Toe Clipping of Amphibians and Reptiles: Science, Ethics, and the Law<sup>1</sup>

Perry, Gad; Wallace, Mark C.; Perry, Dan; Curzer, Howard J.; Muhlberger, Peter

doi:10.1670/11-037.1

Cited by 103 publications

(58 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…Although toe-clipping is considered an invasive marking technique, there actually is little negative impact of toe clipping on reptiles (Perry et al 2011). A recent study conducted on 10 different lizard species concluded that removing a low number of toes (two to three; our maximum number of toe-clips was three and only one per foot) have the lowest negative impacts (Olivera-Tlahuel et al 2017).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Age estimation through skeletochronology and mark-recapture of free-living Liolaemus leopardinus (Squamata: Liolaemidae) from Chile

Santoyo-Brito

Fox

Núñez³

2018

Phyllomedusa

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Age estimation through skeletochronology and mark-recapture of free-living Liolaemus leopardinus (Squamata: Liolaemidae) from Chile. Age determination is a crucial component of ecological studies. Researchers have relied on different methods and techniques, for example mark-recapture, body size, and skeletochronology, to assess the age of free-ranging individuals. We used all three methods to estimate the age structure of a population of Liolaemus leopardinus, a highly social and saxicolous lizard species endemic to the temperate region of central Chile. This high-elevation and secretive species is considered threatened and, although efforts have been made to reveal more specific details about the species' natural history, crucial details of its biology are still unknown. Our goal was to associate the number of Lines of Arrested Growth (LAGs) to snout-vent length (SVL) and use LAGs as an age estimation proxy on free-ranging individuals. For the skeletochronology analyses, a combination of toe-clips was collected when each subject was first captured in 2012-2013. SVL for all captured individuals was recorded during two different field seasons (austral spring to fall of 2011-2012 and 2012-2013). SVL data were also available for 10 individuals initially collected and permanently marked in 2005 (one juvenile and nine adults) and recaptured in 2011-2012. Three of those 10 subjects were captured again in 2012-2013. Our results revealed the formation of LAGs in L. leopardinus and a high degree of bone remodeling in both juveniles and adults. This bone remodeling combined with the high rapprochement in peripheral LAGs on the samples of the oldest lizards suggest that phalangeal bones are not suitable for age determination in this species. On the other hand, our mark-recapture results allowed us to assign individuals to four different age-classes when a subject's SVL was associated with activity periods and recaptures. Individuals of L. leopardinus are long-lived and their lifespan can exceed a decade. Female lizards become sexually mature at three to four years of age.Keywords: bone, body-length, high-altitude, lifespan, lines of arrested growth, lizards. 102Phyllomedusa -17(1), June 2018 Resumo Estimativa etária por meio de esqueletocronologia e marcação-e-recaptura de Liolaemus leopardinus (Squamata: Liolaemidae) do Chile. A determinação etária é um componente crucial de estudos ecológicos. Pesquisadores tem usado diferentes técnicas e métodos como marcação-erecaptura, tamanho do corpo e esqueletocronologia, para avaliar a idade de indivíduos na natureza. Usamos esses três métodos para estimar a estrutura etária de uma população de Liolaemus leopardinus, uma espécie de lagarto saxícola, altamente social e endêmica da região temperada do centro do Chile. Essa espécie secretiva de grandes altitudes é considerada ameaçada, e apesar dos esforços para descobrir detalhes específicos sobre a sua história natural, detalhes cruciais de sua biologia permanecem desconhecidos. Nosso objetivo foi associar o número de Linha...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Age estimation through skeletochronology and mark-recapture of free-living Liolaemus leopardinus (Squamata: Liolaemidae) from Chile

Santoyo-Brito

Fox

Núñez³

2018

Phyllomedusa

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“…In this and other papers, we and others have attempted to reconcile the need for research that involves animals with a desire to maximally protect individuals, populations, species, and ecosystems from harm (e.g., Curzer et al 2013a,b;Perry et al 2011;Perry and Perry 2008a,b). However, changes have been somewhat one-sided, and we find it discouraging that the animal protection literature shows relatively little sign of greater nuance in the views expressed.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The specifics vary somewhat from country to country (see reviews and applications in various countries and animal models in, e.g., Mepham 2008, pp. 195-196;Perry et al 2011;Russell 2013). As Mepham (2008, p. 196) points out, these regulations are informed by and strongly emphasize a set of principles called the three Rs, generally attributed to Russell and Burch (1959).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the US, the IACUC must assign a proposed procedure to one of several USDA pain and distress categories, with justification and alleviation requirements commensurate with the extent of the harm expected. Where data about non-humans are lacking-as they often arelegislation in various countries explicitly requires the IACUC to use what is known about the effects of similar procedures on humans (Perry et al 2011). Even experienced researchers may slip into the anthropomorphic assumption that what affects humans has similar effects on other animals, though something that affects us may have a different effect on another species, and something that harms that species may not affect us in the same way.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Three Rs of Animal Research: What they Mean for the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and Why

