The extensive clearing and modification of natural systems from anthropogenic activities is a pressing global concern. Forest habitats and animal communities within forests are among the most highly impacted, globally. Forest destruction has been repeatedly documented as a driver of biodiversity loss. However, little is known about how animal communities respond when altered landscapes are abandoned and left to regenerate into secondary forests. It is thought that the regrowth of secondary forests may help reverse biodiversity loss by restoring habitats to similar conditions as prior to land conversion. Of the forest cover that remains, over half is secondary forest, and in many countries secondary forest cover has been steadily increasing. Therefore, it is important to understand how and if faunal communities recover during secondary forest regeneration. I combined meta-analytic, field-survey-based, and lab-based experimental techniques to determine how amphibians and reptiles respond to habitat change in general, and secondary forest regeneration on landscapes previously cleared for use as pasture. I addressed five specific questions: 1) what are the effects of habitat alteration on amphibians and reptiles?, 2) what are the effects of secondary forest succession on amphibians and reptiles?, 3) what is the relative importance of stochastic and deterministic effects on community assembly during secondary forest succession?, 4) how do amphibian and reptile species composition, probability of occurrence, and species richness change over the course of secondary forest succession?, and 5) is thermal quality of habitat an important mechanism of species response to secondary forest succession? I found that secondary forest has high conservation value for many amphibian and reptile species, environmental changes associated with secondary forest succession have a significant effect on shaping amphibian and reptile community composition, thermal quality is an important mechanism for species response and that strength of response is mediated by species-specific thermal biology. I also highlight the importance of riparian corridors in maintaining species diversity in modified habitats.

Exotic invasive plant species can alter aquatic habitats potentially influencing the macroinvertebrate community and foraging fishes. Therefore, I investigated the hypothesis that Hydrilla verticillata will alter habitat important to macroinvertebrate community structure and bluegill foraging efficiency. Studies were conducted in ponds and aquaria. At the pond level, macroinvertebrate abundance, richness, and biomass in a hydrilla-dominated habitat did not differ significantly from a diverse plant habitat. Indicator taxa did differ significantly between respective treatments. The data suggest hydrilla beds may not provide increased macroinvertebrate abundance and richness compared to diverse plant beds as previously thought. In aquaria, habitat complexity (Ihv) and light transmittance were influenced by increasing the homogeneity of hydrilla in an aquatic bed habitat. In addition, bluegill foraging efficiency was affected negatively by increasing spatial complexity of a hydrilla dominated habitat. Therefore, a shift to a monotypic hydrilla habitat can alter macroinvertebrate community composition and impact bluegill foraging success.

The effects of small-scale shoreline residential development on littoral fish abundance and species richness was examined at three different scales of observation (within 122, 244, and 488 meters) in Lake Simcoe (Ontario, Canada). A mixed model regression was used to test for effects of development after accounting for seasonal and spatial variation in environmental variables known to affect distribution and abundance of fish. Fish were aggregated near single development structures, such as permanent docks, and repelled from other single structures, such as bank stabilisation. Shoreline developed with multiple features, such as docks combined with break walls, tended to be positively correlated with fish abundance but negatively correlated with species richness. Features such as docks and break walls combined with boathouses were generally associated with a decrease in both abundance and richness. Cluster analysis detected no consistent pattern of association between specific fish assemblages and residential development across the three scales of observation. Increased density and diversity of shoreline residential development tended to be associated with reduced fish abundance and species richness. The specific development features associated with these patterns change with the scale of observation, indicating that fish responded to proximally and distantly located habitat alterations.

