·' c'..;• • " HERPETOLOGICAL STUDIES ON THE CAROLINA SANDHILLS NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE Jeffrey D. Camper Department of Biology, Francis Marion University, Florence, SC 29501-0547 - This report includes information gathered concerning the biology of the amphibians and reptiles of the Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge from summer 1995 through early spring 1997. The data from this report and from the survey conducted by Garton and Sill document 70 species of amphibians and reptiles occurring on the refuge. Common and scientific names follow Collins (1990). This report is divided into four separate sections. The first section addresses the herpetofaunal composition of four separate sites sampled using drift fences and cover boards. The second section deals with night collecting along Wildlife Drive with emphasis on the snake community. The third section concerns the results of surveying museum collections for specimens of amphibians and reptiles from the refuge. The last section is suggestiorls for further research. Section I: Habitat Sampling Four different habitats were sampled with drift fences and cover boards in 1996 and 1997. The habitats sampled were longleaf pine forest, riparian forest, a permanent pond and a temporary pond. The permanent pond sampled was McLeod Pond in compartment 19 whereas all other areas sampled were in compartment two at the northern end of the refuge (Fig. 1). The riparian site was adjacent to wetlands along Black Creek near the eastern terminus of route 7 d. The longleaf site was just to the south of route 7d about one-half mile to the southwest of the east end of route 7 d. The temporary pond (hereafter referred to as the newt pond) is located in a depression on an old logging road just north of route 7b about one-quarter mile from its western terminus. Each site contained one 16 m drift fence, made of aluminum flashing, with four buckets that served as pitfall traps. The newt pond was sampled with two drift fences, however. One bucket was placed at each end of the drift fence and two were placed in the middle on opposite sides. Each site contained from six to 12 wood or metal cover boards. Cover boards provide shelter for small vertebrates and increase encounter rates with amphibians and reptiles. Amphibians seem to prefer wood boards because they retain moisture and reptiles prefer metal boards because they retain heat (Grant et al., 1992). Collapsible hoop net traps were used to capture turtles at McLeod Pond and minnow traps were used to sample aquatic amphibians at the newt pond. Specimens were collected by hand when encountered. All specimens were marked by toe clipping, scale clipping or with PIT tags (see Section II). Trapping effort will be measured by trap nights, where one trap night = one drift fence open over one night. Drift fences were used for 229 trap nights in 1996 and 290 trap nights in 1997. In 1996, trapping was conducted in February, March, April, May, June and August. Traps were open only in February and March of 1997. Species encountered at each site are shown in Table 1 (see Table 4 for common names). The red salamander (£seudotriton ruber) and ringneck snake (Diadophis punctatus) both occurred at three sites but neither species were encountered by Garton and Sill in their survey. The newt pond had the greatest species richness (Table 1) which can be attributed to the large number of amphibian species that were encountered there. Species richness was about the same at the Black Creek and McLeod Pond sites. Both had about equal numbers of frog species but there was little overlap in species composition. The longleaf pine site had the lowest species richness which is 2 Figure 1. Partial map of the Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge showing the four localities sampled during 1996 and 1997. The star indicates McLeod Pond, the black dot represents the newt pond, the open square shows the longleaf pine forest site, and the open circle indicates the Black Creek site. 3 - Table 1. Amphibians and reptiles found at four trapping sites on the .Qix.cli!:!a,"S.andhills,J:~Tatiaruil Wildlife Refuge. Species diversity (H') is the Shannon-Weiner index. Species Longleaf Newt Black McLeod Pond Creek Pond Salamanders: Em:ycea cirrigera x x' Notophthalmus viridescens x Plethodon chlorobi:yonis x Pseudotriton ruber x x x Siren intermedia x Frogs: Acris gi:yllus x x Bufo terrestris x x x x Bufo woodhousii fowleri x x Gastrophi:yne carolinensis x Hyla andersonii x .Hyill fomoralis ~ x Hyla versicQlor x x Pseudacris crucifer x x Rana cates!:leiana x Rana clamitans x x x Rana utric].!laria x x Rana virgatipes x x Scaphiopus hQlbrookii x Turtles: KinQstemon subrubrum x Stemotherus odmatus x Trachemys scripta x Lizards: Anolis carolinensis x x x Cnemidophorus sexlineatus x x Eumeces fa sciat].!s x x Eumeces inexpectattis x ScelQporus ].!ndulatus x x x x S1;incella lateralis x x x x 4 T ble 1. Continued Species Longleaf Newt Black McLeod Pond Creek Pond Snakes: Agkistrodon piscivorous x Coluber constrictor