Spotter's Guide

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Spotter’s guide - hedgehog Quick facts Scientific name: Erinaceus europaeus Habitat Urban and rural areas, including gardens, parks, woodland and farmland Food Invertebrates, including beetles, slugs and earthworms Behaviour Nocturnal creatures that hibernate over winter and will roll up into a ball when frightened Vital statistics Head and body length: 15 – 30 cm Print length: 25 mm Tail length: 1 – 2 cm Print width: 28 mm Weight: Up to 1.2 kg Hedgehog tracks look like small Appearance: Brown in colour and covered in protective human handprints, showing a visible spines ‘thumb’. The front foot is much broader than the hind foot. Identifying hedgehog footprints can be tricky as many animals leave similar-sized tracks. By using a hedgehog tunnel to record footprints in ink, you can keep a record of who visited, and use the information in this guide to figure out their identity! Mouse Brown rat Squirrel Length: 10 mm Length: 40 mm Length: 35 – 45 mm Width: 8 – 10 mm Rat prints show five Width: 25 – 35 mm Mice or voles leave lots straight toes, three pointing Squirrels move in a hopping of tiny five- and four-toed forwards and two pointing motion, so hind prints prints. Their tails will also outwards. can appear ahead of front leave a line of ink in a footprints. Prints often look footprint tunnel. triangular. Weasel Stoat Rabbit Length: 13 mm Length: 22 mm Length: 35 mm Width: 10 mm Width: 20 mm Width: 25 mm Weasel footprints have five Stoats leave five-toed prints, Rabbits have four pads on toes, and are similar to a but they are less likely to both the fore and hind feet. stoat’s. walk through a footprint Their hind feet often leave tunnel. an elongated slipper-shaped print. Cat Dog Fox Length: 35 mm Length: 30 – 50+ mm Length: 50 mm Cat prints can vary in Width: 30 – 40+ mm Width: 35 mm size, and are usually fairly Dog prints will vary Foxes have four-toed circular. Footprint tunnels depending on the breed. prints, often confused will usually show some fur with those of a cat or dog. prints, but no claws. You can draw a diagonal cross through the print. If it doesn’t intersect the central pad then it’s a fox print. Badger Toad/frog Bird Length: 40 – 70 mm Amphibian prints will Length: 10 – 60 mm Width: 45 – 50 mm vary in size depending on Width: 10 – 50 mm species and life stage. They Badger prints are broad, may be made by the foot or Bird print sizes will vary flat-footed, long-clawed, the whole body. depending on the species. five-toed tracks, with the front foot slightly longer than the hind. Want to find out more about other species that need your help? Check out our Naturehood spotter’s guide series. House Hedgehog sparrow Small tortoiseshell Common frog butterfly Early bumblebee https://naturehood.uk Illustrations supplied by Chris Shields.

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THE AGILE FROG Species Action Plan Rana Dalmatina SUMMARSUMMARSUMMARYYY DOCUMENT
THE AGILE FROG Species Action Plan Rana dalmatina SUMMARSUMMARSUMMARYYY DOCUMENT The agile frog Rana dalmatina is Despite the efforts of these distributed widely throughout much of organisations, the future of Jersey’s southern and central Europe, but is agile frog is still far from secure. The found in only a few northern locations factors which probably played a key including Jersey - the frog is not found role in the frogs decline are still very anywhere else in the British Isles. The much in evidence: Jersey population of the agile frog has been declining in both range and •water quality and quantity, as a result SSSpppecial pointsss ofofof numbers since the early 1900’s. In the of intensive agriculture, are still below inininteresteresteresttt::: 1970’s only seven localities were listed EU standards in many areas; The agile frog is protected where the frog could still be found, and •the continuing alteration, disturbance, under schedule 1 of the by the mid 1980’s this had fallen to and loss of potentially suitable Conservation of Wildlife only two sites. In 1987 one of the amphibian habitat; (Jersey) Law 2000. remaining two populations was lost as a •the growing numbers of predatory result of a lethal spill of agricultural ducks, cats, and feral ferrets. DESCRIPTION pesticide into the breeding pond. The The agile frog Rana dalmatina species is now believed to be confined These and other factors have combined is a European brown frog, to a single vulnerable population in the to reduce the frog population to the growing up to 90 mm (snout south-west of the island.
