Population increase and changes in behavior and morphology in the Critically Endangered Redonda ground lizard (Pholidoscelis atratus) following the successful removal of alien rats and goats,Integrative Zoology

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Population increase and changes in behavior and morphology in the Critically Endangered Redonda ground lizard (Pholidoscelis atratus) following the successful removal of alien rats and goats
Integrative Zoology ( IF 3.5 ) Pub Date : 2020-11-09 , DOI: 10.1111/1749-4877.12500
Colin M Donihue _{1,

2} , Jennifer C Daltry ₃ , Shanna Challenger _{3,

4,

5} , Anthony Herrel ₁

Affiliation

Redonda is a small volcanic Caribbean island that is home to at least 4 endemic lizard species, including the Critically Endangered ground lizard (Pholidoscelis atratus). Black rats (Rattus rattus) and domestic goats (Capra hircus) were introduced to the island at some time after its discovery by Europeans in the late 1500s. They had a devastating effect on the island, resulting in the loss of nearly all trees and most of the ground vegetation. Point count surveys of P. atratus in 2012 indicated low densities, and the invasive rats were observed hunting and preying on the lizards. Both populations of rats and goats were successfully removed in 2017 as part of an ecological restoration program, and native vegetation and invertebrate populations have increased rapidly since. Population surveys in 2017, 2018, and 2019 show the lizard population has increased by more than sixfold. In 2017, as rats and goats were being removed, we evaluated the morphology and escape behavior of this species and repeated these measurements 1 year later. We observed that P. atratus had become bolder, with a reduced flight distance. We also detected changes in limb morphology related to locomotion and suggest possible explanations that will need to be further investigated in the future. These results show how the removal of invasive species can rapidly affect lizard population recovery and behavior, potentially restoring island ecosystems to their pre‐human interference dynamics.

中文翻译：

在成功清除外来大鼠和山羊后，极度濒危的雷东达地蜥 (Pholidoscelis atratus) 的种群数量增加以及行为和形态的变化

雷东达是加勒比海的一个小火山岛，是至少 4 种特有蜥蜴物种的家园，其中包括极度濒危的地蜥 ( Pholidoscelis atratus )。黑鼠 ( Rattus rattus ) 和家山羊 ( Capra hircus ) 在 1500 年代后期被欧洲人发现后的某个时间被引入该岛。它们对岛上造成了毁灭性的影响，导致几乎所有树木和大部分地面植被都消失了。P. atratus的点数调查2012年显示低密度，观察到入侵大鼠狩猎和捕食蜥蜴。作为生态恢复计划的一部分，大鼠和山羊的种群在 2017 年被成功清除，自那以后，原生植被和无脊椎动物种群迅速增加。2017 年、2018 年和 2019 年的人口调查显示，蜥蜴的数量增加了六倍以上。2017 年，随着大鼠和山羊被移走，我们评估了该物种的形态和逃逸行为，并在 1 年后重复了这些测量。我们观察到P. atratus变得更大胆，飞行距离更短。我们还检测到与运动相关的肢体形态变化，并提出了未来需要进一步研究的可能解释。这些结果表明，入侵物种的清除如何迅速影响蜥蜴种群的恢复和行为，有可能将岛屿生态系统恢复到人类之前的干扰动态。

更新日期：2020-11-09

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