x Diadophis punctatus x x x Elaphe obsoleta x ' Heterodon platirhinos x Nerodia fasciata x Storeria dekayi x Tantilla coronata x x Thamnophis sirtalis x Virginia striatula x Species Richness 7 22 18 18 Species Diversity (H') 1.75 1.77 2.04 2.32 presumably due to its xeric nature. Lizards made up the majority of the species found at this site (Table 1). The Shannon-Weiner Diversity Index was calculated for each site (Table 1). McLeod Pond had the greatest diversity and the longleaf pine site had the lowest diversity. The high diversity value for McLeod Pond may be due to relatively large numbers of salamanders, frogs and turtles. The lower diversity estimate for the Black Creek site may be due to fewer turtle and salamander species found there. The relatively low value for the newt pond is probably due to the large numbers of one species, the Eastern Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens), captured there. Section II: Night Collecting Along Wildlife Drive I made 13 night collecting trips along Wildlife Drive during 1995 and 1996 to study the snake community on the refuge. Many species of snakes will bask on warm pavement starting at dusk and into the evening. Driving slowly along paved roads during late spring, summer, and early fall is a productive way to sample secretive species. Collecting on warm rainy nights allows one to find many species of amphibians and certain aquatic snakes that are usually difficult to find. Table 2 lists all of the species of amphibians and reptiles encountered along Wildlife Drive and their approximate location. Entire length refers to common species that were encountered at several places along Wildlife Drive. The toads (Bufo) and most of the snakes were encountered on dry nights whereas the salamanders, frogs, and turtles were observed on rainy nights. These observations are biased because I chose to sample on dry nights when the conditions for finding 5 - I able 4. List of all amphibian and reptile species documented from the Carolina Sand ills National W1 life Refuge. Species Source Salamanders. Two-toed Arri hi.uma (Amphiuma l!lfill@) Gart & Sill N. Dusky Salam nder (Desmognathus fuscus) Ga on & Sill S. Two-lined Sala ander (Em:ycea cirrigera) B th DwarfWaterdog cN cturu punctatus) arton & Sill Red-spotted newt to hthalmus viridescens) Both Atlantic Coast Slimy sa ander (Plethodon chlorobi:yonis) Both E. Mud Salamander (Es dotriton montanus) Garton & Sill Red Salamander (Pseudot "ton ruber) This study Lesser Siren (Siren interme~l' a) Both Frogs & Toads: S. Cricket Frog (Acris gi:yllus) Both Oak Toad (Bufo quercicus) Garton & Sill Southern Toad (Bufo terrestris) Both Fowler's Toad (Bufo woodhousii fo eri) Both E. Narrowrnouth·Toad (Gastrophi:yne arolin nsis) Both Pine Barrens Treefrog (Hyla andersoni1 Both Green Treefrog (Hyla cinerea) Both Pine Woods Treefrog (Hyla femoralis) Both Barking Treefrog (B.yill gratiosa) Both Squirrel Treefrog (Hyla squirrela) Garton & Sill Gray Treefrog (B.yill yersicolor an '/or H. ,,,ch~"""~"' Both Spring Peeper (Pseudacris c r) Both Bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) Both Bronze Frog (Rana 1 it ) Both S. Leopard Frog (Rana ricularia) Both Carpenter Frog (Rana Ir i es) Both . E. Spadefoot (Sea hi holbrookii) Both Turtles: Common Snap ni.g Turtle (Chelydra serpentina) Garton & Sill Spotted Tu e (Clemmys guttata) Garton & Sill E. Mud tu le (Kinosternon subnrubrum) Florida ooter (Pseudemys floridana) Com on musk turtle (Sternotherus odoratus) E. ox Turtle (Terrapene carolina) 10 Table 2. Species of amphibians and reptiles encountered during 13 nights ofroad collecting during 1995-1996 along Wildlife Drive in the Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge. Species Locality Salamanders: S. Two-lined salamander (Em:ycea cirrigeni) I. 75 mi. N. Headquarters Red-spotted newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) Poo!C Frogs: S. Cricket frog (Acris gryllus) All pools Southern toad (Bufo terrestris) Entire length Fowler's toad (Bufo w. fowleri) Entire length . Green Treefrog (Hyla cinerea) Poo!J Barking Treefrog (Hyla gratiosa) PoolG Bullfrog (BJ!na catesbeiana) ' Pool J Bronze frog (Rana clamitans) PoolsH and J S. Leopard frog (Rana utricularia) Poo!G Carpenter frog (BJ!na virgatipes) Pools G and J Turtles: Florida Cooter (Eseudemys floridana) PoolD E. Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina) Just N. of Pool G Snakes: Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix) 4.5, 5.5, 9.0 mi. N. Headquarters Cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorous) Pool J Scarlet snake (Cemophora coccinea) 1.25 mi. N. Headquarters Timber/ Canebrake Rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus) vicinity ofjunction with Rt. 9 Mole Kingsnake (Lampropeltis calligaster) Just S. of Pool G Scarlet Kingsnake (Lampropeltis triangulum) 5.0, 7.0, & 8.1 mi. N. Headquarters Banded Water Snake (Nerodia fasciata) PoolB Glossy Crayfish Snake (Regina rigida) Poo!G Pigmy Rattlesnake (Sistrurus miliarius) Entire length Redbelly Snake (Storeria occipitoma.culata) Just S.