Globally urbanisation impacts on 88% of amphibian species and is recognised as a major cause for the observed amphibian declines. This is as result of habitat fragmentation, alteration in habitat morphology and degradation of habitat quality. The interference of anthropogenic noise on anuran communication and the impacts thereof on their breeding success has become a major research focus in recent conservation studies. . However, within the African continent very little research has been conducted on the effects of urbanisation on anuran habitat and the acoustic environment, which is the main focus of this study. The thesis is structured as follows: CHAPTER ONE provides an introduction to the field of urban ecology and relates it to amphibian conservation. The chapter reviews the far reaching and diverse effects of urbanisation on frog populations reported in literature across the world and also supply a broad introduction to the succeeding chapters. It also briefly summarises evidence from literature on the positive contributions brought about by the developed world. Following the vast negative impacts of urbanisation, the importance of amphibians is briefly discussed to motivate their conservation in urban environments, before concluding with a motivation for the need for urban ecological research on amphibians in South Africa. CHAPTER TWO addresses the distribution of amphibian communities across an urban-rural gradient in the city of Potchefstroom and assesses the habitat determinants explaining distribution at both local (pond) and landscape scales. Four surveys conducted spanned the breeding seasons of all species occurring in this region and included three different sampling techniques to detect fish and anuran larvae species. Seven micro-habitat and seven landscape variables were included to evaluate determinants of habitat use among local species and species richness. Using Bayesian modelling, aquatic vegetation, predatory fish and pond size was found to be major determinants shaping species richness on a local scale, whereas surface area of urban central business district had only a slightly negative correlation with species richness on a landscape scale. This is a pioneer study for documenting effects of urbanisation on amphibian communities along an urban-rural gradient in Africa. CHAPTER THREE evaluates the extent of the influence of aircraft acoustic noise on the calling behaviour of the critically endangered Pickersgill’s Reed Frog, Hyperolius pickersgilli. Literature documenting the effects of airplane noise on anuran calling activity is very limited and this study aimed not only to contribute to existing knowledge, but also to provide the first study of its kind within South Africa. Effects on five call properties of H. pickersgilli were determined using passive and directional recording equipment at two sites, reflecting presence and absence of aircraft flybys. Results showed an increase in calling rate of H. pickersgilli during aircraft flybys. Hyperolius pickersgilli was found to call throughout the night until just before sunrise. The calling behaviour, frequency structure and call sound pressure level of H. pickersgilli suggest that this species is prone to be effected by continuous anthropogenic noise. However, the lack of flights between midnight and sunrise provides a period of no disturbance for the frogs. Future studies on the effects of change in calling behaviour should be supported by playback studies at quiet sites and connected to breeding success to determine if these effects are detrimental to the survival of this critically endangered species. CHAPTER FOUR focussed on the Western Leopard Toad, Amietophrynus pantherinus and was divided into two major parts. One component focussed on the migration of this species across roads and aimed to firstly quantify the number of individuals migrating over a 500 m stretch of road using a drift fence system operated by public volunteers. The drift fence proved very successful, with no roadkill observed during the time it was in place. This study also stressed that large numbers of toads (average of 20.47% of 2 384 toads over six breeding seasons) are still being killed on the urban and suburban roads. Road patrol statistics collected by volunteers are biased in the sense that it is prone to human error, but when a drift fence is constructed, bias is excluded and space for human error limited. The study also provided road sensitivity areas analysed using geographic information systems to create digital buffer zones of 250 m, 500 m and 1 000 m around selected breeding sites. Secondly the study aimed to evaluate the use of data collected by these citizens occupying a volunteering role in the toad’s conservation. The second part of this study was directed towards the acoustic analysis of the call of A. pantherinus. The two main objectives of this component were to 1) evaluate the extent of variation of the call properties in order to 2) assess whether the ambient anthropogenic noise have an effect on these properties. Seven call properties for advertisement calls and four for release calls were analysed. Call properties were found to vary significantly between populations (P<0.05). Although sound pressure level was found to have an effect on variation by using canonical redundancy analysis, variation can also