PROPOSAL
TO CONDUCT REPTILE AND
AMPHIBIAN INVENTORIES
IN THE NATIONAL CAPITAL
REGION
We propose to conduct comprehensive inventories
for amphibians and reptiles in the National Capital Region. Parks to be inventoried include
SUBMITTED TO:
National Park Service (NPS),
SUBMITTED BY:
Thomas K. Pauley and Mark B. Watson.
Allegheny Institute of Natural History,
DATE:
INTRODUCTION:
Parks in the National Park System hold stewardship over many natural and
historic treasures. These resources,
particularly floral and fauna populations, are subject to many impacts such as
pollution, visitation and urban encroachment.
To properly manage these facilities for the future, comprehensive
information on the biota of each area must be obtained.
Biological inventories will be conducted to
determine amphibian and reptile species that occur in select National Capitol region
parks. Amphibians and reptiles (Gibbons,
et al. 2000) are key bioindicators and therefore it is critical to develop
effective, long-term management plans to obtain baseline data on their
occurrence and abundance.
The proposed inventories will reveal species
richness, relative abundance, and types of habitats used by these species. Studies will be conducted in upland, wetland,
and riparian habitats. These studies
will provide baseline inventory data and to document at least 90% of the
amphibian and reptile species found within the boundaries of these parks. Determination that 90% of the species have
been recorded will be based on current field guides, published literature, and
park records that indicate the species that should occur in areas where parks
are located (Green and Pauley, 1987; Mitchell, 1994; Conant and Collins, 1998,
Mitchell, 2000b). In addition to
baseline inventory data, survey sites will be established that will allow
future long-term monitoring in the parks.
While it will be the intent of this study to
document all species of amphibians and reptiles in the National Capitol Park
Region, we will be alert to state and federal species of concern. For example,
It is proposed that this study be conducted over a
two-year period, 2001 though 2002. Year
one will include reconnaissance surveys, as well as inventories throughout the
parks. Reconnaissance surveys conducted
during the first year will allow investigators to become familiar with the
areas and locate habitats that should be studied in detail. Year one will include the use of inventory
methods allowable, given the actual starting date. Year two will include more detailed studies
of the amphibians and reptiles in habitats identified in year one. Survey methods for each year and vertebrate
group are described below.
Investigators. Investigators will consist of four team
leaders. These include Dr. Thomas K.
Pauley and Dr. Mark B. Watson of the Allegheny Institute of Natural History,
INVENTORY METHODS
The primary objective of the first year is
reconnaissance of the study areas; therefore inventory methods that complement
this objective will be used. An
important component of the reconnaissance is the location and identification of
potential habitat for more detailed study the following year. On-site ground searches will be conducted for
terrestrial amphibians and reptiles.
Locations and GPS coordinates of important habitat types, such as
springs/seeps, rock outcrops, road-rut pools, ephemeral and permanent pools,
will be recorded for future reference.
Ground searches will consist of turning cover objects during the day and
searching surface areas with flashlights at night. When possible road cruising searches will be
conducted during and immediately after rain events. This type of inventory consists of driving
main and secondary roads and examining all specimens dead or alive on the
roads. If dead on road (DOR) specimens
are intact, they will be collected as vouchers.
Aquatic searches will involve examining each type
of aquatic habitats (first-, second-, and third-order streams, seeps, ephemeral
pools, and permanent pools) with various sizes of dip nets and funnel
traps. Adult toad and frog breeding
choruses will also be identified by their calls using the North American
Amphibian Monitoring Program protocol. This protocol involves stopping at each breeding
area for five minutes and recording all species calling and the number of
individuals per species calling.
Sampling frequency will remain as consistent as
possible given schedules throughout the study (years one and two). Because different species of amphibians and
reptiles are active in different seasons, sampling will be conducted during all
seasons when amphibians and reptiles are active, i.e., early spring (March and
April), spring (May and June), summer (July and August), and autumn (September
and October). Attempts will be made to
visit sites during or as close to a rainfall as possible.
Year Two
The primary objectives for the second year of the
study will be a more detailed and systematic inventory of the study area using
key habitats identified the previous year.
