Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Richard Shine, Ross A. Alford, Ryan Blennerhasset, Gregory P. Brown, Jayna L. DeVore, Simon Ducatez, Patrick Finnerty, Matthew Greenlees, Shannon W. Kaiser, Samantha McCann, Lachlan Pettit, Ligia Pizzatto, Lin Schwarzkopf, Georgia Ward-Fear, Benjamin L. Phillips
Summary: As invasions progress over time, rates of population spread accelerate as individual organisms' dispersal behavior shifts, resulting in greater distances covered. Research on cane toads has shown that they are relatively sedentary in their native range and some invaded areas, but become more active in tropical Australia, covering longer distances as they disperse. This change in dispersal behavior, characterized by increased movements and changes in retreat sites, evolved earlier than other movement behaviors in response to breakdowns in philopatry.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Shannon W. Kaiser, Matthew J. Greenlees, Richard Shine
Summary: Wildfires have differential impacts on the habitat and ecology of male and female cane toads. In burned areas, female toads are less numerous but larger, in better body condition, and consume more prey. The attributes of retreat-sites also differ between the sexes. Intraspecific ecological trait divergence may result in substantial differences in the effects of habitat change.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jayna L. DeVore, Richard Shine, Simon Ducatez
Summary: Cane toads in their native range exhibit different sheltering and foraging behaviors compared to those in invaded areas. Native toads in French Guiana have limited movement between days, with larger toads displacing in more consistent directions. Foraging distance is related to body condition at coastal sites, and rainfall increases the probability of coastal toads sheltering in dry habitats where they forage.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Winston R. Kay, Peter R. Mawson
Summary: This study introduces an efficient method of controlling cane toads suitable for application in various field conditions in Australia, with a focus on euthanasia using carbon dioxide. Challenges related to safe disposal of biological and plastic waste associated with this method are also discussed.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Molly E. Shuman-Goodier, Grant R. Singleton, Anna M. Forsman, Shyann Hines, Nicholas Christodoulides, Kevin D. Daniels, Catherine R. Propper
Summary: Identifying the adverse impacts of pesticide exposure is crucial for protecting wildlife and human health. In rice ecosystems, amphibians like the wild cane toad can serve as valuable indicators due to their sensitivity to pesticides during critical life stages. Our experiments with wild cane toads revealed that exposure to the common herbicide butachlor can lead to developmental delays, thyroid gland abnormalities, and downregulation of important metabolic and immune-related transcripts. Additionally, we found evidence of acclimatization in cane toads exposed to butachlor, suggesting potential long-term impacts of pesticide exposure in rice fields.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Uditha Wijethunga, Matthew Greenlees, Melanie Elphick, Richard Shine
Summary: This research examined the effects of water temperature on survival and growth rates of cane toad early life stages from tropical and temperate regions in eastern Australia. The study did not find evidence of higher cold tolerance in southern population toads, and revealed that tropical population toads performed better at low to medium temperatures in two cases.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Lachlan Pettit, Mathew S. Crowther, Georgia Ward-Fear, Richard Shine
Summary: This study found that the invasion of cane toads had different effects on the population of giant monitor lizards in Australia, possibly due to differences in food resource availability in different regions. Additionally, anthropogenically-induced changes to natural ecosystems may produce synergistic effects, intensifying their impacts.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Boris Yagound, Andrea J. West, Mark F. Richardson, Jodie Gruber, Jack G. Reid, Martin J. Whiting, Lee A. Rollins
Summary: This study examines the impact of short-term captivity on brain gene expression levels in cane toads and compares the effects between long-colonized and vanguard populations. The results show significant differences in gene expression levels between captive and wild-caught toads, with an over-representation of processes related to behavior and stress response. The impact of captivity is larger in vanguard populations, suggesting increased plasticity in the leading-edge toads. These findings have important implications for comparing phenotypic traits of organisms from different populations held in captivity.
Article
Biology
Gregory P. P. Brown, Cameron M. M. Hudson, Richard Shine
Summary: Variations in food resources can lead to significant fluctuations in the body condition of animals, resulting in changes in immune function. This study focused on captive cane toads and found that weight loss was associated with increased levels of monocytes and heterophils, reduced levels of eosinophils, and higher phagocytic ability. The results highlight the challenges invasive species face in adapting to new environments with different food availability and the potential shift in immune response to combat pathogens.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biology
Shannon W. Kaiser, Matthew J. Greenlees, Richard Shine
Summary: Human activities and climate change are increasing the frequency and severity of wildfires, impacting invasive species. The research shows that fires can alter the incidence and distribution of parasites in cane toads, with smaller toads not benefiting in burned areas.
