Researchers have found three distinct populations of a toad that was already listed as a species of special concern in Canada.
Western toads (Anaxyrus boreas) are widely distributed in North America. In a study published recently in the journal Diversity and Distributions, researchers analyzed tissue samples from western toads from more than 30 sites in Alberta and British Columbia. DNA analysis on these samples revealed that previously identified calling toads east of the Rockies and non-calling populations west of the Rockies that lack vocal sacs were also genetically distinct.
“Our findings of a genetically distinct group entirely contained to a Canadian province is very unusual,” lead author and University of Ottawa PhD student Jayna Bergman said in a press release. “These genetic results suggest we should be doing more to protect this species, especially the Alberta population of the Western toad, because of its unique complement of the species’ total genetic diversity.”
In Canada, western toads are already listed as a species of concern under the Species at Risk Act. But this newfound diversity complicates this picture. Further, the authors of the study found a third population distinct from the other two in the Southern Canadian Rockies, likely extending into Montana. More work is needed to determine whether these genetically distinct populations are actually different species and whether they can interbreed, the authors said.