Amphibians and reptiles inhabit many different habitats and
microhabitats; therefore, multiple methods will be used to completely sample
the area.
Terrestrial Habitats
1). Time-constraint, ground searches (Haphazard
inventories) will used to inventory all terrestrial habitats. Ground searches will consist of turning cover
objects during the day and searching surface areas with flashlights at night
(Pauley, 1993; Crump, 1994; Mitchell, 2000a; Waldron, et al., 2000). This will provide data on relative abundance
of terrestrial amphibian and reptile species.
2) Pitfall traps with drift fences will only be
used in habitats that could support species that are not observed with other
inventory methods. Because of the budget
and time constraints (while open, pitfall traps must be checked daily), use of
pitfall traps may be limited unless some assistance can be obtained from park
personnel. If pitfall traps are used,
they will be concealed from the general park traffic and placed in the most
unobtrusive manner. These traps have
been shown to be effective to determine secretive species that are present in
various habitat types (Pauley, 1993; Corn, 1994; Mitchell, 2000a; Waldron, et
al., 2000).
4). Cover boards are more effective as a
monitoring method for a few select species and will, therefore, not be used to
conduct inventories in this study (Fellers and Frost, 1994). Boards are expensive to purchase and very
labor intensive to disperse (Pauley, 1995).
For long-term monitoring, boards can provide invaluable data for
population estimates, surface activity, and movement patterns of some species
(viz. small Plethodon) (Fellers
and Frost, 1994; Pauley, 1995). We will
not employ cover boards in this inventory.
Aquatic Habitats
1) Lotic habitats will involve
searching for adult and juvenile salamanders in first-, second-, and
third-order streams for one person-hour.
Larvae will be sampled with larvae/juvenile refugia bags (Pauley and
Little 1998) and by sweeping larval habitats, such as sandy pools and small
gravel beds, with aquarium-sized dip nets for one person-hour (Mitchell, 2000a;
Waldron, et al., 2000). Population
numbers of lotic species will be expressed as surface abundance based on the number
of adults, juveniles, and larvae observed in transects during one-hour searches
per site.
2) Lentic sampling will include sampling adults,
juveniles, and larvae. Adult anurans
(toads and frogs) will be identified by calls and visual characteristics. Sampling of adults will involve capturing
individuals by hand or a dip net as well as observing them through binoculars
with a flashlight mounted on top (Fellers and Freel, 1995). Adult salamanders will be sampled by visual
searches at night with flashlights and dip nets. The number of sweeps with a dip net will
depend on the size of wetland. For
example 10 sweeps will be used to sample small ponds (15 m or less in diameter)
and 20 to 30 sweeps for larger ponds (Mitchell, 2000a). In addition, funnel traps (standard minnow
traps) will be placed in lentic habitats throughout the study to capture all
life stages of anurans (toads and frogs) and urodelans (salamanders) (Mitchell,
2000). For adult anurans, the number of
calling males will be recorded in all wetlands according to protocol
established by the North American Amphibian Monitoring program (NAAMP, 2001).
Larvae of both anurans and urodelans will be
sampled by sweeping a dip net through each pond, road puddle, etc. After each sweep, larvae will be identified
and placed in a bucket containing water from the wetland. Sweeps will continue until no larvae are
captured in three consecutive sweeps.
Larvae will be returned to their respective ponds immediately after
sampling and identification (Shaffer, et al. 1994).
The number of egg masses of anurans and urodelans
will be identified and recorded as described by Mitchell (2000a). This is an effective method for identifying
the occurrence of salamander species such as Ambystoma and many anurans.
Population numbers of lentic species will be
expressed as the surface abundance of adults and juveniles observed during
techniques describe above.
3) Traps and spotting scopes will be used to
conduct inventories for turtles in all aquatic systems (including rivers)
(Lagler, 1943). Traps will include, but
are not limited to, large (three feet in diameter) and small hoop traps (20
inches in diameter). Spotting scopes or
binoculars will be used to make positive identification of basking turtles when
possible.