Article
Zoology
Yurixhi Maldonado-Lopez, Icauri Sofia Prieto-Duenas, Yunuen Tapia-Torres, Magno Augusto Zaza Borges, Ireri Suazo-Ortuno, Pablo Cuevas-Reyes
Summary: Landfills pose a major threat to wildlife, leading to biodiversity loss. This study analyzed the fluctuating asymmetry of morphological traits and oxidative stress in toads from a landfill and a forest, finding higher levels of environmental stress in landfill toads.
ZOOLOGISCHER ANZEIGER
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Alice G. Russo, Emma F. Harding, Grace J. H. Yan, Daniel Selechnik, Simon Ducatez, Jayna L. DeVore, Jia Zhou, Roshmi R. Sarma, Yin Peng Lee, Mark F. Richardson, Richard Shine, Lee A. Rollins, Peter A. White
Summary: The study found that Australian cane toads mainly carry one globally prevalent virus, while multiple virus species were found in their native range. The different virus species carried by toads in the two locations suggest that Australian cane toads have avoided the viral infections experienced by their native counterparts.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Michael R. Crossland, Angela A. Salim, Robert J. Capon, Richard Shine
Summary: Chemical cues produced by the parotoid glands of cane toad embryos attract conspecific larvae, which can cannibalize an entire clutch. The attraction is mainly attributed to bufadienolides, with some toxins being stronger attractants than others. Tadpole attractant potency is strongly correlated with Na+/K+ ATPase inhibitory activity, indicating that tadpoles monitor and react to disturbances in Na+/K+ ATPase activity.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Melinda J. Schuman, Susan L. Snyder, Copley H. Smoak, Jeffrey R. Schmid
Summary: This study investigated the diet of cane toads in urbanized areas of southwest Florida. The results showed that the toads consumed arthropod pests and there were slight differences in diet between seasons and sexes.
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Hirotaka Komine, Kiyomi Yasumiba, Lin Schwarzkopf
Summary: Urbanization is a major driver of global biodiversity loss. This study compares the morphological traits of invasive cane toads between urban and rural areas in three cities in northeastern Australia, finding that urbanization drives morphological changes in invasive toads, suggesting their rapid adaptation to urban environments.
BIOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
M. W. Hayward, G. Ward-Fear, F. L'Hotellier, K. Herman, A. P. Kabat, J. P. Gibbons
ANIMAL CONSERVATION
(2016)
Article
Ecology
Georgia Ward-Fear, Gregory P. Brown, David J. Pearson, Richard Shine
Article
Zoology
Georgia Ward-Fear, Jai Thomas, Jonathan K. Webb, David J. Pearson, Richard Shine
INTEGRATIVE ZOOLOGY
(2017)
Article
Ecology
Georgia Ward-Fear, Gregory P. Brown, David J. Pearson, Andrea West, Lee A. Rollins, Richard Shine
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Georgia Ward-Fear, Alanggarra Rangers, Avid Pearson, Melissa Bruton, Rick Shine
CONSERVATION LETTERS
(2019)
Editorial Material
Ecology
Georgia Ward-Fear, Gregory B. Pauly, Jann E. Vendetti, Richard Shine
TRENDS IN ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
(2020)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Lachlan Pettit, Simon Ducatez, Jayna L. DeVore, Georgia Ward-Fear, Richard Shine
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2020)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Georgia Ward-Fear, Gregory P. Brown, Richard Shine
Article
Ecology
G. Ward-Fear, R. Shine, G. P. Brown
Article
Ecology
Lachlan Pettit, Gregory P. Brown, Georgia Ward-Fear, Richard Shine
Summary: Human activities can create habitat patches with abundant food but high predation risk, affecting the behavior and morphology of animals. In eastern Australia, giant lizards were found to be larger and bolder in campgrounds than in adjacent bushland, with the arrival of an invasive species leading to high mortality among the larger and bolder individuals. Differences in behavior between campground and bushland lizards may be influenced by factors such as body size, habituation, and nonrandom mortality.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Lachlan Pettit, Georgia Ward-Fear, Richard Shine
Summary: In Australia, the abundance of monitor lizards has been affected by the arrival of invasive species, resulting in changes in scavenging rates and animal assemblages. Research shows that the presence of the lethal cane toads has drastically reduced the population of monitors in tropical regions, while another species of monitor lizard has been less affected by the toad arrival.
Article
Ecology
Abhilasha Aiyer, Banuba Rangers, Tina Bell, Richard Shine, Ruchira Somaweera, Miles Bruny, Georgia Ward-Fear
Summary: By field-testing baiting devices with wild animals, researchers found that targeting specific predators can be achieved by manipulating bait location, deployment time, and the force required to dislodge the bait. Additionally, it was discovered that baits desiccate faster in the sun during daytime trials.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Richard Shine, Georgia Ward-Fear, Gregory P. Brown
CONSERVATION SCIENCE AND PRACTICE
(2020)
Letter
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Georgia Ward-Fear