Herpetology Notes, volume 2: 23-26 (2009) (published online on 06 April 2009)
An isolated locality of the alpine newt (Mesotriton alpestris
Laurenti, 1768) in central Poland
Maciej Pabijan1*, Elżbieta Rożej2 and Maciej Bonk1
Abstract. We describe a new locality of the alpine newt (Mesotriton alpestris) in central Poland. The newts breed in ephemeral,
man-made wheel-ruts and puddles in a cultivated forest on a hilltop surrounded by agricultural land. At present this population is
completely isolated from large contiguous populations in the Carpathian and Holy Cross mountains, 64 km and 57 km to the south
and north, respectively. As suggested by mtDNA data, this population may be a relict of a former, more widespread range of the
alpine newt at the northeastern boundary of its distribution.
Keywords. Mesotriton����������
alpestris, mtDNA, breeding habitat, fragmentation, Salamandridae
Introduction
The alpine newt (Mesotriton alpestris Laurenti, 1768)
occurs across a large area of northwestern, central
and southeastern Europe (Gasc et al., 1997). In the
northeastern part of its range, which includes Poland
and Ukraine, the alpine newt inhabits mountainous
areas, their foothills (Rafiński, 2003) and a handful of
lowland sites close to the Oder river (Berger, 1957;
Najbar, Szuskiewicz and Pietruszka, 2005). Despite an
increase in survey effort for amphibians of this region in
recent years (Głowaciński and Rafiński, 2003), much of
the potential amphibian habitat remains unsurveyed, as
exemplified by the discovery of several new populations
of Rana dalmatina (Bartoń and Rafiński, 2006; Starzyk
and Durak, 2007), a species only recently reported from
Poland (Szymura, 2003). Herein we describe a new
locality of the alpine newt in south-central Poland, in an
area beyond the known range of this species.
We argue that this population is possibly a remnant
of a previously more widespread distribution that has
declined in historical times probably due to habitat
destruction.
Materials and Methods
The alpine newt locality is situated near the village Tunel in
Miechów prefecture and was found in the course of an amphibian
survey in south-central Poland (Bonk and Pabijan, 2006; 2008).
1 Department of Comparative Anatomy, Institute of Zoology,
Jagiellonian University, ul. Ingardena 6, 30-060 Kraków,
Poland; e-mail: [email protected]
2 Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University,
ul. Gronostajowa 30-387, Kraków, Poland
* corresponding author
The locality was visited five times in the spring of 2008; on three
occasions (April 20th, June 8th, June 19th) newts were captured at
breeding sites using dip-nets, counted, sexed and immediately
released. Dip-netting involved sieving through the entire volume
of the water bodies. The approximate area of each breeding site
was calculated and obvious habitat characteristics were noted.
About 1mm of tissue from tail-tips of three individuals (2 males, 1
female) was clipped, placed in alcohol and taken to the laboratory.
Genomic DNA was isolated followed by PCR amplification
of two mitochondrial gene fragments, NADH dehydrogenase
subunit 2 and tRNA-Trp (further referred to as ND2) and NADH
dehydrogenase subunit 4, tRNA-His, tRNA-Ser, and tRNA-Leu
(further referred to as ND4). Primers and laboratory protocols
strictly correspond to those in Pabijan and Babik (2006). PCR
products were sequenced on an ABI-3100 genetic analyzer.
Results
Description of the habitat
The alpine newts near Tunel inhabit an isolated,
forested area covering the crown and slopes of a low
hill (50.4385 N; 20.002719 E; maximum altitude 398
m. a.s.l.) encompassing an area of approximately 3 km2.
Silviculture in this area is intense and has produced a
mixed forest with stands of Fagus sylvatica and Pinus
sylvestris of various ages. The understory contains
saplings of F. sylvatica and patches of Rubus sp. and
Pteridium aquilinum. The entire hilltop is transversed
by a dense network of beaten tracks used by forestry
machinery. Distances between parallel tracks range
from 50 – 200 m. Alpine newts (Fig. 1 ) were found in
puddles, wheel ruts and pot-holes produced by forestry
vehicles. A typical breeding site is depicted in Fig.
2. Despite intensive search, no natural water bodies
were located, with the exception of a small depression
used for mud-bathing by large mammals, also used by
alpine newts as a breeding site. Approximately 1/4 of
24
all available water bodies were dip-netted for newts (22
breeding sites) revealing a total of 233 individuals (135
males, 98 females). The number of newts per site ranged
from 1 to 54 (mean 13.7). Neither eggs nor larvae of
the alpine newt were found in any of the breeding sites.
Breeding pairs of smooth newts (Lissotriton vulgaris)
were recorded in April (1 breeding site) and June (2
sites). Common frog tadpoles (Rana temporaria)
were recorded in 4 puddles on the June 8th visit, while
common toad tadpoles (Bufo bufo) were found in two
puddles on June 8th and June 19th. Mosquito (Culicidae)
and dragonfly (Odonata) larvae were abundant in most
of the breeding sites.
The surface areas of breeding sites ranged from
0.5-60 m2 (mean 12.7 m2). Surface area of the breeding
sites was not a good predictor for the number of newts
(Spearman’s rank correlation: r=0.305, P=0.4123).
Breeding sites were at the most 20 cm in depth during
the surveys, however, the water level (and area) of
the sites is highly dependent on rainfall as the only
supply of inflow, and thus subject to wide fluctuation.
