Abstract
Amphibians have declined dramatically worldwide. Many of these declines are occurring in areas where no obvious anthropogenic stressors are present. It is proposed that in these areas, environmental factors such as elevated solar ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation could be responsible. Ultraviolet-B levels have increased in many parts of the world as a consequence of the anthropogenic destruction of the ozone layer. Amphibian tadpoles are particularly sensitive to the damaging effects of UV-B radiation, with exposure disrupting growth and fitness in many species. Given that UV-B can disrupt immune function in other animals, we tested the hypothesis that early UV-B exposure suppresses the immune responses of amphibian tadpoles and subsequent juvenile frogs. We exposed Limnodynastes peronii tadpoles to sublethal levels of UV-B radiation for 6 weeks after hatching, then examined indices of immune function in both the tadpoles and the subsequent metamorphs. There was no significant effect of UV-B on tadpole leucocyte counts or on their response to an acute antigen (phytohaemagglutinin) challenge. However, early UV-B exposure resulted in a significant reduction in both metamorph leucocyte abundance and their response to an acute phytohaemagglutinin challenge. These data demonstrate that early UV-B exposure can have carry-over effects on later life-history traits even if the applied stressor has no immediately discernible effect. These findings have important implications for our understanding of the effects of UV-B exposure on amphibian health and susceptibility to diseases such as chytridiomycosis.
Highlights
Amphibians have been experiencing dramatic declines worldwide, with populations from 42% of species known to be decreasing (Alford and Richards, 1999; Stuart et al, 2004; IUCN, 2016)
We showed that UV-B exposure in early amphibian life stages had no immediate effect on the immune function of
Despite the relatively low levels of UV-B received by tadpoles during the study, an effect on subsequent metamorph immune parameters was apparent
Summary
Amphibians have been experiencing dramatic declines worldwide, with populations from 42% of species known to be decreasing (Alford and Richards, 1999; Stuart et al, 2004; IUCN, 2016). Most of these declines have been attributed to anthropogenic factors; some declines are more enigmatic, as they occur in habitats that are free from any obvious anthropogenic pressures (Stuart et al, 2004). Exposure to solar radiation in the UV-B range
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