Anaxyrus (=Bufo) boreas - North Cascades, Olympics

This species is complete.

April 9, 2012 by Jorge Tomasevic

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Sensitivity Factor	Sensitivity Help 1 - 7 (one being least sensitive, seven being most sensitive)	Confidence Help 1 - 5 (one being least sensitive, five being most sensitive)
Generalist/Specialist	4 Medium-High	4 Good
Physiology	6 High	5 Very Good
Life History	2 Medium-Low	5 Very Good
Habitat	7 Extremely High	5 Very Good
Dispersal Ability	5 High	4 Good
Disturbance Regimes	7 Extremely High	5 Very Good
Ecology	7 Extremely High	5 Very Good
Non-Climatic	7 Extremely High	5 Very Good
Other (weight)	7 (3) Extremely High	5 Very Good

Sensitivity Score Help: 91 Extremely High

Sensitivity Score

100 * [(0.5 *(Dispersal Distance + Dispersal Barriers) + Disturbance Regimes + (0.5 * Generalist/Specialist) + Physiology + (0.5 * Life History) + Sensitive Habitats + Ecology + Non-Climatic Stressors + (Other * Weight) / 49 + (7 * Weight)]

Note: if Sensitive Habitats are identified, this factor automatically gets a value of seven, otherwise it remains zero.

Confidence Score Help: 4 Good

Confidence Score

The Confidence Score is an average of the Confidence column above.

Overall User Ranking: 7 Extremely High

Common Name:

Western Toad, Boreal Toad

Is this Species completed:

Yes

Taxonomy

This is a description of the whole group

Scientific Name:

Anaxyrus (=Bufo) boreas

Geography:

North Cascades, Olympics

Realm:

Freshwater

Kingdom:

Animal

Phylum:

Chordata

Class:

Vertebrata

Order:

Amphibia

Family:

Anura

Genus:

Anaxyrus

Generalist/Specialist

Broadly, where does this species fall on the spectrum of generalist to specialist? :

Confidence in your assessment of the degree to which the species is a generalist or specialist:

4 Good

Please specify which factors, if any, make the species more of a specialist:

foraging dependency

phenology dependency

other dependencies

Please further describe the relationships that make the species more of a specialist:

dependent on aquatic habitat (lentic ecosystems w/shallow breeding habitat). Also occupy terrestrial habitats- hibernate in winter possibly near to water sources (Campbell 1970)

Comments:

foraging dependency related to phenology. other dependencies: habitat availability

Citations:

Information by [find out] Campbell. 1970. Hibernacula of a population of Bufo boreas in the Colorado front range. Herpetologica 26: 278 - 282. AmphibiaWeb WAHerpAtlas

Physiology

Species' physiological sensitivity:

Confidence in how physiologically sensitive the species is to climate change:

5 Very Good

Please specify whether or not this species is physiologically sensitive to one or more of the following:

temperature

precipitation

dissolved O2

Citations:

Information by [find out] AmphibiaWeb

Life History

Species' reproductive strategy:

Confidence in your assessment of the species' reprodcutive strategy:

5 Very Good

Is the species polycyclic, iteroparous, or semelparous?:

Iteroparous (reproduces in successive cycles--characteristic of K-strategists)

Average length of time to reproductive maturity:

3 - 5 years

How many surviving young can an individual produce during a single reproductive event under optimal conditions?:

highly variable - females deposit average of 12000 eggs/clutch. survival varies dependent on feeding and rearing habitat

How many reproductive events can an individual undergo in a single year under optimal conditions?:

Comments:

don't reproduce every year all the time

Citations:

Information by [find out]

Sensitive Habitats

Depends on the following sensitive habitat types:

Seasonal Streams

Wetlands/Vernal Pools

Seeps/Springs

Alpine/Subalpine

Other (please specify in comments)

Confidence in whether the species depends on the listed sensitive habitat types:

5 Very Good

Level of philopatry:

medium

Comments:

don't always return to natal ponds to breed every year

Citations:

AmphibiaWeb Information by [find out]

Dispersal Ability

Maximum annual dispersal distance:

1-5km

Confidence in maximum annual dispersal distance:

4 Good

Within the context of dispersal distance above, do barriers to dispersal exist?:

Confidence in barriers to dispersal exists:

4 Good

Please select the types of barriers relevant to dispersal:

Road (Highway)

Road (Arterial)

Road (Low Volume)

Agriculture

Suburban or Rural Residential Development

Clear cut

Rivers

Dams

Mountains

Geologic Features

Comments:

Clear cut: depends on location and magnitude. Trails can be barriers to juveniles.

Citations:

Information by [find out]

Disturbance Regimes

How sensitive is this species to one or more disturbance regimes:

7 highly sensitive on the nature of one or more disturbance regimes

Confidence in how sensitive is this species on one or more disturbance regimes:

5 Very Good

Please check all disturbance regimes upon which the species is sensitive:

Fire

Flooding

Disease

Drought

Pollution

Pathogens

Pests

Other (please specify in comments section)

Please describe the disturbance regimes upon which the species is sensitive (frequency, timing, severity, duration):

See Maureen for more details

Comments:

Fire: need to research literature more Pests: Bullfrogs in forest? Other: add fish, but no so much for this spp.

Citations:

Information by [find out]

Ecological Relationships

Please specify which of the following (if any) are sensitive to climate change for this species:

forage

predator/prey relationship

habitat

hydrology

competition

Other

Confidence in how sensitive the species is to other effects of climate change on its ecology:

5 Very Good

Which types of climate and climate-driven changes in the environment affect these aspects of the species' ecology?:

temperature

precipitation

How sensitive is this species’ ecological relationships to the effects of climate change?:

7 (highly sensitive)

Comments:

Other: pathogens, disease

Citations:

Information by [find out]

Interacting non-climatic stressors

To what degree do other, non-climate-related threats, to the species make it more sensitive to climate change?:

7 to a high degree

Confidence in the degree to which non-climate-related threats affect the species' sensitivity to climate change:

5 Very Good

Comments:

direct human conflict: recreational use, roads Other: disease

Citations:

Information by [find out]

Other Sensitivities

Are there other critical factors that have not been addressed, which may make this species more sensitive to climate change?:

synergistic factors

Confidence in other critical factors:

5 Very Good

Collectively, to what degree do these factors make the species sensitive to climate change?:

7 (to a high degree)

Confidence in the degree to which these factors make this species sensitive to climate change:

5 Very Good

What weight should these factors have on the overall sensitivity of this species to climate change:

Comments:

General concern about species due to rapid and unexplained declines across its range.

Citations:

Information by [find out]

Overall User Ranking

In your opinion, how would you rank the overall sensitivity of this species to climate change?:

7(extreme sensitivity)

Confidence in your overall assessment of the sensitivity of this species to climate change:

5 Very Good

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Climate Change Sensitivity Database

Anaxyrus (=Bufo) boreas - North Cascades, Olympics

Sensitivity Score

Confidence Score