Reptiles and Amphibians

1
Reptiles Amphibians
2
Herps Some Basic Facts

• The majority of North American herpetofauna
  inhabit wetland habitats, including riparian
  areas
• Amphibians reptiles may be the best indicator
  species for riparian habitat quality
• Amphibians are linked (obligate) to water during
  their egg larval stages
• Many reptiles are functionally tied to wetlands

3
Habitat Components Important for Herps

• Water (lotic lentic)
• Water/land ecotones
• Substrate
• Litter/debris
• Snags downed timber
• Vegetation (type
• structure)

4
Importance of Microhabitats

• Reproduction substrate/cover
• Predator avoidance or escape
• Foraging sites
• Thermoregulation
• Resting cover

5
Core Habitats for Reptiles and Amphibians
(Semlitsch and Bodie 2003)

• Terrestrial area surrounding wetland/ riparian
  areas are core habitats for many semiaquatic
  species that depend on mesic corridors to
  complete life cycles
• Summarized data from the literature on 19 frog,
  13 salamander, 5 snake, and 28 turtle species
• Core terrestrial habitat from the edge of the
  aquatic site ranged from 159 - 290 m for
  amphibians and from 127 - 289 m for reptiles

6
Amphibians
7
(No Transcript)
8
(No Transcript)
9
Amphibians

• Very diverse in riparian and wetland habitats
• Many species need both aquatic and terrestrial
  habitats
• Need protected travel lanes to adjacent uplands
  and wetland breeding sites

10
Threats to Amphibian Populations

• Modification of natural wetlands
• Removal of adjacent upland habitat
• Pesticides (e.g., a California study found a
  strong positive association between amphibian
  decline and the amount of upwind agricultural
  land use)
• Predation by introduced species
• Roadways (roads act as a barrier to movement and
  affect herptile behavior and survival
• Urbanization/development
• Climatic change

11
Regosin et al. (2005) Pool-breeding species -
Massachusetts
Buffer Zones for Amphibians

• Protection of narrow (eg., 1530 m) buffer strips
  around breeding ponds not sufficient
• Maintenance of suitable terrestrial habitat
  beyond 100 m from breeding ponds is important for
  maintaining populations
• Results suggest that extensive forest clearing
  within 100 m of breeding ponds could impact
  relatively large populations of pool-breeding
  amphibians

12
More on Salamanders

• (Wilson and Dorcas 2003) North Carolina
• Conservation efforts for salamander populations
  in headwater streams must consider land use
  throughout entire watershed, rather than just
  preserving small riparian buffer zones.
• (Semlitsch 1998) 7 States
• Adult salamanders of 6 species were found an
  average of 125 m from the edge of aquatic
  habitats, and juveniles of 2 species were found
  an average of 70 m from the edge
• Adult salamanders were found up to 624 m and
  juveniles up to 247 m from the edge of wetlands
• 76 of all individuals were found outside the
  extended territorial buffer zone recommend in
  some states

13
Reptiles
14
(Bodie 2001)
Turtles and Riparian Habitats

• Freshwater turtles utilize diverse riparian
  habits for feeding, nesting, and overwintering.
• Turtles primarily chose high, open sandy habitats
  for nesting.
• Nests contain egg and hatchlings during April
  through September and often through the winter.
• A riparian zone encompassing the majority of
  freshwater turtle migrations would need to span
  150 m from the stream edge.

15
(Bodie 2001)
Seasonal Movements of Freshwater Turtles
16
(Gibbons and Buhlmann 2001)
Management Recommendations

• Establish wetland buffers and habitat corridors
• Preserve ephemeral ponds and adjacent terrestrial
  habitat
• Maintain small isolated wetlands as well as
  larger wetland units
• Connect fragmented landscapes

17
(cont.)
Management Recommendations

• Maintain critical features (e.g., leaf litter,
  downed timber, snags)
• Provide safe passage under roadways
• Protect migration routes during key periods of
  seasonal activity
• Be aware of distribution patterns, habitat
  requirements, and behavior of different species