Ecosphere最新文献

{"title":"Mapping monarch habitat: Insights from a two-year study on California Bureau of Land Management lands","authors":"Sarah Gomes,&nbsp;Laura Lukens,&nbsp;Kristen Nelson,&nbsp;Aimie Olson","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70785","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70785","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) oversees over 6 million hectares of public land in California, representing 15% of the state's total land area. California plays a key role in western monarch conservation, providing roosting habitat during winter months and breeding and migration habitat in the spring, summer, and fall. Given recent population declines, there is a critical need to address data gaps regarding habitat availability, suitability, and monarch breeding patterns. In 2021 and 2022, we surveyed 428 plots using protocols from the Integrated Monarch Monitoring Program (IMMP). Of these, 75% of plots were randomly selected via the IMMP's generalized random tessellation stratified sampling design, while the remaining 25% were nonrandomly selected to target areas with known monarch habitat. Here, we summarize data collected during the two-year study period, examining patterns in milkweed and floral resource availability across years, months, ecoregions, and site-selection types (random, nonrandom). We also assess relationships between milkweed and floral resources and compare findings to an existing habitat suitability model for the western United States. We observed milkweed at 53 of 428 plots, with the highest probability of occurrence in nonrandom plots and in 2021. Floral species richness and frequency also followed this pattern and were higher in plots that contained milkweed. Among ecoregions, estimated floral availability was highest in the Eastern Cascades Slopes and Foothills ecoregion and lowest in the Mojave Basin and Range. Our results are consistent with the Western Monarch Habitat Suitability model, finding that milkweed was more likely to occur in plots with high habitat suitability scores. We provide lists of frequently encountered flowering plant species by region and highlight species that commonly occurred with milkweed. This study represents the first statewide implementation of IMMP by a federal agency in California, highlighting the BLM's efforts to support the conservation and recovery of the western monarch butterfly.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70785","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149163228","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Long-term carriage of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in bighorn sheep and implications for test-and-remove protocols","authors":"Brittany L. Wagler,&nbsp;Rachel A. Smiley,&nbsp;Jack N. Gavin,&nbsp;Tony W. Mong,&nbsp;Corey Class,&nbsp;Alyson B. Courtemanch,&nbsp;Cheyenne Stewart,&nbsp;Daryl Lutz,&nbsp;Zach Gregory,&nbsp;Patrick Hnilicka,&nbsp;Arthur Lawson,&nbsp;Brandon Scurlock,&nbsp;Rusty C. Kaiser,&nbsp;Jessica Jennings-Gaines,&nbsp;Jennifer L. Malmberg,&nbsp;Kevin L. Monteith","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70766","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70766","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Mitigating disease in wild populations is challenging, especially for endemic infections. Removal of infected individuals can be a viable strategy but requires careful consideration of protocols, desired outcomes, and allowable loss. Pneumonia has devastated bighorn sheep populations in North America for decades, presenting persistent management and conservation challenges. Animals that are chronically infected with <i>Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae</i> (<i>M. ovi</i>) are thought to be responsible for the persistence of <i>M. ovi</i> in a population and removing chronic carriers (i.e., test and remove) has been a promising management tool to mitigate pneumonia. Although selective removal of chronic carriers has the potential to reduce pathogen prevalence, patterns of <i>M. ovi</i> carriage are not well understood, which can hinder designing the most effective test-and-remove protocols. Using data across 8 years and four populations of bighorn sheep, we aim to understand patterns of pathogen carriage across an animal's life and to evaluate removal outcomes of hypothetical test-and-remove scenarios to help inform protocols of test-and-remove efforts. Pathogen prevalence was seasonal—animals were 1.62 (SE = 0.39) times more likely to test positive for <i>M. ovi</i> in spring than in autumn. Further, an animal that tested positive in autumn was more likely to test positive again the following season compared with an animal that tested positive in spring, which has implications for when to test animals during a test-and-remove effort if the goal is to identify animals that consistently test positive (i.e., chronic carriers). On average, an animal that tested positive for <i>M. ovi</i> had a 21%–55% chance of testing positive again the following year, indicating chronic carriage. Hypothetical test-and-remove scenarios illustrated that the use of a single positive test for removal criteria could increase the number of animals removed by 12 or 23 percentage points compared with scenarios focusing removal on only chronic carriers, depending on the timing of testing. Overall, we highlight the consequences for animal removals based on the timing of testing and defining removal criteria to help inform test-and-remove efforts.