![]() These effects are further compounded by interactive stressors such as disease, exotic species, and land clearance.Ī century of government water policies have reduced flows below the critical thresholds required for southern bell frogs to persist, but it has also created the means to save them. Our research clearly shows that river regulation has been a driver of historical declines in frog numbers. Regulation has effectively locked these wetlands into a state of perpetual bust. The models present a warning - we have greatly modified the way the river behaves, and the modern river cannot support the long-term survival of southern bell frogs.’ Larger wetlands and those with more frequent inundation are less prone to these effects, although they are not immune to them entirely. The data clearly indicate that successive dry years raise the probability of local extinction, and these effects are strongest in smaller wetlands. By changing the simulation from natural to regulated conditions, we showed that modern conditions dramatically increase the extinction risk of these beloved frogs. Our latest paper describes how we built computer simulations of Murray-Darling Basin wetlands filled with simulated southern bell frogs. However, the natural flooding patterns in Australia’s largest river system have been negatively impacted by expansive river regulation that some years, sees up to 60% of river water extracted for human use. This endangered frog breeds during spring and summer when water levels increase in their wetlands. ![]() Southern bell frogs are one of Australia’s 100 Priority Threatened Species. ![]()
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