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Investigations Into the Life History Stages of the Common Frog (Rana Temporaria) Affected by an Amphibian Ranavirus in the United Kingdom
260 AMPHIBIAN DISEASES Herpetological Review, 2013, 44(2), 260–263. © 2013 by Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles Investigations into the Life History Stages of the Common Frog (Rana temporaria) Affected by an Amphibian Ranavirus in the United Kingdom Ranaviruses are emerging infectious disease agents that af- owned land, so in order to maintain confidentiality we are un- fect a wide range of ectothermic and poikilothermic vertebrates: able to provide more detailed location information than is pro- fish, reptiles (including turtles and tortoises) and amphibians vided in Tables 1 and 2. (Ahne et al. 1997; Chinchar et al. 2009; Miller et al. 2011). In the Live tadpoles were transported in a common container in United Kingdom (UK), amphibian ranaviruses began to emerge pond water to the Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of in the late 1980s and early 1990s in southeast England (Cunning- London, London, UK. Upon arrival, tadpoles were euthanized ham et al. 1996) and manifested as adult mass morbidity and using an overdose of MS-222 (1g/L tricaine methanesulphonate, mortality events (Cunningham et al. 1993; Cunningham et al. Thompson & Joseph Ltd., Norwich, UK) buffered to pH 7.0 with 1996; Drury et al. 1995). sodium bicarbonate. Tissue samples were then dissected out Evidence for local ranavirus outbreaks in the UK have, to and frozen at -80°C for ranavirus screening. In the case of larger date, relied exclusively upon reports of moribund or dead adult tadpoles, tissues included the right anterior quarter of the body, common frogs (e.g. Cunningham et al. 1993; Cunningham et al.
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Northern Red-Legged Frog,Rana Aurora
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Amphibian Identification
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Triturus Cristatus) and Smooth Newt (Lissotriton Vulgaris) in Cold Climate in Southeast Norway
diversity Article Assessing the Use of Artificial Hibernacula by the Great Crested Newt (Triturus cristatus) and Smooth Newt (Lissotriton vulgaris) in Cold Climate in Southeast Norway Børre K. Dervo 1,*, Jon Museth 1 and Jostein Skurdal 2 1 Human Dimension Department, Norwegian Institute of Nature Research (NINA), Vormstuguvegen 40, NO-2624 Lillehammer, Norway; [email protected] 2 Maihaugen, Maihaugvegen 1, NO-2609 Lillehammer, Norway; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +47-907-600-77 Received: 27 May 2018; Accepted: 3 July 2018; Published: 5 July 2018 Abstract: Construction of artificial overwintering habitats, hibernacula, or newt hotels, is an important mitigation measure for newt populations in urban and agricultural areas. We have monitored the use of four artificial hotels built in September 2011 close to a 6000 m2 breeding pond in Norway. The four hotels ranged from 1.6 to 12.4 m3 and were located from 5 to 40 m from the breeding pond. In 2013–2015, 57 Great Crested Newts (Triturus cristatus) and 413 Smooth Newts (Lissotriton vulgaris) spent the winter in the hotels. The proportions of juveniles were 75% and 62%, respectively, and the hotels may be important to secure recruitment. Knowledge on emigration routes and habitat quality for summer use and winter hibernation is important to find good locations for newt hotels. The study documented that newts may survive a minimum temperature of −6.7 ◦C. We recommend that newt hotels in areas with harsh climate are dug into the ground in slopes to reduce low-temperature exposure during winter. Keywords: Triturus cristatus; Lissotriton vulgaris; climate; hibernacula 1.
