss M. (1995). ‘Giant Land Snail Recovery Plan – Placostylus spp., Paryphanta sp.’ Threatened Species Recovery Plan Series No. 13. (Department of Conservation, Threatened Species Unit: Wellington, New Zealand.)

Pearce K. (2005). ‘Camaenid Land Snails of the East Kimberley: Interim Recovery Plan 2005–2010.’ (Department of Environment and Conservation: Perth.)

Phillips, B. L. , Brown, G. P. , and Shine, R. (2003). Assessing the potential impact of cane toads on Australian snakes. Conservation Biology 17, 1738–1747.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Rolls E. C. (1969). ‘They All Ran Wild.’ (Angus and Robertson: Sydney.)

Semeniuk, M. , Lemckert, F. , and Shine, R. (2007). Breeding site selection by cane toads (Bufo marinus) and native frogs in northern New South Wales. Australian Wildlife Research 34, 59–66.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Solem A. (1991). Land snails of Kimberley rainforest patches and biogeography of all Kimberley land snails. In ‘Kimberley Rainforests’. (Eds N. L. McKenzie, R. B. Johnston and P. G. Kendrick.) pp. 145–246. (Surrey Beatty: Sydney.)

Solem, A. , and Christensen, C. C. (1984). Camaenid land snail reproductive cycle and growth patterns in semi arid areas of north-western Australia. Australian Journal of Zoology 32, 471–491.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Tyler M. J. , and Cappo M. C. (1983). ‘Diet and Feeding Habits of Frogs of the Magela Creek System (Final Report).’ Open File Record 10. (Supervising Scientist for the Alligator Rivers Region: Sydney.)

Urban, M. C. , Phillips, B. L. , Skelly, D. K. , and Shine, R. (2007). The cane toad’s (Chaunus marinus) increasing ability to invade Australia is revealed by a dynamically updated range model. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological Sciences 274, 1413–1419.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Ward S. , Kessner V. , Braby M. , and Woinarski J. (2006). ‘Threatened Species of the Northern Territory: Land Snail Mesodontrachia fitzroyana.’ Available at www.nt.gov.au/nreta/wildlife/animals/threatened [Accessed March 2009].

Withers, P. , Peddler, S. , and Guppy, M. (1997). Physiological adjustments during aestivation by the land snail Rhagada tescorum (Mollusca: Pulmonata: Camaenidae). Australian Journal of Zoology 45, 599–611.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Zavaleta, E. S. , Hobbs, R. J. , and Mooney, H. A. (2001). Viewing invasive species removal in a whole ecosystem context. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 16, 454–459.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Zug, G. R. , and Zug, P. B. (1979). The marine toad, Bufo marinus: a natural history resumé of native populations. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 284, 1–58.