Data collection
The following environmental and habitat data will
be recorded for each collection method:
(1) location of the site, including GPS coordinates; (2) date and time
of sampling -- beginning and ending times; (3) air temperature and (4) relative
humidity at ground level, (5) soil temperature, (6) aspect; (7) estimated
percentage of rock and log cover.
The following data on amphibians and reptiles will
be collected: (1) species and numbers;
(2) gender of each species; (3) snout-to-vent length of each individual caught;
(4) reproductive condition of each individual if it can be determined.
Additional aquatic data to be collected in
appropriate habitats will include water depth, water temperature, and water pH.
Scope of Work
Each team leader will be responsible for
inventories in parks with which they are most familiar. These assignments are as follows: Drs. Mitchell, Pauley, and Watson:
Dr. Middendorf:
Drs. Pauley and Watson:
NOTE:
Because of safety concerns some limitations may have to be imposed on
surveys of areas within
Data entry will be the responsibility of Drs.
Watson and Pauley. Biological data and
environmental data will be recorded in the field on standardized data sheets
(see appendix 1). Copies of the data
sheets will be forwarded to Drs. Watson and Pauley each month and transcribed
to Microsoft Access
database software for analysis. Voucher
specimens or 35mm slides of all species will be taken and placed in the
Smithsonian-NMNH collections and the respective parks (if facilities are
available). Database will be maintained
by the Allegheny Institute of Natural History until submitted to the National
Park Service.
Final Output
This study will produce a detailed inventory of
species richness and relative abundance of amphibians and reptiles that occur
in the National Capitol Region parks studied.
Data collected will provide valuable information on the natural history
and distribution of amphibians and reptiles in this area and provide valuable
information to the National Park Service (NPS) for future management and
conservation decisions. We will also
establish tentative sites in representative habitats of common, as well as
uncommon species that will allow the NPS to develop a long-term monitoring
program. Monitoring will further assist
the NPS in making wise conservation decisions and continue to develop a
database of the status of amphibians and reptiles for the next generation of
Park managers.
Statement of Final Product
A written report will be submitted in hard copy
and electronic forms that summarizes the results of the different components of
this study. These components will
include results of inventories of amphibian and reptile species and detailed
data taken in each sample site such as species richness, species relative
abundance, habitat characteristics, environmental data, distribution patterns,
and natural history. Copies of field
data sheets and Microsoft Databases containing all data will also be provided. The Access database will include latitude and
longitude coordinates of all sites and therefore can be incorporated into the
National Park Service database and used for creation of a GIS thematic layer.
LITERATURE CITED
Conant, R. and J.T.
Collins. 1998. A Field Guide to the Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern
and
Corn,
S. P. 1994. Straight-line Drift Fences
and Pitfall Traps. IN Measuring and Monitoring Biological
Diversity: Standard Methods for Amphibians.
Smithsonian Institution Press,
Crump,
M.L. and N. J. Scott. 1994. Visual
Encounter Surveys. IN Measuring and Monitoring Biological
Diversity: Standard Methods for Amphibians.
Smithsonian Institution Press,
Gibbons,
J.W., et al. 2000. The global decline of reptiles, déjà vu amphibians. Bioscience 50:653-666.
Green, N. B. and T. K. Pauley. 1987.
Amphibians and Reptiles in
Fellers,
G.M. and K.L. Freel. 1995. A Standardized Protocol for Surveying Aquatic
Amphibians. Technical Report
NPS/WRUC/NRTR-95-01.
Fellers,
G.M. and C. A. Drost. 1994. Sampling with artificial cover. IN Measuring and Monitoring Biological Diversity:
Standard Methods for Amphibians.
Smithsonian Institution Press,
Jaeger,
R. G. 1994. Transect sampling. IN
Measuring and Monitoring Biological Diversity: Standard Methods for
Amphibians. Smithsonian Institution
Press,
Jaeger,
R. G. and R. F. Inger. 1994. Quadrat
sampling. IN Measuring and Monitoring Biological
Diversity: Standard Methods for Amphibians.
