Does selective wood exploitation affect amphibian diversity? The case of An'Ala, a tropical rainforest in eastern Madagascar

Abstract

The diversity of amphibians before and after low-level forest exploitation in An'Ala forest in central-eastern Madagascar was compared over the course of 4 years. Neither abundance nor diversity of amphibians generally were significantly affected by low-level selective logging, although the abundance of individual species differed. Mantelline anurans were the most sensitive, in contrast to the tree frogs of the subfamily Boophinae (Mantellidae) and Cophylinae (Microhylidae). The abundance of Mantellinae anurans decreased by 15.8% after logging, whereas Boophinae and Microhylidae anurans increased by 12.1% and 3.7%, respectively. In general, species strongly tied to rainforest habitat showed a non-significant 10.1% decrease in abundance after logging. It appears therefore that amphibians are relatively resilient to a low-level of forest exploitation and their diversity is apparently not affected, at least in the short-term. This and other studies have, however, shown that logging commonly results in a shift in species composition, with species typical of pristine rainforests being replaced by species adapted to secondary habitats.