et al. 2015

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The Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) is entrusted with assessing the ethics of proposed projects prior to approval of animal research. The role of the IACUC is detailed in legislation and binding rules, which are in turn inspired by the Three Rs: the principles of Replacement, Reduction, and Refinement. However, these principles are poorly defined. Although this provides the IACUC leeway in assessing a proposed project, it also affords little guidance. Our goal is to provide procedural and philosophical clarity to the IACUC without mandating a particular outcome. To do this, we analyze the underlying logic of the Three Rs and conclude that the Three Rs accord animals moral standing, though not necessarily "rights" in the philosophical sense. We suggest that the Rs are hierarchical, such that Replacement, which can totally eliminate harm, should be considered prior to Reduction, which decreases the number of animals harmed, with Refinement being considered last. We also identify the need for a hitherto implicit fourth R: Reject, which allows the IACUC to refuse permission for a project which does not promise sufficient benefit to offset the pain and distress likely to be caused by the proposed research.

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“…Specimens were put into a perforated bucket placed in the lake to prevent desiccation and to avoid recapture within the same sampling period. Captured frogs were marked using a toe clip (on the left hind foot) with a different toe clipped on different dates to differentiate the date of capture so as to determine whether individuals were surviving between sampling periods (following Phillott et al 2007, Grafe et al 2011, Perry et al 2011.…”

Section: Abundance Of Healthy and Sick Frogsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Morbidity and mortality of the Critically Endangered Lake Oku clawed frog Xenopus longipes

Doherty‐Bone¹,

Ndifon²,

Nyingchia³

et al. 2013

Endang. Species. Res.

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Between 2006 and 2010, recurring morbidity and mortality of the endemic Lake Oku clawed frog Xenopus longipes was observed at its only known locality, Lake Oku, Cameroon. During repeated visits in 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010, we found large numbers of dead frogs around the lake shore, as well as a higher than expected prevalence of diseased frogs. No significant relationships between disease occurrence and environmental parameters were found, with the exception of a significant but unexplained association between phosphate concentration and disease incidence. Tissue samples from X. longipes collected during 3 field seasons were negative for the amphibian chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) using a Bd-specific real-time PCR test, although other species of sympatric amphibians were positive for this pathogen. Only 1 of 48 tissue samples from diseased frogs was positive for ranavirus infection using a ranavirus-specific PCR, suggesting that this pathogen is not necessarily the cause of this disease. No evidence of pathogens was found in tissues examined histologically from 10 X. longipes which had been collected and fixed when freshly dead. The cause(s) of the morbidities and mortalities remain(s) unknown, as does their consequence to the population of this Critically Endangered species. Identifying the causative factor(s) of the X. longipes mortality and its impact on the population is crucial for planning conservation actions.

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Toe Clipping of Amphibians and Reptiles: Science, Ethics, and the Law¹

Cited by 103 publications

References 49 publications

Age estimation through skeletochronology and mark-recapture of free-living Liolaemus leopardinus (Squamata: Liolaemidae) from Chile

Age estimation through skeletochronology and mark-recapture of free-living Liolaemus leopardinus (Squamata: Liolaemidae) from Chile

The Three Rs of Animal Research: What they Mean for the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and Why

Morbidity and mortality of the Critically Endangered Lake Oku clawed frog Xenopus longipes

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Toe Clipping of Amphibians and Reptiles: Science, Ethics, and the Law1

Cited by 103 publications

References 49 publications

Age estimation through skeletochronology and mark-recapture of free-living Liolaemus leopardinus (Squamata: Liolaemidae) from Chile

Age estimation through skeletochronology and mark-recapture of free-living Liolaemus leopardinus (Squamata: Liolaemidae) from Chile

The Three Rs of Animal Research: What they Mean for the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and Why

Morbidity and mortality of the Critically Endangered Lake Oku clawed frog Xenopus longipes

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Product

Resources

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Toe Clipping of Amphibians and Reptiles: Science, Ethics, and the Law¹