Columbia Spotted Frog (Rana Luteiventris Formerly R. Pretiosa): a Technical Conservation Assessment

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Columbia Spotted Frog (Rana Luteiventris Formerly R. Pretiosa): a Technical Conservation Assessment Columbia Spotted Frog (Rana luteiventris formerly R. pretiosa): A Technical Conservation Assessment Prepared for the USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region, Species Conservation Project August 1, 2005 Debra A. Patla1 and Doug Keinath2 with support from Mathew McGee2 and David S. Pilliod3 and matrix life cycle model by Dave McDonald4 and Takeshi Ise4 1 Herpetology Laboratory, Dept. of Biological Sciences, Idaho State University, Pocatello, ID 83209 2 Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, University of Wyoming, P.O. Box 3381, Laramie, WY 82072 3 Dept. of Biological Sciences, College of Science and Math, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407 4 Dept. of Zoology and Physiology, University of Wyoming, P.O. Box 3166, Laramie, WY 82071 Peer Review Administered by Society for Conservation Biology Patla, D.A. and D. Keinath. (2005, August 1). Columbia Spotted Frog (Rana luteiventris formerly R. pretiosa): a technical conservation assessment. [Online]. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region. Available: http: //www.fs.fed.us/r2/projects/scp/assessments/columbiaspottedfrog.pdf [date of access]. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Numerous people assisted with this report by providing documents and responding to specific questions, including Jay Bowerman, Evelyn Bull, Janice Engle, Lauren Livo, Bryce Maxell, James Munger, Christopher Pearl, and Charles Peterson. We are particularly grateful to David Pilliod for his review of the first draft and many valuable suggestions. Harold Golden provided detailed information and clarifications. His long-term interest and efforts on behalf of spotted frogs on the Bighorn National Forest are commendable. We thank Gary Patton and Lynette Otto for providing information. We appreciated the opportunity to work with Dave McDonald on population modeling and to learn from his insights. Staff at Wyoming Natural Diversity Database provided technical support: Matt McGee assisted with proofreading and improvements of the draft; Suzanne Rittman conducted the literature search and compiled papers for our use; and Jason Bennett compiled location records and provided GIS coverages. Merlin Hare volunteered time and graphics expertise to prepare the range and occurrence maps. Greg Hayward (editor) and two anonymous reviewers of the draft vastly improved this report with their numerous comments, insights, suggestions, and corrections. We are grateful for copy editor Nancy McDonald’s thorough review of the final draft, and Kimberly Nguyen’s preparation for Web publication. Amphibian monitoring and research in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem conducted by Idaho State University, USGS, and the National Park Service informed many aspects of this report. In particular we wish to acknowledge Chuck Peterson for his leadership role in the investigation of amphibians over the past 17 years in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and Steve Corn for guiding the efforts to standardize and implement monitoring in the Rocky Mountain region. Finally, for making a report of this nature possible, we thank the field researchers for their countless hours observing spotted frogs, meticulous written accounts, and ideas on conserving this species, especially Fred Turner, Evelyn Bull, Janice Engle, Chris Funk, Chris Garber, Bryce Maxell, Jim Munger, David Pilliod, and Jamie Reaser. AUTHORS’ BIOGRAPHIES Debra Patla is a coordinator for the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem Amphibian Survey and Monitoring Project, Herpetology Laboratory, Idaho State University. She received her M.S. in Biology at Idaho State University in 1997. Ms. Patla has conducted research and monitoring of Columbia spotted frogs and other amphibians in the Yellowstone- Teton area since 1993. Since 2000, she has coordinated field work and data compilation for amphibian inventory and monitoring projects supported by National Park Service, USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative, and the National Elk Refuge. Doug Keinath is the Zoology Program Manager for the Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, which is a research unit of the University of Wyoming and a member of the Natural Heritage Network. He has been researching Wyoming’s wildlife for the past nine years and has 11 years experience in conducting technical and policy analyses for resource management professionals. His broader scope of research focuses on bat and small mammal ecology, survey, and monitoring at the population and landscape scales, and more recently on the spatially explicit predictive distribution modeling of sensitive elements (i.e., animals, plants, communities) of the Rocky Mountain West. Mr. Keinath earned a B.S. in Interdisciplinary Engineering (1993; magna cum laude) and a B.S. in Natural Resource Management (1993; with Distinction) from the University of Michigan and a M.S. in Wildlife Biology from the University of Wyoming. COVER PHOTO CREDIT Columbia spotted frog (Rana luteiventris), Yellowstone National Park. Photo by Matthew Chatfield. 2 3 S U M M A R Y O F K E Y C OMPONENTS FOR C ONSERVATION OF THE C O L U M B I A S P O T T E D F ROG Four populations of Columbia spotted frog (Rana luteiventris formerly R. pretiosa) are currently recognized: a main population, which extends from northwestern Wyoming through western Canada and includes the species’ range in USDA Forest Service Region 2, and three disjunct populations to the south. Although some local declines have been documented, the main population is generally considered secure and has no federal status as endangered or threatened. Within Region 2, Columbia spotted frogs exist on the Bighorn National Forest as a small, geographically isolated population restricted to a single watershed. There are no records showing that the status of this disjunct population has been reviewed by federal or state agencies. This species is also known to occur on the Shoshone National Forest. Although this forest is immediately adjacent to other federal lands that contain this species, spotted frogs appear to be common in only one portion of the Shoshone National Forest. Survey efforts have probably been inadequate to determine if the species is common or rare throughout the Shoshone National Forest. The Columbia spotted frog is not known to occur on any other national forest within Region 2, and historical data are too scarce to determine if declines have occurred in Region 2. Habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation are potential threats to spotted frogs in Region 2. Sport fish introduction, water manipulation, road construction, and livestock grazing are identified as the activities most likely to affect habitat. Drought is also a threat to frogs and their habitat, and its effects may be exacerbated by management activities and land uses. Two infectious diseases, chytridiomycosis and ranavirus, have been found in spotted frogs elsewhere in northwestern Wyoming and could threaten the persistence of local populations and the abundance of frogs. Spotted frog populations also may be directly affected, in terms of survival and reproduction, by elevated mortality rates from a variety of human and management activities (e.g., roadkill, trampling), predation by fish, and exposure to toxic chemicals. On the Bighorn National Forest, the spotted frog population is particularly vulnerable due to its geographical isolation and the small number of active breeding sites. The main conservation concerns for the Columbia spotted frog involve maintaining the viability of the disjunct population on the Bighorn National Forest and determining the distribution, abundance, and status of populations on the Shoshone National Forest. Identification of breeding, overwintering, and migration areas is necessary to determine if populations are at risk from site-specific land uses and management activities, particularly on the Bighorn National Forest, but also on portions of the Shoshone National Forest where spotted frogs may be uncommon or relatively isolated. Forest management practices need to be evaluated for their impacts on spotted frogs to ensure that viable populations are maintained on both national forests. 2 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ..............................................................................................................................................2 AUTHORS’ BIOGRAPHIES .........................................................................................................................................2 COVER PHOTO CREDIT .............................................................................................................................................2 SUMMARY OF KEY COMPONENTS FOR CONSERVATION OF THE COLUMBIA SPOTTED FROG ..............3 LIST OF TABLES ..........................................................................................................................................................6 LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................................................7 INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................................................8 Goal and Scope ..........................................................................................................................................................8 Uncertainty and Limitations.......................................................................................................................................8 Publication and Peer Review .....................................................................................................................................8
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