Persistence of a population of palmate newts Lissotriton helveticus in a saline environment on the west coast of Scotland

A six year survey of a palmate newt (Lissotriton helveticus) population in rock pools on the west coast of Scotland indicates that this species has some tolerance of saline conditions. The newts were living with a mean salinity (conductivity) of 382 ppm (range 30.7 ppm to >4995 ppm). Other interesting observations include a variation in mating behaviour, in which normal open water behaviour is confined to crevices, and the occurrence of ‘pelvic bumps’ in some individuals that may indicate reduced body condition.

Intra-specific variability of hindlimb length in the palmate newt: an indicator of population isolation induced by habitat fragmentation?

Habitat fragmentation is one of the main drivers of global amphibian decline. Anthropogenic landscape elements can act as barriers, hindering the dispersal that is essential for maintaining gene flow between populations. Dispersal ability can be influenced by locomotor performance, which in turn can depend on morphological traits, such as hindlimb length (HLL) in amphibians. Here, we tested relationships between HLL and environmental variables—road types, forests and agricultural lands—among 35 sub-populations of palmate newts ( Lissotriton helveticus ) in southwestern France. We expected roads to select for short-legged newts due to a higher mortality of more mobile individuals (long-legged newts) when crossing roads. Accordingly, short-legged newts were found in the vicinity of roads, whereas long-legged newts were found closer to forests and in ponds close geographically to another water body. HLL in newts was hence influenced by habitat types in a heterogeneous landscape, and could therefore be used as an indicator of population isolation in a meta-population system.

Modelling skin surface areas involved in water transfer in the Palmate Newt (Lissotriton helveticus)

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) based 3D reconstructions were used to derive accurate quantitative data on body volume and functional skin surface areas involved in water transfer in the Palmate Newt (Lissotriton helveticus (Razoumovsky, 1789)). Body surface area can be functionally divided into evaporative surface area that interacts with the atmosphere and controls the transepidermal evaporative water loss (TEWL); ventral surface area in contact with the substratum that controls transepidermal water absorption (TWA); and skin surface area in contact with other skin surfaces when amphibians adopt water-conserving postures. We generated 3D geometries of the newts via volume-rendering by a “segmentation” process carried out using a graph-cuts algorithm and a Web-based interface. The geometries reproduced the two postures adopted by the newts, i.e., an I-shaped posture characterized by a straight body without tail coiling and an S-shaped posture where the body is huddled up with the tail coiling along it. As a guide to the quality of the surface area estimations, we compared measurements of TEWL rates between living newts and their agar replicas (reproducing their two postures) at 20 °C and 60% relative humidity. Whereas the newts did not show any physiological adaptations to restrain evaporation, they expressed an efficient S-shaped posture with a resulting water economy of 22.9%, which is very close to the 23.6% reduction in evaporative surface area measured using 3D analysis.

Resistance of morphological and behavioral sexual traits of the palmate newt (Lissotriton helveticus) to bacterial lipopolysaccharide treatment

Infectious diseases are considered as a significant factor in the global decline of amphibians. In some vertebrates, the assessment of the individual sexual traits can be useful for assessment of their health status and immunocompetence due to trade-off between them and investment in the immune system. Our aim here was to determine whether the trade-off between the expression of sexual morphological and behavioral traits and investment in the immune system is present in an urodele, the Palmate newt (Lissotriton helveticus). The groups of males were injected by solutions of proinflammatory agent, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from Escherichia coli serotype O:55:B5, at dosages toxic to vertebrates (2 and 10 mg/kg of body mass) or by saline solution only (control groups). They were subsequently measured for variations in body condition and expression of both morphological (filament length, hind-foot-web, crest) and behavioral (courtship frequency) sexual traits. The injection of either LPS or saline solution did not cause any adverse effect on health in any male of all groups. No significant differences in any of the sexual traits were observed between two groups of males injected by LPS and control groups of males indicating the absence of a trade-off between immune response and expression of sexual traits. Our result suggests that measuring morphological or behavioral sexual traits may not be a useful method for monitoring emergence of infectious diseases in the palmate newt.