Cambalès fairy tale

Title:

Cambalès fairy tale
elevational limits of Rana temporaria (Amphibia: Ranidae) and other European amphibians revisited

Creator:

Vences, Miguel, Grossenbacher, Kurt, Puente, Marta, Palanca, Antonio, and Vieites, David R.

Identifier:

https://cdk.lib.cas.cz/client/handle/uuid:47af432d-374c-2a76-62cb-a070de95088f
uuid:47af432d-374c-2a76-62cb-a070de95088f

Subject:

Amphibia, altitudinal distribution, Pyrenees, Spain, France, and Rana temporaria

Type:

article and TEXT

Description:

The highest altitude recorded for an amphibian in Europe (west of the Caucasus) is 2965 m. It refers to the "lacs de Cambalès" according to an old reference. However, these lakes are all situated below 2600 m, while the altitude corresponds exactly to that of the summit of the Pic de Cambalès. We undertook an almost complete survey of ponds in a 2.5 km radius from the Cambalès peak, and complemented these data by fieldwork in a larger portion of the Central Pyrenees. Based on our observations in a total of 325 lakes and ponds we conclude that no water bodies above 2800 m exist in the Cambalès area, and that no water bodies above 2600 m are populated by Rana temporaria. The highest amphibian record was that of a single R. temporaria specimen at 2569 m, while the highest reproducing population was found at 2516 m. Highest records of other amphibians were 2516 m (Alytes obstetricans), 2160 m (Bufo bufo), 2259 m (Euproctus asper), and 2142 m (Salamandra salamandra). The presence of ice-free water bodies during a sufficient amount of time for larval development is probably the limiting factor for elevational distribution of Pyrenean amphibians, and the adequate conditions are usually not met above 2500 m in this massif. In contrast, in the Alps, ponds at higher altitudes are often protected by much higher surrounding peaks, which leads to higher elevational occurrence of amphibians. The Italian Laghi di Tre Becchi (up to 2742 m) are therefore the highest locality of a reproducing anuran population in Europe west of the Caucasus.

Language:

English

Rights:

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/

Source:

Folia zoologica | 2003 Volume:52 | Number:2

Harvested from:

CDK

Metadata only:

false