TY - JOUR

T1 - Widespread vulnerability of Malagasy predators to the toxins of an introduced toad

AU - Marshall, Benjamin Michael

AU - Casewell, Nicholas R.

AU - Vences, Miguel

AU - Glaw, Frank

AU - Andreone, Franco

AU - Rakotoarison, Andolalao

AU - Zancolli, Giulia

AU - Woog, Friederike

AU - Wuster, Wolfgang

PY - 2018/6/4

Y1 - 2018/6/4

N2 - Invasive and introduced species can pose major ecological challenges to vulnerable native wildlife. Toxic invaders can cause long-term disruptions of predator communities with consequent trophic cascade effects. Madagascar, a key global biodiversity hotspot, is experiencing an invasion by a toxic species, the toad Duttaphrynus melanostictus. Bufonid toads secrete bufadienolides that are fatal to many predator species by inhibiting the sodium-potassium-pump (Na+/K+-ATPase). However, multiple predator lineages have evolved resistance to these toxins through repeated, predictable and specific point mutations in the Na+/K+-ATPase gene. Here we analyse sequences of the Na+/K+-ATPase gene of a wide range of Malagasy species, including amphibians, birds, mammals and reptiles, and find that only one native species shows evidence of resistance to the novel toxin. The results strongly suggest that invasive toads are liable to have significant impacts on the native Malagasy fauna, and stress the importance of controlling the spread of this alien species to prevent a worsening biodiversity crisis.

AB - Invasive and introduced species can pose major ecological challenges to vulnerable native wildlife. Toxic invaders can cause long-term disruptions of predator communities with consequent trophic cascade effects. Madagascar, a key global biodiversity hotspot, is experiencing an invasion by a toxic species, the toad Duttaphrynus melanostictus. Bufonid toads secrete bufadienolides that are fatal to many predator species by inhibiting the sodium-potassium-pump (Na+/K+-ATPase). However, multiple predator lineages have evolved resistance to these toxins through repeated, predictable and specific point mutations in the Na+/K+-ATPase gene. Here we analyse sequences of the Na+/K+-ATPase gene of a wide range of Malagasy species, including amphibians, birds, mammals and reptiles, and find that only one native species shows evidence of resistance to the novel toxin. The results strongly suggest that invasive toads are liable to have significant impacts on the native Malagasy fauna, and stress the importance of controlling the spread of this alien species to prevent a worsening biodiversity crisis.

KW - TOXICOLOGY

KW - Invasive species

KW - conservation biology

KW - Madagascar

KW - ecology

KW - Evolution, Molecular

KW - EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY

UR - https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0960982218304524-mmc1.pdf

U2 - 10.1016/j.cub.2018.04.024

DO - 10.1016/j.cub.2018.04.024

M3 - Article

VL - 28

SP - R654-R655

JO - Current Biology

JF - Current Biology

SN - 0960-9822

IS - 11

ER -