Cited by 101Tree-ring climate responsesClimate variability and modelsGeology and Paleoclimatology Research

Tropical cloud forest climate variability and the demise of the Monteverde golden toad

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Anchukaitis, Kevin J., Evans, Michael N.·2010·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Abstract

Widespread amphibian extinctions in the mountains of the American tropics have been blamed on the interaction of anthropogenic climate change and a lethal pathogen. However, limited meteorological records make it difficult to conclude whether current climate conditions at these sites are actually exceptional in the context of natural variability. We use stable oxygen isotope measurements from trees without annual rings to reconstruct a century of hydroclimatology in the Monteverde Cloud Forest of Costa Rica. High-resolution measurements reveal coherent isotope cycles that provide annual chronological control and paleoclimate information. Climate variability is dominated by interannual variance in dry season moisture associated with El Niño Southern Oscillation events. There is no evidence of a trend associated with global warming. Rather, the extinction of the Monteverde golden toad ( Bufo periglenes ) appears to have coincided with an exceptionally dry interval caused by the 1986–1987 El Niño event.

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Crossref · 10.1073/pnas.0908572107

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54 of 54 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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  • These concentrations occur mostly in heavily populated regions such as tropical Asia.

    “They occur mostly in heavily populated regions such as tropical Asia, where major ongoing biodiversity losses are well known (10, 13–15, 30, 46, 52, 53).”
  • Species at the brink have been pushed to a critical conservation status because of human activities, where habitat loss and fragmentation, illegal trade, overexploitation, introduced domestic and wild species, toxification, and pollution have played a major role.

    “Fourth, species at the brink have been pushed to a critical conservation status because of human activities, where habitat loss and fragmentation, illegal trade, overexploitation, introduced domestic and wild species, toxification, and pollution have played a major role (10, 13–15, 30, 46, 52, 53).”

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Authors
Anchukaitis, K. J., & Evans, M. N.
Affiliations
University of Arizona (US)
Venue
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Published
2010-03
Volume
107
Issue
11
Pages
5036-5040
ISSN
  • 0027-8424 (ISSN-L)
  • 1091-6490
OpenAlex
W2076613186
Cited by
101
References
57
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 12 · 2013: 10 · 2012: 9
FWCI
6.99
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Science Foundation (0321348, 0349356, 0221594)
  • U.S. Department of Energy
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
  • Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Atmospheric Science › Tree-ring climate responses
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Climate variability and models
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Atmospheric Science › Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
Keywords
amphibian extinction, climate variability, ENSO, stable oxygen isotopes, tree-ring oxygen isotopes, hydroclimatology, global warming, tropical montane cloud forest, Costa Rica
MeSH terms
Animals, Bufonidae, Climate, Costa Rica, Oxygen Isotopes, Time Factors, Trees, Tropical Climate, Extinction, Biological

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