The British Herpetological Society

The Herpetological Journal is the Society's prestigious quarterly scientific journal. Articles are listed in Biological Abstracts, Current Awareness in Biological Sciences,Current Contents, Science Citation Index, and Zoological Record.

 ISSN 0268-0130

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pdf 06. Visible implant elastomer tagging and toe-clipping: effects of marking on locomotor performance of frogs and skinks

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Open Access

pp. 99-105
Authors: Schmidt, Katrin & Schwarzkopf, Lin

Abstract: Marking for identification of previously captured animals is a critical aspect of many types of ecological studies. Marking animals may affect performance, which in turn could influence survival. We compared the effects of toe-clipping and elastomer tagging on the locomotor performance of frogs (jump distance) and skinks (running speed and endurance). We examined the immediate effect of marking, and the effect after a recovery period of two weeks. Jump distance decreased across all treatment groups in frogs immediately after marking, but toe-clipped individuals jumped less far in relation to their original jump distance than did elastomer tagged or control frogs. After two weeks, there was a relative increase in jump distance of the toe-clipped frogs, but for all groups performance was lower than at the start of the experiment. In skinks, both marking methods reduced skink endurance, and toe-clipping had a stronger negative effect on running speed than did elastomer tagging. After two weeks, skink endurance and running speed increased to above the initial measures for all treatment groups. Overall, toe-clipping had stronger immediate effects on locomotor performance, indicating that elastomer tagging may be a marginally better marking method.

Keywords: RUNNING SPEED, ENDURANCE, LITORIA NASUTA, CARLIA PECTORALIS, MARKING TECHNIQUES

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IMPORTANT NOTE - JUNE 2020

Please note that as from Volume 31 Number 1 (January 2021) on, the Herpetological Journal will be available as an online publication only - the last print edition will be Volume 30 Number 4.   

Aligning with this change, it is now no longer possible to purchase a subscription that includes a print copy of the HJ.  All members who have existing HJ print subscriptions that remain active as at end June 2020 will receive the full four 2020 print editions.  New subscribers or renewals after this time will only have option to subscribe to the online only subscription package.  Subscription pricing has been amended to reflect the content changes.

 

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