Nevertheless, the areas of the breeding sites are
delimited by the width of tracks used by vehicles. Very
little submerged vegetation was found in the breeding
sites, most often they were devoid of macroscopic plant
life. Usually a layer of decomposing leaves lay on top of
a mud bottom. All sites were completely shaded by the
surrounding forest.
MtDNA variation
A total of 1957 bp were sequenced in each of three
individuals of alpine newt from the Tunel locality.
Sequences obtained for the ND2 and ND4 genes for
the three alpine newts were identical to haplotype B
Figure 1. Two male alpine newts found at the Tunel locality.
Maciej Pabijan et al.
(GenBank accession DQ282137) reported by Pabijan
and Babik (2006). No mtDNA variation was detected
between the surveyed individuals from the Tunel
locality.
Discussion
The highlands of south central Poland and the
immediately adjacent Carpathian foothills support
the highest amphibian species diversity in Poland and
northeastern Europe in general (18 taxa). The diverse
but highly fragmented landscape includes habitat
patches suitable for both lowland and highland adapted
amphibian species, with highland species predominating
in the south. The alpine newt, a species confined mostly
to mountainous areas in the eastern part of its distribution
(Rafiński, 2003), is exceptional in this respect, with
populations as far north as the Holy Cross mountains
(Góry Świętokrzyskie) in central Poland, over 100 km
from the closest Carpathian populations (Fig. 3). Situated
between these main population centers is the alpine newt
population near Tunel. Due to a combination of habitat
characteristics (altitude, vegetation type, shade, lack of
permanent water bodies) this locality sustains only those
amphibian species able to cope with ephemeral breeding
sites in a woodland environment. The breeding habitat
(wheel ruts, puddles) and the species diversity resemble
the habitat and amphibian species assemblages found in
the beech forests of the northern Carpathians (Babik and
Rafiński, 2001). The nearest known breeding localities
of the alpine newt occur in the Carpathian and Holy
Cross mountains (Fig. 3), approximately 64 km and 57
km distant, respectively.
The alpine newts inhabiting the Carpathian and
Holy Cross mountains and the Tunel locality share the
An isolated locality of Mesotriton alpestris in central Poland
25
Figure 2. A typical alpine newt breeding site at the Tunel locality.
same mtDNA haplotype (B), suggesting that this area
was colonized by a single clade after the Pleistocene
(Pabijan and Babik, 2006; Sotiropoulos et al., 2007).
Haplotype B occurs in 15 of 16 individuals sampled
from south-central Poland (Pabijan and Babik, 2006;
this paper) and is replaced by haplotype A, differing
by two substitutions, in alpine newts from the Sudetes
mountains and northwestern Europe (Pabijan and Babik,
Figure 3. Distribution of the alpine newt (Mesotriton alpestris) in Poland based on atlas data (modified from Głowaciński
and Rafiński, 2003), showing the Tunel locality (triangle).
Grid data is overlaid onto an altitudinal contour map (in meters above sea level) showing mountain ranges and highlands
in Poland.
2006). The colonization of the Western Carpathians,
Sudetes and adjacent terrain by alpine newts may have
been achieved during climatically favorable conditions
coincident with the extensive beech forests and mild
climate that dominated the landscape of central Poland
starting approximately 4000 years before present
(Ralska-Jasiewiczowa et al., 2004). The previous
continuous range of the alpine newt has since been
fragmented, leaving at least one remnant population
between the large and fairly contiguous populations
inhabiting the mountains of south-central Poland.
Fragmentation may have commenced with local
depletion of forest around 2000 years before present
(Ralska-Jasiewiczowa, Nalepka and Goslar, 2003),
yielding to extensive deforestation occurring between
1000-500 years before present (Ralska-Jasiewiczowa et
al., 2004). Recently, the extent of potential habitat has
been further diminished through large-scale agriculture
and encroaching urbanization.
An alternative explanation of the origin of the alpine
newts in Tunel involves human-mediated introduction.
However, we are unaware of any introductions of
the alpine newt in Poland. Moreover, if indeed this
population was introduced, the ancestral stock must
have been taken from populations of the haplotype B
lineage inhabiting the Western Carpathians or Holy
Cross mountains, as evidenced by the mtDNA data.
The Tunel locality supports a large population of
alpine newts, probably close to or perhaps exceeding a
thousand adult individuals, considering that 233 newts
were captured but only a quarter of suitable breeding
26
Maciej Pabijan et al.
habitat was surveyed. This abundance is probably the
result of the large number of man-made breeding sites.
At present, the alpine newt population in the vicinity
of Tunel seems viable and at no immediate threat.
However, because of the small area of suitable habitat,
it is vulnerable to changes in landscape use and habitat
deterioration due to natural hazards such as drought and
forest fire, and may thus warrant active management
such as habitat restoration and possibly reintroduction to
nearby, suitable forest patches. In addition, alpine newt
populations inhabiting the northeastern margin of the
species range have been shown to harbor unique levels
of neutral and adaptive genetic variation (Pabijan, Babik
and Rafiński, 2005; Pabijan and Babik, 2006; Babik,
Pabijan and Radwan, 2008), a subject worthy of further
investigation in newts from the Tunel population.
Acknowledgements. Amphibian surveys in south-central Poland
are supported by an IUCN/SSC Amphibian Specialist Group
seed grant to MP and MB. The assessment of genetic variation in
alpine newts is partly funded by grant BW/IZ/23a to MP.
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Accepted by Angelica Crottini; Managing Editor: Wouter Beukema