Great Basin Naturalist Volume 40 Number 4 Article 2 12-31-1980 Terrestrial vertebrate fauna of the Kaiparowits Basin N. Duane Atwood U.S. Forest Service, Provo, Utah Clyde L. Pritchett Brigham Young University Richard D. Porter U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Provo, Utah Benjamin W. Wood Brigham Young University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/gbn Recommended Citation Atwood, N. Duane; Pritchett, Clyde L.; Porter, Richard D.; and Wood, Benjamin W. (1980) "Terrestrial vertebrate fauna of the Kaiparowits Basin," Great Basin Naturalist: Vol. 40 : No. 4 , Article 2. Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/gbn/vol40/iss4/2 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Western North American Naturalist Publications at BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Great Basin Naturalist by an authorized editor of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. TERRESTRIAL VERTEBRATE FAUNA OF THE KAIPAROWITS BASIN N. Diiane Atwood', Clyde L. Pritchctt', Richard D. Porter', and Benjamin W. Wood' .\bstr^ct.- This report inehides data collected during an investigation by Brighani Young University personnel to 1976, as well as a literature from 1971 review. The fauna of the Kaiparowits Basin is represented by 7 species of salamander, toads, mnphihians (1 5 and 1 tree frog), 29 species of reptiles (1 turtle, 16 lizards, and 12 snakes), 183 species of birds (plus 2 hypothetical), and 74 species of mammals. Geographic distribution of the various species within the basin are discussed. Birds are categorized according to their population and seasonal status. .Avian habitat relationships are discussed, and extensions of range are reported for 5 species of birds. Three threatened or endan- gered avian species occur in the basin. Four avian species seem to have declined significantly in numbers in recent \ears. The early activities and exploration of the San Juan and Colorado Rivers to Rock trappers, missionaries, and government sur- Creek. From this point, they spent about two vey workers provided little information to weeks on the southwest end of the Kaiparo- om- knowledge of fauna in the Kaiparowits wits Plateau. The results of this work were Basin. Most of these early expeditions skirted reported by Hall (1934). Others such as around the basin on all sides or were con- Gregory (1917, 1938, 1945, 1947, 1948) and fined to the depths of the Colorado River Gregory and Moore (1931) have made sub- Canyon. The Domingues-Velez de Escalante stantial contributions to our knowledge of the party traveled along the north side of the Colorado River drainage, particularly with Colorado River between Lee's Ferry and the respect to the geology. Observations and well-known Crossing-of-the-Fathers. During comments were also recorded regarding the this portion of their journey, it became neces- biota. sary for the party to eat their horses (Auer- Members of the Department of Zoology at bach 1943). No mention is made in Father Brigham Young University' (BYU) initiated a Escalante's journal of any fauna observed. .series of biological investigations of the up- Records of Powell's expeditions of 1869-1870 per Colorado River Basin; of these, the fol- and 1871-1872 indicate observations of wild- lowing were within the Kaiparowits Basin: In life were limited to the larger game animals, July 1927, a group visited Lee's Ferry and probably those that could be used for food. Bryce Canyon, and in 1936. a party of four In 1892 the American Museum of Natural biologists spent 810 man hours in the Esca- History sent an expedition into the San Juan lante River drainage. In the fall of 1937, V. region just east of the Kaiparowits Basin (Al- M. Tanner and C. L. Hayward studied in the len 1893). Wetherill, Flattum, and Sterns Paria Valley. A party headed by D. E. Beck (1961) made a trip by boat up the Colorado entered the region in the fall of 1938 and River from Lee's Ferry to Rainbow Bridge. 1939, exploring the course of the Escalante Both expeditions recorded the animals ob- River. Beck also .spent the last part of May served. and earlv June of 1940 in the area east of The number of scientific investigations af- Willow Tank Spring down to the Escalante ter those of Powell into the Glen Canyon River. In 1946, 1952, and 1953, other BYU Kane were few indeed (Crampton 1959). The Na- expeditions entered the area in both Mountain tional Park Service recognized this fact and, and Garfield Counties. The Navajo visited in 1955 in measure, filled some of the gaps by send- and Wahweap Drainage were ing out an expedition that descended by boat and 1958 (Hayward et al. 1958). 