be explained by the geographical isolation of the populations. CHAPTER FIVE provided novel data on the extensive repertoire of Amietia quecketti in terms of its unique calling behaviour. Directional recordings were used to examine the extent of the variation in the two-part call (click-note followed by a whine-note). The whine-note was re-described and four different notes were designated, including the tonal-note, creak-note, pulsatile- / rip-note, and whine-note. Furthermore, the newly assigned whine-note was divided into nine phases that differed in frequency structure. Also, evidence is provided that A. quecketti males call at high frequencies. The success of A. quecketti in urban environments as observed in Chapter 2 is described in terms of this species’ extensive repertoire and unusual frequency structure. CHAPTER SIX provides insight into the effects of atmospheric conditions on the calling behaviour of Amietia quecketti, giving the proximate impact urbanisation has on weather conditions as well as the potential impact human activities can have on climate change on the long term. Calling activity was monitored over a nine-week period together with data from a mobile weather station which logged atmospheric variables every five minutes. Amietia quecketti was found to call most intensely between 00h00 and 03h00 in the morning and was most active in May, June and August. Humidity, temperature and wind velocity were found to have significant effects (P<0.05) on the calling activity of A. quecketti. CHAPTER SEVEN is concerned with the attitudes of people towards frogs in South Africa. The first part of this study assessed the attitudes of people towards frogs in Potchefstroom. Surveys were distributed via the internet as well as manually to reach people with no internet access as well. Attitudes of people of Potchefstroom were mostly positive with more than half of the sampled population of 295 respondents indicating a strong liking in frogs. This study provides evidence that the presence of myths and knowledge can highly affects people’s attitudes towards frogs. The second part of this study focussed on the motivations of volunteers saving Western Leopard Toads from roadkill in Cape Town, South Africa. Volunteers were motivated by a strong value-driven approach to saving toads. CHAPTER EIGHT provides a general discussion and outline on the contributions this study presented and also the new areas where more research is needed within the extent of the field of urban ecology from a South African perspective. / hD (Zoology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Globally urbanisation impacts on 88% of amphibian species and is recognised as a major cause for the observed amphibian declines. This is as result of habitat fragmentation, alteration in habitat morphology and degradation of habitat quality. The interference of anthropogenic noise on anuran communication and the impacts thereof on their breeding success has become a major research focus in recent conservation studies. . However, within the African continent very little research has been conducted on the effects of urbanisation on anuran habitat and the acoustic environment, which is the main focus of this study. The thesis is structured as follows: CHAPTER ONE provides an introduction to the field of urban ecology and relates it to amphibian conservation. The chapter reviews the far reaching and diverse effects of urbanisation on frog populations reported in literature across the world and also supply a broad introduction to the succeeding chapters. It also briefly summarises evidence from literature on the positive contributions brought about by the developed world. Following the vast negative impacts of urbanisation, the importance of amphibians is briefly discussed to motivate their conservation in urban environments, before concluding with a motivation for the need for urban ecological research on amphibians in South Africa. CHAPTER TWO addresses the distribution of amphibian communities across an urban-rural gradient in the city of Potchefstroom and assesses the habitat determinants explaining distribution at both local (pond) and landscape scales. Four surveys conducted spanned the breeding seasons of all species occurring in this region and included three different sampling techniques to detect fish and anuran larvae species. Seven micro-habitat and seven landscape variables were included to evaluate determinants of habitat use among local species and species richness. Using Bayesian modelling, aquatic vegetation, predatory fish and pond size was found to be major determinants shaping species richness on a local scale, whereas surface area of urban central business district had only a slightly negative correlation with species richness on a landscape scale. This is a pioneer study for documenting effects of urbanisation on amphibian communities along an urban-rural gradient in Africa. CHAPTER THREE evaluates the extent of the influence of aircraft acoustic noise on the calling behaviour of the critically endangered Pickersgill’s Reed Frog, Hyperolius pickersgilli. Literature documenting the effects of airplane noise on anuran calling activity is very limited and this study aimed not only to contribute to existing knowledge, but also to provide the first study of its kind within South Africa. Effects