Conservation of skinks in New Zealand cities

Springer Science and Business Media LLC - 2023
Christopher Woolley1, Stephen Hartley2, John Innes3, Danielle F. Shanahan1, Yolanda van Heezik4, Deborah Wilson5, Nicola J. Nelson2
1Zealandia - Centre for People and Nature, 53 Waiapu Rd, Wellington, 6012, New Zealand
2Centre for Biodiversity and Restoration Ecology, School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, P.O. Box 600, New Zealand
3Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research, Private Bag 3127, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand
4Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Dunedin, PO Box 56, 9054, New Zealand
5Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research, Private Bag 1930, Dunedin, 9054, New Zealand

Tóm tắt

AbstractUrbanisation dramatically alters ecosystems, disrupting key processes and threatening species persistence. Despite growing knowledge of the impacts of cities on wildlife, particularly for birds and mammals, there remains a paucity of research on how urbanisation impacts other taxa, including reptiles. We examined how urbanisation affects skink communities across multiple New Zealand cities by undertaking pitfall trapping surveys in a range of habitats. Of the 20 endemic species thought to have been present historically in the cities, only four were captured during surveys, Oligosoma aeneum in Hamilton; O. polychroma, O. aeneum, and O. ornatum in Wellington; O. polychroma in Nelson; and O. aff. polychroma Clade 5 in Dunedin. Our results reveal highly variable patterns of occupancy, abundance, and complex associations with key threats and habitat modifications. Sites in Nelson and Wellington were much more likely to record skinks than Hamilton and Dunedin, and modelling showed abundance of O. polychroma was positively related to rat tracking rates when grass cover was low but showed a negative relationship when grass cover was high. O. polychroma body condition was negatively associated with the proportion of urban land cover (built up areas or transport infrastructure). The low number of captures of several species is concerning and long-term monitoring is needed to assess the trajectories of these vulnerable populations. Effective conservation management of urban wildlife requires knowledge of where populations exist and how urban processes affect persistence. For understudied urban-dwelling taxa such as reptiles, the lack of this information may be putting populations at risk.

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