The effect of ammonium nitrate fertiliser on frog ( Rana temporaria) survival

• Published in: Agriculture, ecosystems & environment Vol. 61; no. 1; pp. 69 - 74
• Main Authors: Oldham, R.S., Latham, D.M., Hilton-Brown, D., Towns, M., Cooke, A.S., Burn, A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 1997; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: ABONOS NITROGENADOS; AMMONIUM NITRATE; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied ecology; Biological and medical sciences; Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution; Effects of pollution and side effects of pesticides on vertebrates; ENGRAIS AZOTE; Fertiliser; Freshwater; Frog; FROGS; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; GRENOUILLE; NITRATE D'AMMONIUM; NITRATO DE AMONIO; NITROGEN FERTILIZERS; RANA; Rana temporaria; Reptilia. Amphibia; SUPERVIVENCIA; SURVIE; SURVIVAL; TOXICIDAD; TOXICITE; TOXICITY; United Kingdom; Great Britain; Europe; British Isles, England; Ammonium nitrate; Frog; Rana temporaria; Fertiliser; Pollutant; Vertebrata; Toxicity; Adult animal; Amphibia; Male; Salientia; Water pollution; Nitrogen fertilizer; Survival
• ISSN: 0167-8809; 1873-2305
• DOI: 10.1016/S0167-8809(96)01095-X

The toxicity of ammonium nitrate fertiliser to common frogs ( Rana temporaria) was tested in the laboratory and field. Granular ammonium nitrate is the most commonly used fertiliser in Britain, especially during the spring, when adult frogs migrate over land. Ammonium nitrate was acutely toxic to frogs at concentrations well below those recommended for field application. However, it lost its acute effect when dissolved in the soil and even on relatively dry soil (7% moisture), granules dissolved in less than 3 hours. A potentially high mortality rate owing to ammonium nitrate is probably mitigated by the fortuitous asynchrony between fertiliser application during daylight, and frog migration at night. It remains to be determined whether there are sublethal effects and whether fertilisers that dissolve more slowly are implicated in the widespread amphibian declines in agricultural areas observed since the Second World War.