Anuran species are some of the good environmental indicators of habitat quality and condition in ecosystems. This is due to their amphibious life modes and sensitivity to environmental change caused by rapid expansion of agricultural activities, advancement of forest destruction, climate change and emerging infectious diseases. Understanding their diversity and distribution patterns is crucial for the development and implementation of effective species and habitat conservation strategies. The study aimed at assessing and comparing anuran biodiversity and distribution patterns between a protected (North Nandi Forest Reserve) and a non-protected area (Kingwal swamp) to provide additional baseline information, both being among the underexplored areas in Kenya. Data were gathered in both dry and wet seasons, between October 2022 and June 2023 by employing standard sampling techniques for anurans(Visual encounter and pitfall traps with a drift fence) to maximise detection. Three habitat types- farmland, intermediate land and forest were exploited. A total of 1649 individuals from 21 different species, belonging to nine different genera and nine different families were recorded. Ptychadenidae was the most abundant family from the recorded anurans, while Dicroglossidae, Arthroleptidae, Pyxicephalidae and Ranidae were the least. High biodiversity was observed in the forest habitat (Protected) and least in the farmland (non-protected). The wet season had high species abundance, diversity and richness compared to the dry season. There was a significant difference (p < 0.05) in diversity between the habitats in wet season, but no significance difference during dry season (p > 0.05) except for forest and farmland (p < 0.05). There was a significant difference in species abundance between seasons (p < 0.05), and between habitats (p < 0.05) in all seasons except for farmland and intermediate (p > 0.05), as well as farmland and forest (p > 0.05) during the wet season. Habitat type and season had no influence (p > 0.05) on species richness. Anuran biodiversity is a function of habitat diversity and season, with the associated differences in microhabitat structure providing diverse niches and ways of exploring resources. The modest sampling indicates that Kingwal Swamp and North Nandi Forest Reserve are rich and support anuran species, and the differences in anuran biodiversity between the 3 habitats demonstrates that conservation efforts continue to be a priority.

中文翻译：

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肯尼亚沼泽森林地区栖息地改变对无尾动物物种多样性的人为影响

无尾蜥物种是生态系统栖息地质量和状况的一些良好环境指标。这是由于它们的两栖生活模式以及对农业活动迅速扩张、森林破坏加剧、气候变化和新出现的传染病引起的环境变化的敏感性。了解它们的多样性和分布模式对于制定和实施有效的物种和栖息地保护策略至关重要。该研究旨在评估和比较受保护区域（北南迪森林保护区）和非受保护区域（Kingwal 沼泽）之间的无尾动物生物多样性和分布模式，以提供额外的基线信息，这两个区域均属于肯尼亚未充分开发的区域。通过采用无尾目标准采样技术（视觉遭遇和带有漂流栅栏的陷阱），在 2022 年 10 月至 2023 年 6 月期间的旱季和雨季收集数据，以最大限度地提高检测率。三种栖息地类型——农田、中间土地和森林被开发。总共记录了来自21个不同物种、9个不同属和9个不同科的1649个个体。Ptychadenidae 是有记录的无尾目中数量最多的科，而 Dicroglossidae、Arthroleptidae、Pyxicephalidae 和 Ranidae 是最少的。在森林栖息地（受保护）中观察到较高的生物多样性，而在农田（未受保护）中生物多样性最少。与旱季相比，雨季的物种丰度、多样性和丰富度较高。湿季生境多样性差异显着（p < 0.05），旱季除森林和农田（ p < 0.05）外，其他生境差异不显着（ p  > 0.05）。除耕地和中间地带（ p > 0.05）以及耕地和森林（ p > 0.05）外，所有季节物种丰度均存在季节间（ p < 0.05）和生境间（p < 0.05）差异。雨季。栖息地类型和季节对物种丰富度没有影响（p >0.05）。阿努拉生物多样性是栖息地多样性和季节的函数，微生境结构的相关差异提供了不同的生态位和探索资源的方式。适度的采样表明，金沃尔沼泽和北南迪森林保护区资源丰富，支持蜉蝣物种的生长，这三个栖息地之间的蜉蝣生物多样性差异表明，保护工作仍然是一个优先事项。