on five call properties of H. pickersgilli were determined using passive and directional recording equipment at two sites, reflecting presence and absence of aircraft flybys. Results showed an increase in calling rate of H. pickersgilli during aircraft flybys. Hyperolius pickersgilli was found to call throughout the night until just before sunrise. The calling behaviour, frequency structure and call sound pressure level of H. pickersgilli suggest that this species is prone to be effected by continuous anthropogenic noise. However, the lack of flights between midnight and sunrise provides a period of no disturbance for the frogs. Future studies on the effects of change in calling behaviour should be supported by playback studies at quiet sites and connected to breeding success to determine if these effects are detrimental to the survival of this critically endangered species. CHAPTER FOUR focussed on the Western Leopard Toad, Amietophrynus pantherinus and was divided into two major parts. One component focussed on the migration of this species across roads and aimed to firstly quantify the number of individuals migrating over a 500 m stretch of road using a drift fence system operated by public volunteers. The drift fence proved very successful, with no roadkill observed during the time it was in place. This study also stressed that large numbers of toads (average of 20.47% of 2 384 toads over six breeding seasons) are still being killed on the urban and suburban roads. Road patrol statistics collected by volunteers are biased in the sense that it is prone to human error, but when a drift fence is constructed, bias is excluded and space for human error limited. The study also provided road sensitivity areas analysed using geographic information systems to create digital buffer zones of 250 m, 500 m and 1 000 m around selected breeding sites. Secondly the study aimed to evaluate the use of data collected by these citizens occupying a volunteering role in the toad’s conservation. The second part of this study was directed towards the acoustic analysis of the call of A. pantherinus. The two main objectives of this component were to 1) evaluate the extent of variation of the call properties in order to 2) assess whether the ambient anthropogenic noise have an effect on these properties. Seven call properties for advertisement calls and four for release calls were analysed. Call properties were found to vary significantly between populations (P<0.05). Although sound pressure level was found to have an effect on variation by using canonical redundancy analysis, variation can also be explained by the geographical isolation of the populations. CHAPTER FIVE provided novel data on the extensive repertoire of Amietia quecketti in terms of its unique calling behaviour. Directional recordings were used to examine the extent of the variation in the two-part call (click-note followed by a whine-note). The whine-note was re-described and four different notes were designated, including the tonal-note, creak-note, pulsatile- / rip-note, and whine-note. Furthermore, the newly assigned whine-note was divided into nine phases that differed in frequency structure. Also, evidence is provided that A. quecketti males call at high frequencies. The success of A. quecketti in urban environments as observed in Chapter 2 is described in terms of this species’ extensive repertoire and unusual frequency structure. CHAPTER SIX provides insight into the effects of atmospheric conditions on the calling behaviour of Amietia quecketti, giving the proximate impact urbanisation has on weather conditions as well as the potential impact human activities can have on climate change on the long term. Calling activity was monitored over a nine-week period together with data from a mobile weather station which logged atmospheric variables every five minutes. Amietia quecketti was found to call most intensely between 00h00 and 03h00 in the morning and was most active in May, June and August. Humidity, temperature and wind velocity were found to have significant effects (P<0.05) on the calling activity of A. quecketti. CHAPTER SEVEN is concerned with the attitudes of people towards frogs in South Africa. The first part of this study assessed the attitudes of people towards frogs in Potchefstroom. Surveys were distributed via the internet as well as manually to reach people with no internet access as well. Attitudes of people of Potchefstroom were mostly positive with more than half of the sampled population of 295 respondents indicating a strong liking in frogs. This study provides evidence that the presence of myths and knowledge can highly affects people’s attitudes towards frogs. The second part of this study focussed on the motivations of volunteers saving Western Leopard Toads from roadkill in Cape Town, South Africa. Volunteers were motivated by a strong value-driven approach to saving toads. CHAPTER EIGHT provides a general discussion and outline on the contributions this study presented and also the new areas where more research is needed within the extent of the field of urban ecology from a South African perspective. / hD (Zoology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Submitted by Cássia Santos (cassia.bcufg@gmail.com) on 2017-05-17T11:08:27Z No. of bitstreams: 2 Tese - Lorena Dall´Ara Guimarães - 2006.pdf: 