Correspondence –Notes 179
Barbieri, F., Bernini, F. (2004): Distribution and status of Rana amphibians and reptiles of Europe. Amphibia-Reptilia 35(1): 1- latastei in Italy (Amphibia, Ranidae). Italian Journal of Zoology 31. 71: 91-94. Barbieri, F., Mazzoti, S. (2006): Rana latastei. pp. 362-367. In: Key words: Italian agile frog, Dinaric karst, cave, habitat, Sindaco, R., Doria, G., Razzetti, E., Bernini, F. (eds), Atlas of ecology. Italian Amphibians and Reptiles. Societas Herpetologica Italica, Edizioni Polistampa, Firenze. Bressi, N., Dolce, S. (1999): Osservazioni di anfibi e rettili in Grotta. Article No.: e167502 Received: 27. December 2015 / Accepted: 01. June 2016 Rivista Idrobiologia 38: 475-481. Available online: 27. July 2016 / Printed: June 2017 Bruno, S. (1977): Anfibi d’Italia: Salientia 1 Rana latastei. Natura (Milano) 68: 145-156. Burlin, M., Dolce, S. (1986): Osservazioni faunistiche sull'erpetofauna dell'Istria. Atti del Museo Civico di Storia Katarina KOLLER Naturale di Trieste 39: 65-85. Gasc, J.P., Cabela, A., Crnobrnja-Isailovic, J., Dolmen, D., Croatian Herpetological Society – Hyla, I. Lipovac 7a, 10 000 Grossenbacher, K., Haffner, P., Lescure, J., Martens, H., Zagreb, Croatia, E-mail: [email protected] Martínez Rica, J.P., Maurin, H., Oliveira, M.E., Sofianidou, T.S., Veith, M., Zuiderwijk, A. (1997): Atlas of Amphibians and Reptiles in Europe. Societas Europaea Herpetologica and Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle (IEGB/SPN), Paris. Glasnović, P. (2012): On the occurrence of the Italian agile frog (Rana latastei Boulenger, 1879) in the Slovenian part of Istria. New data on the distribution of Natura Sloveniae 14: 39-42. Gottstein, S. (2010): Priručnik za određivanje podzemnih staništa u Eastern spadefoot toad Pelobates Hrvatskoj prema Direktivi o staništima EU. Državni zavod za syriacus Boettger, 1889 (Anura: zaštitu prirode, Zagreb. Grossenbacher K. (1982): Rana latastei in der Südschweiz Pelobatidae) in the Pannonian Plain wiederentdeckt. Revue Suisse de Zoologie 89: 607-615. Ianc, R., Cicort-Lucaciu, A.S., Ilies, D., Kovacs, E.H. (2012): Note on the presence of Salamandra salamandra (Amphibia) in caves from Two of the four European spadefoot toad species Padurea Craiului Mountains, Romania. North-Western Journal are present in Romania: the Common spadefoot of Zoology 8: 202–204. toad Pelobates fuscus (Laurenti 1768), with an ex- Jelić, D., Kuljerić, M., Koren, T., Treer, D., Šalamon, D., Lončar, M., Podnar Lešić, M., Janev Hutinec, B., Bogdanović, T., Mekinić, S., tensive range that covers most of the plains and Jelić, K. (2012): Crvena knjiga vodozemaca i gmazova Hrvatske. hilly regions (up to 700 m); and Eastern or Syrian Državni zavod za zaštitu prirode, Republika Hrvatska, Zagreb. spadefoot toad Pelobates syriacus Boettger, 1889, Jelić, M. (2011): Finding of Common toad (Bufo bufo) with predominant yellow body coloration. Hyla 2: 25. which is limited to the southern parts of the coun- Kuljerić, M. (2011): Italian agile frog, Rana latastei Boulenger, 1879 try at altitudes below 200 m a.s.l. (Fuhn 1960, Sos (Amphibia, Anura). Hyla 1: 3-20. 2008). The european distribution of P. syriacus in- Kwet, A. (2009): European Reptile and Amphibian Guide, 2nd ed. New Holland Publisher Ltd., London. cludes the south-eastern Balkans (Džukić et al. Lunghi, E., Manenti, R., Ficetola, G. F. (2014): Do cave features 2005, 2008); in SW Asia it occurs in eastern to affect underground habitat exploitation by non-troglobite south-eastern Transcaucasia, northern Iran, Tur- species? Acta Oecologica 55: 29-35. Manenti, R., Ficetola, G.F. De Bernardi, F. (2009a): Water, stream key and the Levant to Israel (Agasyan et al. 2009, morphology and landscape: complex habitat determinants for Székely et al. 2013). According to Sofianidou the fire salamander Salamandra salamandra. Amphibia-Reptilia (1997), the present range of P. syriacus is bounded 30: 7-15. Manenti, R., Ficetola, G.F., Bianchi, B., De Bernardi, F. (2009b): by the Pannonian Plain and the Danube River area Habitat features and distribution of Salamandra salamandra in in the north (but see Cogălniceanu et al. 2013, underground springs. Acta Herpetologica 4: 143-151. Székely et al. 2013), the