National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Natural Resource Program Center Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site Amphibian and Reptile Inventory March – September 2001 Natural Resource Report NPS/NETN/NRR—2010/248 ON THE COVER Northern two-lined salamander - Saugus Iron Works NHS is a locally important site for this stream-dwelling salamander. Photograph by: Dave Brotherton Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site Amphibian and Reptile Inventory March – September 2001 Natural Resource Report NPS/NETN/NRR—2010/248 Robert P. Cook National Park Service Cape Cod National Seashore Wellfleet, MA 02667 David K. Brotherton Department of Herpetology Wildlife Conservation Society Bronx Zoo Bronx, NY 10460-1099 John L. Behler1 Department of Herpetology Wildlife Conservation Society Bronx Zoo Bronx, NY 10460-1099 1 deceased September 2010 U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service Natural Resource Program Center Fort Collins, Colorado The National Park Service, Natural Resource Program Center publishes a range of reports that address natural resource topics of interest and applicability to a broad audience in the National Park Service and others in natural resource management, including scientists, conservation and environmental constituencies, and the public. The Natural Resource Report Series is used to disseminate high-priority, current natural resource management information with managerial application. The series targets a general, diverse audience, and may contain NPS policy considerations or address sensitive issues of management applicability. All manuscripts in the series receive the appropriate level of peer review to ensure that the information is scientifically credible, technically accurate, appropriately written for the intended audience, and designed and published in a professional manner. This report received formal peer review by subject-matter experts who were not directly involved in the collection, analysis, or reporting of the data, and whose background and expertise put them on par technically and scientifically with the authors of the information. Views, statements, findings, conclusions, recommendations, and data in this report do not necessarily reflect views and policies of the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use by the U.S. Government. This report is available from the Northeast Temperate Network, (http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/units/NETN/monitor/monitor.cfm) and the Natural Resource Publications Management website (http://www.nature.nps.gov/publications/NRPM). Please cite this publication as: Cook, R. P., D. K. Brotherton, and J. L. Behler. 2010. Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site amphibian and reptile inventory: March – September 2001. Natural Resource Report NPS/NETN/NRR—2010/248. National Park Service, Fort Collins, Colorado. NPS 444/105740, September 2010 ii Contents Tables ............................................................................................................................................. vi Figures............................................................................................................................................ vi Executive Summary ...................................................................................................................... vii Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................... viii Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1 Study Area ...................................................................................................................................... 3 Methods........................................................................................................................................... 5 Sampling Overview .................................................................................................................... 5 Anuran Calling Surveys (ACS) .............................................................................................. 7 Time Constrained Search (TCS) ............................................................................................. 7 Stream/River TCS ................................................................................................................... 7 Woodland TCS ........................................................................................................................ 7 Field TCS ................................................................................................................................ 8 Wetland TCS ........................................................................................................................... 8 Coverboards (CB) ................................................................................................................... 8 Turtle Trap Surveys (TTS) ...................................................................................................... 8 Minnow Trap Surveys (MTS) ................................................................................................. 8 Incidental Encounters (IE) ...................................................................................................... 9 Quantifying Abundance .......................................................................................................... 9 Data Management ......................................................................................................................... 11 Supplemental Data .................................................................................................................... 11 Results ........................................................................................................................................... 13 iii Overview of Park Herpetofauna ............................................................................................... 13 Survey Method Summaries ....................................................................................................... 13 Anuran Calling Surveys ........................................................................................................ 15 Time Constrained Searches ................................................................................................... 15 Coverboards .......................................................................................................................... 15 Turtle Traps ........................................................................................................................... 15 Minnow Traps ....................................................................................................................... 16 Incidental Encounter ............................................................................................................. 16 Discussion ..................................................................................................................................... 19 Community Analysis, Factors Affecting Species Presence, and Important Habitats ............... 19 Stressors .................................................................................................................................... 20 Recommendations for Management and Future Inventory and Monitoring ............................ 22 Species Accounts .......................................................................................................................... 24 Species Recorded at SAIR ........................................................................................................ 25 Northern Two-Lined Salamander (Eurycea b. bislineata).................................................... 25 Northern Green Frog (Lithobates clamitans melanota) ........................................................ 26 Common Snapping Turtle (Chelydra s. serpentina) ............................................................. 27 Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta) .......................................................................................... 28 Northern Brown Snake (Storeria d. dekayii) ........................................................................ 28 Common Garter Snake (Thamnophis s. sirtalis) ................................................................... 29 Eastern Milk Snake (Lampropeltis t. triangulum) ................................................................ 30 Potentially-occurring Species Never Recorded at SAIR .......................................................... 30 Eastern Red-backed Salamander (Plethodon cinereus) ........................................................ 30 iv Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer) ..................................................................................... 31 American Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) ...................................................................... 32 Northern Water Snake (Nerodia s. sipedon) ......................................................................... 32 Literature Cited ............................................................................................................................. 35 Appendix A. Records of amphibians and reptiles at and in the vicinity of Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site prior to 2001. Nyman (1991) covers the entire watershed