'U.S. Forest Service, Provo, Utah 84601. Department of Zoology, Brigham Young I'niversity. Prove, Utah 84602. U.S. Fish and Wildlife'Service, Provo, Utah 8460r(.325 North .300 West. Mapleton, Utah 84663). 'Department of Botany and Range Science. Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah 84602. 303 304 Great Basin Naturalist Vol. 40, No. 4 ;|smok* -i 11 ,; .A 30/ ,v Aa;^'^ ,• , ^^J'1/ SV 7 ^-x^;^ NfV^j Ky'x \ ;, ^^'vA NIPPIE BENCH "^^^ 0' ...^ Fig. 1. Map of Brigham Young University Xavajo-Kaiparowits study sites, Kane and San Juan Counties, Utah, and Coconino Count\. Arizona. Benson (1935) published an important pa- National Park have, since 1932, made contri- per on the fauna and flora collected during butions toward our knowledge of the fauna an expedition led by Alexander, Kellogg, and and flora of the region. Benson in the Navajo Mountain region in Woodbury and Russell (1945), in their 1933. They had six stations as follows: one comprehensive report on the birds of the five miles .south of the mountain, 10-12 June; Navajo countrv, presented data on specimens one at War God Spring on top of the moun- collected and observations made in Glen tain at 8400 feet, 13-20 June; one at Bridge Canvon, on Navajo Mountain, and on Kai- Canyon, 21-24 June, two on the mesa south parowits Plateau. Behle and three associates of the mountain; and the other near Navajo made a boat trip down the Colorado River Mountain Trading Post, 25-26 June. In addi- 13-17 April 1947. They made observations at tion, naturalists assigned to Bryce Canvon various places between Hite and Lee's Ferry, December 1980 Atwood et al.: Kaiparowits Vertebrates 305 including the mouth of the Escalante River, This report on the terrestrial vertebrate river mile 88; Hidden Passage, river mile 76; fauna is based on species reported in the lit- Aztec Creek, river mile 68.5; Crossing-of-the- erature and collections or field observations Fathers; near Creek, river mile 40.5; and made by BYU personnel from 1971 to the fall Lee's Ferry. Behle and associates also collect- of 1976. The various taxa in the annotated ed birds at or near the confluence of Calf lists are arranged phylogenetically following Creek and the Escalante River, 11-14 June the order given in Schmidt (1953) for the am- 1953, and 7-9 May 1954 (Behle et al. 1958; phibians and reptiles; the .\merican Behle 1960). In 1958, Behle and Higgins Ornithologists Union (AOU) Check List, Fifth (1959) made some observations at Hole-in- Edition (1957) and subsequent supplements the-Rock (20 October), and the confluences for the bird.s; and Hall and Kelson (1959) for of Kane Creek and the Escalante River with the mammals. Most of the Colorado River (19 October); birds were the studies dealing with the distri- observed by Harold Higgins and Gerald bution and ecology of amphibians and rep- tiles within the Kaiparowits Basin have l^een Smith on a river trip extending from 1 Julv to restricted to areas along the Colorado River. 9 August 1958 from Hite to Lee's Ferry The stretch of river generally known as Glen (Behle and Higgins 1959). We have not given Canyon Gorge has been the area most com- the precise dates in the species accounts giv- monly studied. The most comprehensive list en below of birds collected or seen bv Behle (28 taxa) of amphibians and reptiles for this and his associates on June 1953 and Mav area was by W. W. Tanner (1958a). Wood- 1954 trips, or for Benson's (1935) trips in bury et al. (1959) published a similar list, but 1933, becau.se of the short duration of their it contained only 19 ta.xa. Both of these stud- investigations. If desired, such can be obtain- ies were designed to obtain data prior to the ed from the literature. The dates of observa- constrution of Glen Canyon Dam and sub- tions from our investigations, however, are sequent development of Lake Powell. .-Xs part reported herein. of the Navajo-Kaiparowits environmental In 1957, the National Park Service in- baseline studies. Toft (1972) prepared a field itiated a salvage program for the Glen Can- key ba.sed on the above literature and field \"on area preparatory to the constniction of observations and collections made during the Glen Canyon Dam. These data were pub- summer of 1971 and 1972. .\dditional data lished by the University of Utah and the Mu- have been added from subsecjuent studies seum of Northern Arizona in their respective made during the period of 1973-1975. These journals. Earlier (as a result of a reconnais- studies represent to date the most extensive sance trip, 8-14 August 1957, and as a part of field studies into the interior of Kaiparowits tlie same project), Woodbury et al. (1959) Basin. had prepared an annotated checklist of the birds of the proposed Glen Canvon Reservoir Amphibians area from various sources, including pub- li.shed and unpublished manuscript records.