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70766","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149163232","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The impact of survey design on robustness to mis-specified detection functions in spatial capture–recapture","authors":"David K. E. Chan,&nbsp;Jiyoung Seo,&nbsp;Ben C. Stevenson","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70761","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70761","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Spatial capture–recapture (SCR) density estimators are commonly advertised as being remarkably robust to model mis-specifications, such as an incorrect choice of detection function. However, at least one previous study has identified a scenario in which a mis-specified detection function introduces bias. We explore robustness to detection function mis-specification to determine when there is non-negligible bias in SCR's density estimator and when there is not, with a particular focus on acoustic survey designs. Acoustic survey designs typically involve a small number of detectors, and the consequences of using such a design on estimator robustness have not yet been studied; previous studies on robustness to mis-specified detection functions have focused on designs common for camera-trap and DNA-sampling SCR studies. Using an analysis of real data and simulation studies, we demonstrate that SCR density estimators are robust to mis-specified detection functions for survey designs common to camera-trap and DNA-sampling studies, but not for acoustic surveys. We explain why robustness arises in some scenarios but not others and provide recommendations and guidance on survey design and modeling approaches for SCR.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70761","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149163227","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Double mutualism: Dual rewards or redundancy? Insights from the interactions between mistletoes and their avian partners","authors":"Manru Li,&nbsp;Guofa Su,&nbsp;Yifei Zhang,&nbsp;Doyle McKey,&nbsp;Jin Chen,&nbsp;Ling Zhang","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70788","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70788","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Mistletoes, recognized as keystone species, supply diverse floral and fruit resources for birds, thereby facilitating mutualistic interactions in pollination and seed dispersal. Some avian species are “double mutualists,” engaging in both functions. However, their precise roles and effectiveness as mutualists remain inadequately understood. In this study, we conducted 690 h of video-recorded observations of avian pollinators and dispersers of the mistletoe species <i>Dendrophthoe pentandra</i> (Loranthaceae) across three sites in the seasonal tropical forests of Xishuangbanna, a biodiversity hotspot in southwestern China. We also performed a phylogenetic analysis of avian traits, including beak length, body length, and body mass. Our findings documented a total of 833 visits by 13 bird species from 8 families, with 11 species probing flowers (528 visits) and 7 species consuming fruits (43 visits). Three species—<i>Dicaeum minullum</i>, <i>Dicaeum ignipectus</i>, and <i>Zosterops simplex</i>—were identified as double mutualists, as they visited the plants during both the flowering and fruiting phases. Notably, double-mutualist birds accounted for 87.5% of flower visits and 95.5% of fruit visits. The generalist frugivore <i>Z. simplex</i> was the most frequent floral visitor in two of three sites, while the mistletoe-specialist frugivore <i>Di. minullum</i> emerged as the principal seed disperser and was the only pollinator that was frequent in all sites. All double-mutualist species exhibited high mobility and specialized morphology, characterized by small to medium sized, slightly curved beaks and lower body mass, which contributed to greater effectiveness in pollination and seed dispersal, confirming their roles as “double mutualists” of this plant. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that ancestral mistletoe-associated birds typically possessed short to medium beaks and medium-sized body masses, whereas double-mutualist birds appear to have evolved shorter beaks and smaller bodies. Our findings show that mistletoe-associated birds that perform both pollination and dispersal are morphologically adapted to the floral structure of mistletoes, fostering closer mutualistic relationships with host plants and enhancing fitness of both plants and their avian partners.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70788","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149163229","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pathway diversity: A resilience metric sensitive to agency applied to a lake eutrophication problem","authors":"Vitor Hirata Sanches,&nbsp;Joseph H. A. Guillaume,&nbsp;Takuya Iwanaga,&nbsp;Sarah Clement,&nbsp;Steven J. Lade","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70777","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70777","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Measuring resilience has been a longstanding challenge in social-ecological research. While there are established resilience metrics, they often do not account for agency, which is crucial in social-ecological systems. Pathway diversity is a recent approach to measuring resilience that integrates system's thinking with individual-based elements, such as agency. According to this approach, resilience is larger if actors have more decision pathways and can maintain them over time. Here we measure resilience using pathway diversity within a system dynamics lake eutrophication model to analyze (1) the extent to which this metric is sensitive to changes in agency and (2) its compatibility with more established resilience metrics. Our findings reveal that pathway diversity is sensitive to regime shifts and can provide early warnings of them. Through five policy decision-making scenarios, we then show how pathway diversity can capture constraints on decision makers' capability that affect the system's resilience. In the scenario analysis, we find that higher pathway diversity is associated with greater capability of decision-makers to influence the system. Pathway diversity addresses a critical gap by incorporating agency into a resilience metric while remaining compatible with established metrics. This work shows the potential of pathway diversity to identify resilience-based policy implications.