Adaptive potential of terrestrial-breeding amphibians in a drying climate

Date: 22, Jun, 2018
Author(s):   Tabitha Silja Rudin-Bitterli
Publisher: The University of Western Australia

PhD Thesis

Drying conditions in southern Australia pose a growing challenge for many amphibians as their early development is highly influenced by environmental water availability. Hence, we urgently need to understand whether species can adapt to the predicted changes in rainfall, and explore potential methods to conserve species at high risk of decline. This thesis addresses both of these objectives, focusing on two non-threatened species of amphibian from the south-west of Australia whose egg 'laying sites are subject to increasingly dry conditions. My work provides first insights into the factors influencing assisted gene flow outcomes in amphibians.