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Distribution of Mammals in the Davis Mountains, Texas and Surrounding Areas

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Distribution of Mammals in the Davis Mountains, Texas and Surrounding Areas DISTRIBUTION OF MAMMALS IN THE DAVIS MOUNTAINS, TEXAS AND SURROUNDING AREAS by Robert S. DeBaca, B.A., M.S. A Dissertation In BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Approved John C. Zak Chairperson of the Committee Kevin R. Mulligan Robert D. Bradley Jorge Salazar-Bravo Carleton J. Phillips Fred Hartmeister Dean of the Graduate School August, 2008 Copyright 2008, Robert S. DeBaca The mountains are fountains of men as well as of rivers, of glaciers, of fertile soil. The great poets, philosophers, prophets, able men whose thoughts and deeds have moved the world, have come down from the mountains – mountain dwellers who have grown strong there with the forest trees in Nature’s workshops. John Muir (1938) “John of the Mountains” For Hope ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am greatly indebted to numerous people and agencies for assisting with this project. I thank the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and the Texas Nature Conservancy for the financial and logistical support for this project. TPWD extended me trapping privileges, and Linda Hedges, Kelly Bryan, and Mark Lockwood were indispensable at facilitating the project at Davis Mountains State Park. John Karges directed me to some novel trapping sites at Davis Mountains Preserve and targeted some relevant literature. Tom Johnson championed all efforts at Balmorhea State Park and Phantom Spring. I am grateful for the efforts many students and professors who performed field work at Davis Mountains Preserve, Davis Mountains State Park, Balmorhea State Park, and Phantom Spring prior to my arrival on the project. Kevin Mulligan and Lucia Barbato provided me with a job, training, and computer equipment with which I was able to perform the GIS and data analyses for this project. Their influence will benefit me long into the future. I greatly appreciate the guidance and support of my advisory committee. Also, my family was a great support during my development and education as a biologist. My father gave me tremendous guidance, advice, and support through the years. My mother taught me to see the beauty and artistry in all things. My brothers, J.C. and Tamas, never stopped believing in me. Lastly, and foremost, I am thankful to have Diana, by my side for her consolation, counsel, and unconditional love. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS................................................................................................ ii ABSTRACT.........................................................................................................................v LIST OF TABLES............................................................................................................ vii LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... viii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................... 1 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE ...................................................................................... 1 DESCRIPTION OF THE TRANS-PECOS AND DAVIS MOUNTAINS .............................. 3 Location ...................................................................................................... 3 Physiography............................................................................................... 4 Geologic History......................................................................................... 6 Soils............................................................................................................. 7 Climate........................................................................................................ 8 Vegetation................................................................................................... 9 ROLE OF DISPERSAL TO BIODIVERSITY ............................................................... 15 THE NATURE OF DISPERSAL TO ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY ........................ 16 II. BIOGEOGRAPHY OF MONTANE MAMMALS AND ASSOCIATED HABITAT IN THE TRANS-PECOS....................................................................... 19 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 19 MATERIALS AND METHODS ................................................................................ 22 RESULTS ............................................................................................................. 25 DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................ 42 III. TERRESTRIAL PATTERNS OF MAMMALIAN DIVERSITY IN THE DAVIS MOUNTAINS, TX ................................................................................................... 47 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 47 MATERIALS AND METHODS ................................................................................ 52 Field Sampling and Data Collection......................................................... 52 Data Analysis............................................................................................ 54 RESULTS ............................................................................................................. 57 DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................ 74 IV. ECOLOGICAL EFFECTS ON SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION OF ,BATS IN THE DAVIS MOUNTAINS, TEXAS.............................................. 78 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 78 iii MATERIALS AND METHODS ................................................................................ 80 Study Region............................................................................................. 80 Field Sampling.......................................................................................... 81 Data Analyses ........................................................................................... 83 RESULTS ............................................................................................................. 84 DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................ 92 V. CONCLUSION......................................................................................................... 97 APPENDIX A .......................................................................................................... 99 APPENDIX B......................................................................................................... 150 APPENDIX C......................................................................................................... 155 LITERATURE CITED........................................................................................... 160 iv ABSTRACT This project focused on the dispersal and distribution patterns of mammals in or near the Davis Mountains, Texas. Data were obtained from existing museum and literature records and from extensive field sampling of the region, which resulted in the acquisition of more than 2,000 museum specimens and related data (Appendix A). The purpose of this research was to investigate regional and local patterns of mammalian biodiversity as these relate to dispersal and distribution in montane ecosystems at a regional scale in the Trans-Pecos and at a local scale in and near the Davis Mountains. In the first chapter, paleontological data suggested that now isolated mountain ranges in the Trans-Pecos were once connected in a north-south network. Research in that chapter examined modern patterns of biodiversity in the mountains that could have resulted from patterns inherited from Pleistocene distributions and dispersal routes of species in mixed-conifer forests or piñon-juniper-oak woodlands. Evidence presented in chapter one indicated that connectivity to source areas could have improved dispersal opportunities through highland corridors and montane areas. The second research chapter evaluated an observed pattern of greater species richness at a middle elevation study site in the Davis Mountains that was about 15 percent the size of a larger study site in the highlands of this mountain range. Rodents were the focus of research to find a partial explanation for this pattern, in which a dispersal filter may have allowed dispersal of some species but hindered others along an elevational gradient from lowlands to highlands. This pattern suggested a decrease in the body size of a lowland group of species along this gradient in response to a substrate that becomes more unavailable to v larger burrowing rodents. That pattern was not statistically significant, but an alternative investigation showed that the smaller mid-elevation site likely had greater habitat variety in comparison to the high elevation one, which could have provided more microhabitats for more species to coexist at the smaller, more diverse site. In the final research chapter, biodiversity patterns were investigated for bats in relation to broad-scaled ecological patterns and site-specific resource partitioning that could account for the observed spatial and temporal distribution patterns. Along an elevational gradient, five species were specific to a smaller series of elevations and habitat types; whereas,
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