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70777","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149163121","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Soil sanctuaries: Experimental manipulations enhance ground-nesting bee habitat","authors":"A. Fredenburg,&nbsp;K. Goodell","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70781","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70781","url":null,"abstract":"<p>As the evidence of pollinator declines mounts, effective habitat enhancement and management strategies are urgently needed. Current methods focus on improving floral resources, overlooking nesting habitats, especially for ground-nesting bees. Ground-nesting bee habitats remain poorly understood, and the lack of evidence-based methods to provide nesting habitats presents a significant challenge. To determine whether soil manipulations attract nesting bees and which environmental conditions are associated with nesting preference, we constructed experimental plots at 21 sites along an urban gradient in Columbus, Ohio, and implemented four soil surface treatments, which we compared with unmanipulated controls: bare ground, leaf litter, mounded soil, and pebbles. We collected nesting individuals through hand netting during nest observations and emergence traps, assessing soil surface substrate preferences and associations with soil conditions, while controlling for local habitat availability. Manipulated treatments attracted significantly more nesting females than controls, and bees in the genus <i>Halictus</i> were specifically attracted to bare ground treatments. Treatments differed in soil temperature, moisture, and compaction, with no one condition emerging as a significant driver of nest site attraction, suggesting ground-nesting species can nest in a range of soil conditions. Treatment plots attracted more nesting bees at sites with steeper slopes, less bare ground availability, and more abundant ground-nesting bee populations, indicating that site-level features influence attraction to our manipulations. Our findings demonstrate that simple soil surface manipulations, such as patches of bare soil, leaf litter, pebbles, or mounded soil, effectively attract ground-nesting bees to nest. Including such manipulations, or “soil sanctuaries,” alongside a pollinator garden in residential or park settings offers dedicated spaces for bees to nest and could enhance the local conditions for bees by completing the habitat requirements for ground-nesting species, especially in locations where preferred nesting substrates are limited.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70781","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149163122","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Tree cavities as keystone structures in a semiarid region: Interspecific aggregations of anurans in the Brazilian Caatinga","authors":"Jaqueiuto Silva Jorge,&nbsp;Bruno de Paiva Rêgo,&nbsp;Vanessa Kayne Medeiros Santos,&nbsp;Edson Soares da Silva-Júnior,&nbsp;Adriano Caliman","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70746","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70746","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Tree cavities function as key microclimatic refuges for anurans in the semiarid Caatinga biome of northeastern Brazil, where we document previously unreported interspecific aggregations during the dry season. Observations from fauna rescue operations preceding vegetation clearance revealed eight distinct aggregations within cavities of two native tree species, <i>Commiphora leptophloeos</i> and <i>Amburana cearensis</i>. Aggregations consisted of 6–98 adult individuals (total = 475), with up to six co-occurring species belonging to three families. Paired microclimatic measurements from 32 cavities showed that these structures buffered extreme external conditions, maintaining internal temperatures 5.43°C lower and relative humidity 15.0% higher than surrounding environments. Thermal buffering increased significantly with cavity depth and entrance diameter (<i>p</i> &lt; 0.001), highlighting the role of cavity morphology in determining refuge quality. Our findings establish tree cavities as keystone structures for amphibian assemblages in the Caatinga and reveal an overlooked ecological role of cavity-bearing trees in seasonally dry tropical ecosystems. Given ongoing habitat conversion and projected increases in aridity, incorporating tree cavity conservation into environmental licensing and land management practices may be critical for maintaining amphibian diversity in this threatened biome.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 9","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70746","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148994159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Seasonal dynamism or model realism: What drives better predictions of landscape connectivity?","authors":"David D. Hofmann,&nbsp;Dominik M. Behr,&nbsp;John W. McNutt,&nbsp;Arpat Ozgul,&nbsp;Gabriele Cozzi","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70726","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70726","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Connectivity modeling is central to conservation science, yet most studies assume static landscapes and fixed species-habitat preferences, thus overlooking seasonal dynamics. Additionally, many rely on simplistic species-habitat associations rather than realistic movement models that mechanistically capture animal behavior. These limitations risk masking key ecological processes, leading to poor agreement between predicted and observed movements. We propose and employ a conceptual framework illustrating that seasonality can be incorporated at three stages of the connectivity modeling pipeline: (1) when extracting spatial covariates for model fitting, (2) when specifying the selection model, and (3) when making predictions. This yields several model configurations varying in seasonal dynamism. Further, we compare the performance of alternative models that vary in their degree of biological realism, ranging from simplistic habitat-based models to realistic formulations that consider both environmental and behavioral drivers of movement. Using GPS data from dispersing African wild dogs (<i>Lycaon pictus</i>) in the seasonally dynamic Okavango Delta, northern Botswana, we assess whether accounting for seasonality improves predictions of dispersal trajectories and connectivity. We fit integrated step-selection functions and predict connectivity using individual-based dispersal simulations while explicitly considering seasonal dynamism in both environmental covariates and the species' habitat and movement preferences. Furthermore, predictions from a simplistic habitat-based model are contrasted with those from a more mechanistic and biologically realistic model enabled by individual-based simulations. We evaluate predictive performance through cross-validation across seasonal configurations and levels of model realism. We hypothesized that incorporating seasonality and using a realistic movement model would improve predictions. Contrary to expectations, seasonality modestly improved predictions when using a simplistic model, but had no added benefit when using the realistic model, which already performed well. Our findings offer a framework for integrating seasonality into connectivity studies and highlight the greater value of realistic movement models over simplistic ones. While seasonal dynamics are important, their benefits may be limited when biologically informed models are already in place. Connectivity studies should therefore prioritize mechanistic approaches to better capture species movement and landscape use.