Unsustainable harvest of water frogs in southern Turkey for the European market

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dc.contributor.authorÇiçek K.
dc.contributor.authorAyaz D.
dc.contributor.authorAfsar M.
dc.contributor.authorBayrakcl Y.
dc.contributor.authorPekşen Ç.A.
dc.contributor.authorCumhuriyet O.
dc.contributor.authorIsmail I.B.
dc.contributor.authorYenmiş M.
dc.contributor.authorÜstündaǧ E.
dc.contributor.authorTok C.V.
dc.contributor.authorBilgin C.C.
dc.contributor.authorAkçakaya H.R.
dc.date.accessioned2024-07-22T08:06:09Z
dc.date.available2024-07-22T08:06:09Z
dc.date.issued2021
dc.description.abstractFrogs have been harvested from the wild for the last 40 years in Turkey. We analysed the population dynamics of Anatolian water frogs (Pelophylax spp.) in the Seyhan and Ceyhan Deltas during 2013-2015. We marked a total of 13,811 individuals during 3 years, estimated population sizes, simulated the dynamics of a harvested population over 50 years, and collated frog harvest and export statistics from the region and for Turkey as a whole. Our capture estimates indicated a population reduction of c. 20% per year, and our population modelling showed that, if overharvesting continues at current rates, the harvested populations will decline rapidly. Simulations with a model of harvested population dynamics resulted in a risk of extinction of > 90% within 50 years, with extinction likely in c. 2032. Our interviews with harvesters revealed their economic dependence on the frog harvest. However, our results also showed that reducing harvest rates would not only ensure the viability of these frog populations but would also provide a source of income that is sustainable in the long term. Our study provides insights into the position of Turkey in the 'extinction domino' line, in which harvest pressure shifts among countries as frog populations are depleted and harvest bans are effected. We recommend that harvesting of wild frogs should be banned during the mating season, hunting and exporting of frogs < 30 g should be banned, and harvesters should be trained on species knowledge and awareness of regulations. Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Fauna and Flora International.
dc.identifier.DOI-ID10.1017/S0030605319000176
dc.identifier.issn00306053
dc.identifier.urihttp://akademikarsiv.cbu.edu.tr:4000/handle/123456789/13391
dc.language.isoEnglish
dc.publisherCambridge University Press
dc.rightsAll Open Access; Green Open Access; Hybrid Gold Open Access
dc.subjectTurkey
dc.subjectAmphibia
dc.subjectMeleagris gallopavo
dc.subjectMiletinae
dc.subjectPelophylax
dc.subjectendangered species
dc.subjectfrog
dc.subjectglobal trade
dc.subjectguideline
dc.subjectharvesting
dc.titleUnsustainable harvest of water frogs in southern Turkey for the European market
dc.typeArticle

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