Morava River valley in the Manenti, R., Ficetola, G.F., Marieni, A., De Bernardi, F. (2011): Caves as breeding sites for Salamandra salamandra: habitat west, the Mediterranean shoreline in the south, selection, larval development and conservation issues. North- and Transcaucasia in the east. In Romania the sub- Western Journal of Zoology 7(2): 304-309. species P. s. balcanicus Karaman, 1928 appears, Manenti, R., Ficetola, G.F. (2013): Salamanders breeding in subterranean habitats: Local adaptations or behavioural which has a distribution restricted to Macedonia, plasticity? Journal of Zoology 289: 182-188. Bulgaria, Romania, Greece and Turkey-in-Europe Manenti, R., Lunghi, E., Ficetola, G. F. (2015): The distribution of (Fuhn 1960, Ugurtas et al. 2002). cave twilight-zone spiders depends on microclimatic features and trophic supply. Invertebrate Biology 134(3): 1-10. P. syriacus is a highly specialized species, hav- Martel, E.A. (1896): Sur les siphons des sources et des rivières ing a narrow ecological niche. Terrestrial habitats souterraines. Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences 122: occupied are generally open uncultivated and also 1147-1150. Schmidtler, J.F. (1977): Amphibien aus Feuchtwaldern Istriens. cultivated arable land (Székely et al. 2013), steppe, Salamandra 13 (2): 114-116. coastal dunes (Fuhn 1960), semi-desert and rocky Sillero, N., Campos, J., Bonardi, A., Corti, C., Creemers, R., Crochet, areas, heathlands and deciduous woodlands P.A., Isailović, J.C., Denoël, M., Ficetola, G.F., Gonçalves, J., Kuzmin, S. (2014): Updated distribution and biogeography of (Džukić et al. 2005), etc. According to Székely et al.
180 North-Western Journal of Zoology 13(1) / 2017
Figure 1.a. The updated distribu- tion of Pelobates syriacus in Ro- mania, plotted on 5x5 km UTM grids. The broken lines delimit the location of b. and c. map. 1.b. The proportion of Corine 2006 habitat types in the re- cently identified distribution area: grasslands (pastures; light grey), agricultural lands (arable fields; dark grey), localities and roads (black). 1.c. The Natura 2000 areas (marked with light grey) and the distribution of the species in the area. Locality in- dex: 1. Saravale, 2. Sânnicolau Mare, 3. Vălcani and 4. Comloșu Mare.
(2013), the species is rather abundant in uniform and west, in the Carpathian Basin, i.e. Pannonian and extensive agricultural landscapes, taking ad- Plain. vantage of the network of irrigation canals, partly abandoned and transformed into wetlands. Be- The surveys were conducted during the night, near hu- sides soft soils suitable for a fossorial life, it also man settlements and in agricultural lands and also on road sections in order to detect road kills. The investiga- inhabits solid, rocky soils (Agasyan et al. 2009). tions were performed outside the reproductive period The landscape features have a strong influence on and only adults were located. population spread and density (Shpun et al. 1993). The criteria used for species identification were the It is a fossorial, nocturnal species. During the day head shape, which in the case of this species is flat com- it lives in deep burrows, in typically moist soils, pared with the well-marked dome of P. fuscus, the web and usually remains near its breeding areas shapes of the hind legs and also the colour and pattern of (Nicholas & Owenden 2004). markings (Fuhn 1960, Cogălniceanu 2002, Sidorovska et al. 2002). The dorsal side has variable colouration, from Comprehensive historical and recent distribu- yellow-greyish to white and it can have different tones, tion data of the species in Romania were recently but is never brown as in P. fuscus. compiled by Cogălniceanu et al. (2013; Fig. 1.a). Here, the occurrence of the species was reported Here we report six new distribution data and at from 59 5x5 km UTM cells based on 31 old and 122 the same time, six new 5x5 km UTM cell presences new records reported before and after 1990, re- of the species from which four records extend the spectively. The most recent study dealing with the range of the species in Romania to the west and distribution of P. syriacus in Romania has ex- north, inside the Carpathian Basin in the Aranca panded its range