Road ecology and Neotropical amphibians: contributions for future studies

Abstract

Many species of amphibians have suffered serious population declines. Several factors contribute separately or jointly to these declines. However, the reduction of an available habitat due to human expansion is still the main cause, and roads are a major mean for this expansion. Both the construction phase and the subsequent use of roads have negative consequences for amphibians. We reviewed the literature on the subject within the Neotropical context. To this end, the paper begins with a summary of recent reviews and proceeds through an analysis of sampling methods used in roadkill studies, mitigation measures and the Neotropical scenario and concludes with several suggestions to guide future studies. More attention will be given to roadkills, which is one of the primary impacts on wildlife that is caused by roads. Even in the Neotropical zone most studies are foot-based, the richness and abundance of amphibians affected are higher in regions outside the Neotropics. One possible explanation is that in the other regions, the proportion of studies exclusively on amphibians is bigger. Regarding mitigation measures, most studies only indicates what should be used, but do not implement or evaluate their effectiveness.