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Palmate Newt • Smooth Newt Rare Species
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Edna Increases the Detectability of Ranavirus Infection in an Alpine Amphibian Population
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Ecology of the Columbia Spotted Frog in Northeastern Oregon
United States Department of Agriculture Ecology of the Columbia Forest Service Pacific Northwest Spotted Frog in Research Station General Technical Northeastern Oregon Report PNW-GTR-640 July 2005 Evelyn L. Bull The Forest Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture is dedicated to the principle of multiple use management of the Nation’s forest resources for sus- tained yields of wood, water, forage, wildlife, and recreation. Through forestry research, cooperation with the States and private forest owners, and manage- ment of the National Forests and National Grasslands, it strives—as directed by Congress—to provide increasingly greater service to a growing Nation. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, reli- gion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. USDA is committed to making the information materials accessible to all USDA customers and employees Author Evelyn L. Bull is a research wildlife biologist, Forestry and Range Sciences Laboratory, 1401 Gekeler Lane, La Grande, OR 97850. Cover photo Columbia spotted frogs at an oviposition site with an egg mass present (lower center of photo).
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Mountain Frogs the Cascades Are Home to a Variety of Fascinating Frogs from Their Nose Across Their Llister Eyes to Their Shoulders, and a C
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Diseases of Aquatic Organisms 112:9-16
This authors' personal copy may not be publicly or systematically copied or distributed, or posted on the Open Web, except with written permission of the copyright holder(s). It may be distributed to interested individuals on request. Vol. 112: 9–16, 2014 DISEASES OF AQUATIC ORGANISMS Published November 13 doi: 10.3354/dao02792 Dis Aquat Org High susceptibility of the endangered dusky gopher frog to ranavirus William B. Sutton1,2,*, Matthew J. Gray1, Rebecca H. Hardman1, Rebecca P. Wilkes3, Andrew J. Kouba4, Debra L. Miller1,3 1Center for Wildlife Health, Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA 2Department of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Tennessee State University, Nashville, TN 37209, USA 3Department of Biomedical and Diagnostic Sciences, University of Tennessee Center of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA 4Memphis Zoo, Conservation and Research Department, Memphis, TN 38112, USA ABSTRACT: Amphibians are one of the most imperiled vertebrate groups, with pathogens playing a role in the decline of some species. Rare species are particularly vulnerable to extinction be - cause populations are often isolated and exist at low abundance. The potential impact of patho- gens on rare amphibian species has seldom been investigated. The dusky gopher frog Lithobates sevosus is one of the most endangered amphibian species in North America, with 100−200 indi- viduals remaining in the wild. Our goal was to determine whether adult L. sevosus were suscep- tible to ranavirus, a pathogen responsible for amphibian die-offs worldwide. We tested the rela- tive susceptibility of adult L. sevosus to ranavirus (103 plaque-forming units) isolated from a morbid bullfrog via 3 routes of exposure: intra-coelomic (IC) injection, oral (OR) inoculation, and water bath (WB) exposure.
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Amphibian Colonization of New Ponds in an Agricultural Landscape
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California Red-Legged Frog Recovery Plan 92 Recovery Plan for the California Red-Legged Frog 018003
Recovery Plan for the California Red-legged Frog (Rana aurora draytonii) Region 1 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Portland, Oregon 017905 ii Disclaimer Recovery plans delineate reasonable actions that are believed to be required to recover and/or protect listed species. Plans are published by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and sometimes are prepared with the assistance of recovery teams, contractors, State agencies, and others. Objectives will be attained and any necessary funds made available subject to budgetary and other constraints affecting the parties involved, as well as the need to address other priorities. Recovery plans do not necessarily represent the views nor the official positions or approval of any individuals or agencies involved in the plan formulation, other than the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. They represent the official position of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service only after they have been signed by the Director, Regional Director, or Manager as approved. Approved recovery plans are subject to modification as dictated by new findings, changes in species status, and the completion of recovery tasks. Literature Citation Should Read As Follows: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2002. Recovery Plan for the California Red-legged Frog (Rana aurora draytonii). U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Portland, Oregon. viii + 173 pp. Additional copies may be purchased from: Fish and Wildlife Reference Service 5430 Grosvenor Lane, Suite 110 Bethesda, Maryland 20814-2158 301-492-6403 or 1-800-582-3421 FAX: 301-564-4059 E-mail: [email protected] http://fa.r9.fws.gov/r9fwrs/ The fee for the plan varies depending on the number of pages of the plan.
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