Ageing and growth of the endangered midwife toad Alytes muletensis

A better understanding of the demography of endangered amphibians is important for the development of suitable management and recovery plans, and for building population viability models. Our work presents, for the first time, growth curves and measurements of mean longevity, growth rates and age at...

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Main Authors: S Pinya, V Pérez-Mellado
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Inter-Research 2013-12-01
Series:Endangered Species Research
Online Access:https://www.int-res.com/abstracts/esr/v22/n3/p263-268/
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author S Pinya
V Pérez-Mellado
author_facet S Pinya
V Pérez-Mellado
author_sort S Pinya
collection DOAJ
description A better understanding of the demography of endangered amphibians is important for the development of suitable management and recovery plans, and for building population viability models. Our work presents, for the first time, growth curves and measurements of mean longevity, growth rates and age at maturity for the Vulnerable midwife toad Alytes muletensis. Von Bertalanffy growth models were used to estimate longevity and growth rate parameters. Females had a mean (±SD) longevity of 4.70 ± 0.19 yr, significantly higher than that of males (3.24 ± 0.10 yr). The maximum estimated longevity was 18 yr for both males and females. The age distribution indicated that males reached sexual maturity at the age of 1 yr, and most females at 2 yr. There were significant differences in growth rate between sexes, with higher values in females during the first 4 yr of life, and similar values in both sexes thereafter. These life-history traits were compared with equivalent measures in the closely related amphibian genera Bombina and Discoglossus.
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spelling doaj.art-1572ac95b5344594833b87d7e47158cd2022-12-22T04:12:25ZengInter-ResearchEndangered Species Research1863-54071613-47962013-12-0122326326810.3354/esr00551Ageing and growth of the endangered midwife toad Alytes muletensisS Pinya0V Pérez-Mellado1Herpetological Research and Conservation Centre, Associació per a l’Estudi de la Natura, Balearic Islands, SpainDepartment of Animal Biology, Universidad de Salamanca, SpainA better understanding of the demography of endangered amphibians is important for the development of suitable management and recovery plans, and for building population viability models. Our work presents, for the first time, growth curves and measurements of mean longevity, growth rates and age at maturity for the Vulnerable midwife toad Alytes muletensis. Von Bertalanffy growth models were used to estimate longevity and growth rate parameters. Females had a mean (±SD) longevity of 4.70 ± 0.19 yr, significantly higher than that of males (3.24 ± 0.10 yr). The maximum estimated longevity was 18 yr for both males and females. The age distribution indicated that males reached sexual maturity at the age of 1 yr, and most females at 2 yr. There were significant differences in growth rate between sexes, with higher values in females during the first 4 yr of life, and similar values in both sexes thereafter. These life-history traits were compared with equivalent measures in the closely related amphibian genera Bombina and Discoglossus.https://www.int-res.com/abstracts/esr/v22/n3/p263-268/
spellingShingle S Pinya
V Pérez-Mellado
Ageing and growth of the endangered midwife toad Alytes muletensis
Endangered Species Research
title Ageing and growth of the endangered midwife toad Alytes muletensis
title_full Ageing and growth of the endangered midwife toad Alytes muletensis
title_fullStr Ageing and growth of the endangered midwife toad Alytes muletensis
title_full_unstemmed Ageing and growth of the endangered midwife toad Alytes muletensis
title_short Ageing and growth of the endangered midwife toad Alytes muletensis
title_sort ageing and growth of the endangered midwife toad alytes muletensis
url https://www.int-res.com/abstracts/esr/v22/n3/p263-268/
work_keys_str_mv AT spinya ageingandgrowthoftheendangeredmidwifetoadalytesmuletensis
AT vperezmellado ageingandgrowthoftheendangeredmidwifetoadalytesmuletensis