Smithsonian Institution Press,
Lagler, K.F. 1943. Methods of collecting freshwater
turtles. Copeia 1: 21-25.
Mitchell,
J.C. 1994. The Reptiles of
Mitchell,
J.C. 2000a. Amphibian Monitoring Methods
and Field Guide.
Mitchell,
J.C. 2000b. Amphibians and reptiles of the National Capital Parks: Review of
existing information and inventory methods. Report to the National Park Service.
Pauley, T. K.
1993. Report of the
Pauley, T. K.
1995. Effects of Diflubenzuron on
Non-target Organisms
(Salamanders)
in Broadleaf Forested Watersheds in the Northeast. National
USDA-Forest Service,
FHM-NC-0595: Chapter 6:42-52 and Chapter
3:14-22.
Pauley, T.K. and M. Little. 1998. A New Technique to Monitor Larval and
Juvenile Salamanders in Stream Habitats.
Banistera, 12:32-36.
Shaffer,
H. B., R. A. Alford, B. D. Woodward, S. J. Richards, R. G. Altig, and C.
Gascon. 1994. Quantitative sampling of
amphibian larvae. IN Measuring
and Monitoring Biological Diversity: Standard Methods for Amphibians. Smithsonian Institution Press,
Waldron, J.L., T. K. Pauley, Z.I. Felix,
W. J. Humphries, and A.J. Longenecker. 2000. The herpetofauna of the Bluestone
National Wild and
PROPOSED
BUDGET
The budget is based on $75/hr
for salaries of team leaders and $15/hr for field assistants. Budget for expenses includes mileage @
.32.5/mile); lodging @$80/night; and meals @$25/day/person.
YEAR ONE – 2001 (15 field
days and 5 lab/office days per investigator)
Salaries (Team Leaders) $48,000.00
Salaries (Assistants) $24,000.00
Mileage for 30,000 miles $9,750.00
Lodging $7,000.00
Meals $5,250.00
Equipment $4153.70
GPS units (2 @$500 ea)
$1,000.00
Turtle Traps (6 @$40 ea and 6 @$65 ea) $630.00
Funnel Traps (80 @ $10 ea)
$800.00
Dip nets (7 @$40; 14 bag @)$12 ea) $448.00
Aquatic Thermometers (10 @ $11.50 ea) $115.00
Soil Thermometer (10 @ $28.95)
$289.50
Hygrometers (8 @ $39.95 ea)
$319.60
Field pH meters (8 @ $40.00 ea)
$320.00
Calipers (8 @28.95 ea) $231.60
Supplies $866.00
Chemicals (formalin and alcohol)
$500.00
Field expenses
Notebooks (30 pocket tablets @$2.75 ea
& 12 8.5x11 @
$11.75 ea) $116.00
Collecting bags $50.00
Office expenses
Computer paper $100.00
Printing ink $100.00
SUBTOTAL $99,019.70
Indirect Cost (26% of total
award)
Fringe benefits (26% of salaries)
TOTAL BUDGET FOR YEAR ONE $143,484.82
YEAR TWO – 2001-2002 (15
field days and 5 lab days)
Salaries (Team Leaders) $48,000.00
Salaries (Assistants) $24,000.00
Mileage for 30,000 miles $9,750.00
Lodging $7,000.00
Meals $5,250.00
Equipment $1,043.50
Aquatic Thermometers (20 @ $11.50 ea) $115.00
Soil Thermometer (20 @ $28.95)
$289.50
Hygrometers (10 @ $39.95 ea) $319.60
Field pH meters (10 @ $40.00 ea)
$320.00
Supplies $866.00
Chemicals (formalin and alcohol)
$500.00
Field expenses
Notebooks (30 pocket tablets @$2.75 ea
& 12 8.5x11 @
$11.75 ea) $116.00
Collecting bags $50.00
Office expenses
Computer paper $100.00
Printing ink $100.00
SUBTOTAL $95,909.50
Indirect Cost (26% of total
award)
Fringe benefits (26% of
salaries)
TOTAL BUDGET FOR YEAR TWO $139,565.97
TOTAL BUDGET FOR TWO YEARS $283,050.79