Marshall University Marshall Digital Scholar Theses, Dissertations and Capstones 2005 The aN tural History, Distribution, and Phenotypic Variation of Cave-dwelling Spring Salamanders, Gyrinophilus spp. Cope (Plethodontidae), in West Virginia Michael Steven Osbourn Follow this and additional works at: http://mds.marshall.edu/etd Part of the Aquaculture and Fisheries Commons, and the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons Recommended Citation Osbourn, Michael Steven, "The aN tural History, Distribution, and Phenotypic Variation of Cave-dwelling Spring Salamanders, Gyrinophilus spp. Cope (Plethodontidae), in West Virginia" (2005). Theses, Dissertations and Capstones. Paper 735. This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Marshall Digital Scholar. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses, Dissertations and Capstones by an authorized administrator of Marshall Digital Scholar. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Natural History, Distribution, and Phenotypic Variation of Cave-dwelling Spring Salamanders, Gyrinophilus spp. Cope (Plethodontidae), in West Virginia. Thesis submitted to The Graduate College of Marshall University In partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Master of Science Biological Sciences By Michael Steven Osbourn Thomas K. Pauley, Committee Chairperson Daniel K. Evans, PhD Thomas G. Jones, PhD Marshall University May 2005 Abstract The Natural History, Distribution, and Phenotypic Variation of Cave-dwelling Spring Salamanders, Gyrinophilus spp. Cope (Plethodontidae), in West Virginia. Michael S. Osbourn There are over 4000 documented caves in West Virginia, potentially providing refuge and habitat for a diversity of amphibians and reptiles. Spring Salamanders, Gyrinophilus porphyriticus, are among the most frequently encountered amphibians in caves. Surveys of 25 caves provided expanded distribution records and insight into ecology and diet of G. porphyriticus. Over 500 species locality records were compiled in a nearly comprehensive list. The Gyrinophilus population from General Davis Cave is of particular interest. In 1977, Besharse and Holsinger first described the West Virginia Spring Salamander, G. subterraneus; however, its taxonomic status is unclear. In order to document the degree of variability among cave-dwelling Gyrinophilus species, Principal Components Analysis was applied to measurements of external morphology. Eye diameter (P≤0.05) appears to be the primary morphological character separating G. porphyriticus from G. subterraneus. This investigation of cave-dwelling Gyrinophilus should broaden our understanding of amphibians in an often overlooked and threatened ecosystem. ii Acknowledgements A research assistantship from USGS and EPA, studying the potential use of salamanders in biomonitoring indices made it possible for me to attend Marshall University. The WVDNR Wildlife Diversity Program provided my primary thesis research grant. Additional funding came from the West Virginia Association for Cave Studies and the Marshall University Graduate College. The fieldwork for this project required a lot of time, sweat, bruises, backaches, and long hours cold and wet underground. I am deeply grateful to all the adventurous Marshall grad students who enthusiastically crawled through the mud, over rocks, and through cave streams like the salamanders we were looking for. Roughly in the order of number of cave trips completed, the following friends hauled gear, caught salamanders, took photos, recorded data, and kept me company on long trips; Bill Sutton, Robert Makowsky, Lisa Smith, Keith Johnson, Seth Myers, Rob Fiorentino, Andy and Ellen Johnson, Zac Felix, Zac Loughman, Dr. Mark Watson, and Tiff Hutton. Jennifer Wykle of the West Virginia DNR has been an excellent friend of Dr. Pauley’s herpetology lab. Her resilience and positive attitude through a 10 hour survey and later an all-nighter in General Davis Cave were remarkable. The West Virginia Association for Cave Studies (WVACS) made this project possible by introducing me to the caving community and landowners, providing a warm place to sleep and space to work. Many thanks to Bill Balfour for sponsoring my WVACS membership and providing, maps, UTM coordinates, and advice from one of the true authorities on West Virginia caves. Harry Fair, Ed Swepston, Doug Boyer, Mike Corbett, Tony Buoy, Pat Bingham, Pam and Tom Malabad, Dave Cowan, and Bob Handley are all cavers who I greatly appreciate for helping out and being patient with my snail-like biologist pace. I am extremely grateful to Jeff Bray, Marianne Saugstad, and Ed Saugstad for not only showing me caves, but for being on-call, ready to call out a rescue if I did not return from a survey trip. Joseph Caldwell provided a map of Ludington Cave and Chuck Frostick donated the rope. Rick Samford, the resident at Ludington Cave, was kind enough to give me a lift through the pasture when the ground was soft and served as a check-in. Input about PCA morphometrics from Dr. Michael E. Seidel and statistical advice from Dr. Laura Adkins were invaluable. Katie Schneider provided amphibian encounter records from her thesis inventories of the Buckeye Creek drainage. Dr. David C. Culver and Dr. Horton H. Hobbs III introduced me to the field of Biospeleology. I thoroughly enjoyed caving with them and appreciate iii all their advice. Addison Wynn and the Smithsonian Institution assisted me with specimens and insight into Gyrinophilus systematics. I am very thankful for my friends and family who stuck by me as my laid-back life became hectic and busy. My parents, Vivian and Jerry, have always encouraged and supported my dreams. Mary Katherine Akers was my closest friend through the years we lived in Huntington. Deborah Merritt and Chris Barry are true friends who gave me a place to stay when I returned to Huntington from California and were always ready for adventure. Andy, Ellen, and Millhouse Johnson shared their home with me, great food, many laughs, and hundreds of running miles, training for a marathon. Finally, I would like to thank my thesis committee. Dr. Tom Jones provided cave research gear, books, maps, and was very helpful with survey methods and analysis. I enjoyed learning from Dr. Dan Evans in the four classes I took from him at Marshall. Even though there were no living plants in my study ecosystem, he was interested in my project and very helpful. Lastly, I am eternally grateful to my mentor and friend, Dr. Tom Pauley, for the research opportunities he provided. I met him at a terrestrial salamander monitoring conference in Canada and two years later I moved to West Virginia to chase ‘manders as his student. I am honored to have had the opportunity to learn from the wise man of West Virginia natural history. His love of the natural wonders and creatures of this state has inspired countless student naturalists. iv Table of Contents Abstract .............................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements ...........................................................................................iii Table of Contents .............................................................................................. v List of Tables.................................................................................................... viii List of Figures ..................................................................................................... x Chapter I: Introduction and Overview.................................................................1 Chapter II: The Distribution of Amphibians and Reptiles in West Virginia Caves .............................................................................................................. 3 Introduction .............................................................................................. 3 Geographic Distribution of West Virginia Caves................................................................................3 The Subterranean Environment..........................................................................................................4 Amphibian and Reptile Cavernicoles..................................................................................................5 History of Cave Surveys in West Virginia..........................................................................................9 Methods....................................................................................................10 Cave Surveys 2002-2003 ................................................................................................................10 Comprehensive List of Species Encounter Records .............................................................................11 Results and Discussion ............................................................................12 Cave Surveys 2002-2003 ................................................................................................................12 Comprehensive list of Amphibian Encounter Records in West Virginia Caves and Abandoned Coal Mines ..............................................................................................................................................13 Comprehensive list of Reptile Encounter Records in West Virginia Caves and Abandoned Coal Mines ..............................................................................................................................................14 Conclusions ..............................................................................................15