The Herpetological Journal
The Herpetological Journal is the Society's prestigious quarterly scientific journal. Articles are listed in Biological Abstracts, Current Awareness in Biological Sciences,Current Contents, Science Citation Index, and Zoological Record.
ISSN 0268-0130
2021 Impact Factor from Clarivate for the Herpetological Journal is 1.194, an increase of 0.332 from 2020.
pdf 04. Age and growth examined by skeletochronology for the stream-dwelling frog Feirana taihangnicus in central China
902 downloads
Open Access
pp. 89-92
Authors: Zhang, Lixia; Lu, Youqiang; Lu, Xin & Chen, Xiaohong
Abstract: Feirana taihangnicus is a stream-living frog endemic to central China. We determined the demography of a population from north Henan province using skeletochronology. Males were smaller than females (67.1 ± 1.0 and 77.8 ± 1.0 mm snout vent length, respectively), and began reproduction earlier after metamorphosis (2 and 3 years of age, respectively). Accordingly, males attained younger ages (mean age 5.5 ± 0.3 compared to 6.3 ± 0.2 years in females), reached a shorter maximum lifespan (9 years compared to 10 years in females) and grew at a faster rate (von Bertalanffy's growth coefficient: 0.25 compared to 0.16 in females). Because tadpoles take 2–3 years to complete metamorphosis, these data suggest that F. taihangnicus spends at least 5–6 years between the egg stage and reaching adult. The slow life history and resultant low population turnover rates highlight a conservation concern for this high-elevation species.
Keywords: LIFE HISTORY, SKELETOCHRONOLOGICAL AGE, PROTECTION, BODY SIZE, FEIRANA TAIHANGNICUS
Download Access:
The latest 8 issues can be downloaded when logged in with a Herpetological Journal subscription membership.
Individual articles can be purchased for download.
Older issues and occasional Open Access articles are available for public download
Submissions:
For further information and submission guidelines please see our Journal Instructions to Authors
Latest Issue
IMPORTANT NOTE - JUNE 2020
Please note that as from Volume 31 Number 1 (January 2021) on, the Herpetological Journal will be available as an online publication only - the last print edition will be Volume 30 Number 4.
Aligning with this change, it is now no longer possible to purchase a subscription that includes a print copy of the HJ. All members who have existing HJ print subscriptions that remain active as at end June 2020 will receive the full four 2020 print editions. New subscribers or renewals after this time will only have option to subscribe to the online only subscription package. Subscription pricing has been amended to reflect the content changes.