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 9","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70726","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148962579","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Growth, transport, and recruitment of phytoplankton in a mid-order river","authors":"Marc Peipoch,&nbsp;Melinda Daniels,&nbsp;Scott H. Ensign","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70741","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70741","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Phytoplankton dynamics in rivers have long challenged growth models, which predict limited biomass accumulation due to insufficient water residence times—yet phytoplankton populations often persist despite this constraint. This paradox is especially pronounced in mid-order rivers, where water residence times appear insufficient to support observed levels of phytoplankton growth. In this study, we evaluate the role of in-channel transient storage zones—low-velocity areas such as backwaters, eddies, and side pools—in facilitating phytoplankton persistence and biomass accumulation along a fifth-order river reach. Using five years of continuous monitoring data, Bayesian inverse modeling, and storm-event sampling, we tested the storage zone hypothesis, which posits that phytoplankton growth is supported by extended residence time in these low-velocity areas. Our findings suggest that phytoplankton growth rates in transient storage zones are, on average, 2–4 times higher than in the thalweg, and that in the fall, estimated chlorophyll concentrations in transient storage zones can be up to 4.3 times higher on average than those in the thalweg. Based on these estimated chlorophyll concentrations in transient storage zones, we infer the aggregated volume of transient storage zones along the reach is likely near 10% and not larger than 40% of the total reach volume. Model outputs of downstream chlorophyll enhancement were consistent with previous numerical models of phytoplankton persistence and empirical storm export data, particularly after low-intensity storm events. Together, these results support the inference that biomass accumulation in transient storage zones can play a critical role in sustaining phytoplankton populations, providing up to a 65% increase in chlorophyll concentrations along the study reach. This study represents one of the first field-based quantifications of reach-scale phytoplankton recruitment from transient storage zones and highlights the need to account for spatial and temporal heterogeneity in flow and habitat structure when modeling primary production in river networks. Phytoplankton accumulation in rivers should no longer be considered paradoxical, and storage zone size and exchange should be recognized as critical parameters affecting autotrophy in mid-order rivers.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 9","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70741","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148962573","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Desert amphibian calling effort changes in response to monsoonal precipitation at constructed but not natural waters","authors":"Sadie A. Roth,&nbsp;Matthew A. Barnes,&nbsp;Kerry Griffis-Kyle","doi":"10.1002/ecs2.70732","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70732","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The increasing frequency and intensity of droughts due to climate change poses a severe threat to the persistence of desert amphibians that require standing water to breed. In portions of the Sonoran Desert, tinajas (i.e., ephemeral rock pools that are filled by rain), which serve as the primary natural breeding sites for these amphibians, are likely to contain water less often and for shorter periods of time due to these droughts. However, desert species such as the red-spotted toad (<i>Anaxyrus punctatus</i>) are also known to attempt breeding at constructed wildlife waters, which are designed to retain water for extended periods of time and could provide effective alternative breeding habitat during drought. To assess whether red-spotted toads differ in their breeding aggregations at tinajas and constructed waters during low rainfall summers, we measured male calling activity at both site types over four summers with varying rainfall and analyzed site attributes associated with calling activity. We found that red-spotted toads showed lower calling activity at constructed water sites during summers with little rainfall, despite maintaining consistent levels of activity at tinajas among summers. When assessing site attributes, we found that calling activity was related to site type, site-specific precipitation, and distance from the site to a drainage system (i.e., ephemeral streambeds). Our work reveals that constructed water catchments in the Sonoran Desert are not used as expected by red-spotted toads during low rainfall summers, suggesting a need to consider other water management actions to support desert amphibians through increasingly harsh droughts caused by climate change.</p>","PeriodicalId":48930,"journal":{"name":"Ecosphere","volume":"17 9","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2026-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/ecs2.70732","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148962581","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}