Life Sciences Commons^™

Effects Of An Invasive Plant, Chinese Tallow (Triadica Sebifera), On Development And Survival Of Anuran Larvae, Taylor B. Cotten, Matthew Kwiatkowski, Daniel Saenz, Michael Collyer

Faculty Publications

Amphibians are considered one of the most threatened vertebrate groups. Although numerous studies have addressed the many causes of amphibian population decline, little is known about effects of invasive plants. Chinese tallow (Triadica sebifera) is an exotic deciduous tree that has invaded the southeastern United States. Amphibian larvae in environments invaded by T. sebifera may be impacted negatively as autumn leaf litter decomposes in natal areas. We compared effects of leaf litter decomposition from T. sebifera and two native tree species on survival and development of four species of anuran larvae from eastern Texas. Larvae from Pseudacris fouquettei, Lithobates (Rana) …