2423703 bytes, checksum: 83bf4f4172b792982caccc6cf3c41ff2 (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Luciana Ferreira (lucgeral@gmail.com) on 2017-05-17T11:48:10Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 Tese - Lorena Dall´Ara Guimarães - 2006.pdf: 2423703 bytes, checksum: 83bf4f4172b792982caccc6cf3c41ff2 (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-05-17T11:48:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 Tese - Lorena Dall´Ara Guimarães - 2006.pdf: 2423703 bytes, checksum: 83bf4f4172b792982caccc6cf3c41ff2 (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-02-13 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / This study aimed to examine patterns of anuran species richness in twenty municipalities in the State of Goiás, central Brazil. We also compared richness of anuran species among these localities and verified the patterns of spatial distribution for four habitat types (gallery forests, ponds associated to gallery forest, ponds associated to cerrado sensu stricto, and ponds close to anthropic area). Surveys were conducted between 2001 and 2005. Considering the four habitat types, a total of 6,491 individuals from 52 anuran species were registered. Calling males were found on the ground, shrubs, and grasses. Ponds associated to cerrado sensu stricto showed the highest species richness. In contrast, gallery forest assemblages exhibited the highest species diversity and equitability. The largest number of individuals was found in disturbed areas and ponds associated to cerrado sensu stricto. Similarity analysis showed that open habitats had the most similar communities, while the most dissimilar assemblages were observed between gallery forests and ponds within disturbed areas. Seven species in the families Leptodactylidae and Hylidae showed significant indicative values (bioindicators) for particular habitats. A total of 61 species was registered in twenty municipalities, representing 44.7% of the anuran richness registered for the Cerrado. The highest species richness was found in the municipality of Silvânia, while the lowest richness was registered in Mundo Novo. The results showed a non-significant correlation between socio-economics variables and anuran species composition. Anuran species richness seems to be lower close to areas used for the establishment of pastures and agriculture. On the other hand, species richness tends to be higher (likely through succession) in areas without human disturbance. Results of this study could or should be considered during development of management strategies focusing on amphibian conservation in the Cerrado biome. Moreover, a better understanding of how different fragmentation degrees affect amphibian diversity is important to access the influence of habitat quality on Cerrado´s amphibians, and also to improve management programs focused on amphibian conservation. / Este estudo objetivou examinar os padrões de riqueza de espécies de anfíbios anuros em 20 municípios do estado de Goiás, no Brasil Central, como também comparar a diversidade e riqueza de espécies de anuros, e verificar os padrões de distribuição espacial em quatro tipos de habitats (floresta de galeria, brejo associado à floresta de galeria, brejo associado a cerrado sensu stricto e brejo situado em área antropizada) As coletas foram feitas entre 2001 e 2005. Em relação aos quatro tipos de habitats, um total de 6.491 indivíduos de 52 espécies foram registradas. Machos vocalizantes foram principalmente encontrados no chão, arbustos e gramíneas. Brejos associados a cerrado sensu stricto apresentaram a maior riqueza de espécies. Ao contrário, florestas de galeria apresentaram os maiores valores para diversidade e equitabilidade. O maior número de indivíduos foi encontrado em áreas antropizadas e brejos associados a cerrado sensu stricto. O índice de similaridade de Bray-Curtis mostrou que os habitats de áreas abertas têm comunidades mais similares, enquanto as comunidades mais dissimilares foram àquelas encontradas em florestas de galeria e aquelas situadas em áreas antropizadas. Sete espécies das famílias Leptodactylidae e Hylidae apresentaram valores indicativos significantes (bioindicadores) de habitats particulares. Um total de 61 espécies foi registrado nos vinte municípios, o que representa 43,26% da riqueza de espécies de anfíbios encontrados no Cerrado. O maior número de espécies foi registrado no município de Silvânia, leste do estado e o menor em Mundo Novo, noroeste goiano. Os resultados mostraram uma correlação não significativa entre as variáveis sócio-econômicas e a composição de espécies de anfíbios. A riqueza de espécies de anfíbios parece sofrer influência pelas áreas usadas para o estabelecimento de pastagens e agricultura. Por outro lado, a riqueza tende ser mais alta (provavelmente por sucessão) em áreas sem fatores antropogênicos. Os resultados desse estudo podem ser considerados para o desenvolvimento de estratégias de manejo, com enfoque na conservação de anfíbios das paisagens do Cerrado. Além disso, o conhecimento da influência dos diferentes graus de fragmentação dos habitas naturais na diversidade de anfíbios, é importante para o entendimento do funcionamento das comunidades dos anfíbios do Cerrado, e conseqüentemente, para o melhoramento no que diz respeito ao manejo e conservação dessa fauna.