Core team member: John Measey
Project Background
The Guttural Toad has successfully invaded the islands of Mauritius and Reunion, as well as Constantia near Cape Town. All invasions seem to have originated near Durban, KZN. Recent research has shown ways in which these toads have adapted to their invaded habitats. But how would these react if they were moved back to Durban?
This MSc aims to investigate this question using behavioural and morphological assessments of tadpoles and metamorphs.
The successful candidate will be registered at UKZN Westville Campus, where experiments will be conducted. The project requires someone with meticulous attention to detail for making morphometric measurements and interpreting videos of behaviour. A good understanding of photo and video analytical software would be useful.
Further Reading
- Telford, N., Channing, A. & Measey, J. (2019) Origin of invasive populations of the Guttural toad Sclerophrys gutturalis Herpetological Conservation & Biology. 14(2):380–392.
- Vimercati, G., Davies, S.J. & Measey, J. (2018) Rapid adaptive response to a mediterranean environment reduces phenotypic mismatch in a recent amphibian invader. Journal of Experimental Biology: jeb.174797.
- Measey, J., Davies, S., Vimercati, G., Rebelo, A., Schmidt, W. & Turner, A.A. (2017) Invasive amphibians in southern Africa: a review of invasion pathways. Bothalia-African Biodiversity & Conservation 47(2), a2117. doi:10.4102/abc.v47i2.2117
Key Contacts
Prof John Measey c: 021 808 2385 e: jmeasey@sun.ac.za
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