map, with 36 new locations from and Jimbolia Plain. Both are part of the Pannonian Galați, Brăila, Buzău, Giurgiu, Olt and Mehedinți Plain, and lie in the lower Mureș River catchment counties (from east to west), accounting to 27 new area (Table 1, Figs 1.b-c and 2). The new data rep- 5x5 km UTM grids (Székely et al. 2013). According resent the northernmost distribution limit in the to Székely et al. (2013), the northern distribution Carpathian Basin, some 120 km from the previ- limit of the species has been extended to Călmățui ously known Serbian population from the Danube locality (Galați County), while the Romanian Valley (Džukić et al. 2005, 2008). Seven active western limit is Gogoșu locality (Mehedinți adults were identified at night time, in July and County). During our field work, we collected new August 2015, in Vălcani locality (on three different occurrence records that extend the known geo- occasions) and one in Comloșu Mare locality (Figs graphical range of this species further to the north 2.a-b). Some of the specimens were found during
Correspondence –Notes 181
Table 1. New distribution data for Eastern spadefoot toad (Pelobates syriacus) in Romania.
Administrative-territorial units Lat./Long. 5x5 km UTM cell Altitude County Commune/locality Timiș Vălcani 46.003 20.401 DR59.2 76 m Timiș Comloșu Mare 45.895 20.610 DR68.4 79 m Timiș Sânnicolau Mare 46.036 20.656 DR79.1 83 m Timiș Sânpetru Mare/ Saravale 46.063 20.708 DS70.4 84 m Teleorman Bragadiru/Bujoru 43.698 25.528 LJ83.1 27 m Brăila Măcin 45.244 28.185 NL91.2 43 m
Figure 2. Live and road-killed Pelobates syriacus specimens from Vălcani (a), Comloșu Mare (b), Sânnicolau Mare (c) and Saravale (d).
Figure 3. Loss of potential repro- duction habitat because of an- thropogenic action in Vălcani village.
or after rain. The other two specimens located near The species is sympatric here with other am- Sânnicolau Mare and Saravale localities were road phibians: Triturus dobrogicus, Bombina bombina, P. kills (Figs 2.c-d). fuscus, Bufo bufo, Bufotes viridis, Hyla arborea, Pelo- These distribution data are in conflict with the phylax ridibundus and P. kl. esculentus. statement of Sofianidou (1997) that the present P. syriacus is listed in the Governmental Emer- range of P. syriacus is bounded by the Pannonian gency Ordinance 57/2007 on the regime of natural Plain, as these data are from within this region, protected areas, conservation of natural habitats, and outside the Danube River Valley. The pres- of wild flora and fauna, approved, with amend- ence of the species in the Pannonian Plain is not ments and additions by Law 49/2011 (Annony- unexpected as it was already reported from the mous 2011), which transposes the EU Habitat Di- southernmost limits of the region (Džukić et al. rective. Here it appears in Appendix IVA as a spe- 2005, 2008). These new data also fall within the cies of Community interest in need of strict protec- geographical space delineated by Tarkhnishvili et tion. al. (2009). In the surveyed areas, negative factors that
182 North-Western Journal of Zoology 13(1) / 2017 could threaten the reproduction and survival of P. on the regime of protected natural areas, preservation of natural habitats, wild flora and fauna. Official Monitor, no. 262 of 13 syriacus have been identified. These are, in the or- April 2011, Bucharest. der of their significance: loss of reproductive habi- Cogălniceanu, D. (2002): Amfibienii din Romania. Ghid de teren tat because of anthropogenic actions (Fig. 3), acci- (Amphibians of Romania. Field guide). Naturalia Practica no. 5. Colectia de Biologie – Ecologie, Universitatea din Bucuresti. dental mortality (Fig. 2.d), and harsh environ- Editura Ars Docendi, Bucharest, Romania, 41pp. mental conditions such as drought and pollution, Cogălniceanu, D., Székely, P., Samoilă, C., Iosif, R., Tudor, M., as similarly listed by Agasyan et al. (2009) for its Plăiaşu, R., Stănescu, F., Rozylowicz, L. (2013): Diversity and distribution of amphibians in Romania. Zookeys 296: 35-57. entire distribution range. Loss of habitat due to Džukić, G., Beskov, V., Sidorovska, V., Cogălniceanu, D., Kalezić, land use change, i.e. conversion of steppe grass- M. L. (2005): Historical and contemporary ranges of the lands to arable land, is also suspected among the spadefoot toads Pelobates spp. (Amphibia: Anura) in the Balkan Peninsula. Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia 48A(1-2): 1-9. causes that lead to population reduction, however Džukić, G., Beskov, V., Sidorovska, V., Cogălniceanu, D., Kalezić, according to Székely et al. (2013), the species M. L. (2008): Contemporary chorology of the spadefoot toads seems to cope well with the dominant agricultural (Pelobates spp.) in the Balkan Peninsula. Zeitschrift für Feldherpetologie 15: 61-78. landscape. The adaptability of the species to this Fuhn I.E. (1960): Fauna RPR: Amphibia. Editura Academiei R.P.R., threat should be dealt with in future research. Bucureşti. pp 228. The new distribution data lie outside the exis- Nicholas, E.A., Owenden, D.W. (2004): A field guide to the reptiles and amphibians of Britain and Europe Ed. Collins, 208 pp. tent Natura 2000 network (Fig. 1.c). Even though Shpun, S., Hoffman, J., Nevo, E., Katz, U. (1993): Is the distribution the species is not one that requires the designation of Pelobates syriacus related to its limited osmoregulatory of protected areas in order to ensure its conserva- capacity? Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 105A: 135- 139. tion under the Habitats Directive, the area should Sidorovska, V., Ljubisavljevic, K., Džukić, G., Kalezić, M.L. (2002): be designated as a Natura 2000 (or included in an Tadpole morphology of two spadefoot toads (Pelobates fuscus and existing one) or another type of protected area P. syriacus) (Amphibia, Anura, Pelobatidae). Spixiana 25: 183-191. Sofianidou, T. S. (1997): Pelobates syriacus Boettger, 1889. pp. 112- should be considered. Other species which are 113. In: Gasc, J.P. et al. (eds), Atlas of Amphibians and Reptiles in listed in Annex II of the Habitats Directive, for ex- Europe. Paris: Societas Europae Herpetologica, Museum ample T. dobrogicus or B. bombina, could be used to National d’Histoire Naturelle. Sos, T. (2008): Review of recent taxonomic and nomenclatural achieve that designation. changes in European Amphibia and Reptilia Class related to The range of P. syriacus is probably wider in Romanian herpetofauna. Herpetologica Romanica 2: 61-91. this area considering the presence of the species in Székely, P., Iosif, R., Székely, D., Stănescu, F., Cogălniceanu, D. (2013): Range extension for the Eastern spadefoot toad Pelobates Serbia, in the Danube Valley, especially assuming syriacus (Boettger, 1889). Herpetology Notes 6: 481-484. that the species does not have an insular distribu- Tarkhnishvili, D., Serbinova, I., Gavashelishvili, A. (2009): tion there (Székely et al. 2013). A distribution even Modelling the range of Syrian spadefoot toad (Pelobates syriacus) with combination of GIS-based approaches. Amphibia- Reptilia in Hungary could be predicted based on ecological 30: 401-412. preferences of the species and also the available Ugurtas, I.H., Ljubisavljevic, K., Sidorovska, V., Kalezić, M.L., favourable habitats along the Mureș and Tisza Džukić, G. (2002): Morphological differentiation of eastern spadeefoot toad (Pelobates syriacus) populations. Israel Journal of River. The difficulties of identifying Pelobates spp. Zoology 48: 13-32. adults and their tadpoles (Sidorovska et al. 2002), the insufficient survey coverage in the area, and Key words: Spadefoot toads, Pelobates syriacus, range ex- also the cryptic lifestyle of P. syriacus, are factors tension, western Romania, Pannonian Plain, Carpathian contributing to the deficient distribution data. Basin.
These should be filled in the future. Article No.: e167503 Received: 21. November 2015 / Accepted: 02. June 2016 Acknowledgements. The authors are most grateful for Available online: 27. July 2016 / Printed: June 2017 the contribution and help of Dr. John Akeroyd, whose comments on the manuscript have greatly improved the article’s content and language. We also like to thank Mrs. Lavinia ȚERAN1, Tibor SOS 2, Milca Petrovici for her support (in the research activity) Zsolt HEGYELI 2, Ede GÁBOS 1, and contribution to the realisation of this study. Tihamér FÜLÖP 2 and Attila MARTON 2
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