Date of Award

1999

Degree Name

Biological Sciences

College

College of Science

Type of Degree

M.S.

Document Type

Thesis

First Advisor

Dan K. Evans

Second Advisor

Dr. Seidel

Third Advisor

Donald C. Tarter

Abstract

Microhabitat environments and occurrences of terrestrial plethodontid salamanders including Plethodon nettingi Green, Plethodon cinereus (Green), Plethodon wehrlei Fowler and Dunn, Plethodon glutinosus (Green), and Desmognathus ochrophaeus Cope were monitored over a 15 month period at high elevation sites in the Stuart Knob area of the Monongahela National Forest in eastern West Virginia. Environmental data collected for eight equal-sized study plots (8m2 ) included relative humidity, air and soil temperatures, and lunar phase. Five hundred and twenty-five salamanders were captured in diurnal and nocturnal searches, and an additional 52 individuals were observed. It was found that the most common occurring salamander species, P. cinereus and D. ochrophaeus, were the most versatile with regard to relative humidity, soil temperature and air temperature ranges and that the less frequently occurring species, P. nettingi, P. glutinosus, and P. wehrlei, had more limiting ranges for these environmental factors. It was also found that lunar phases influence salamander activity. Of all the study species, activity of P. cinereus occurred over the widest ranges for relative humidity and air temperature and the second widest range for soil temperature. This species was the least influenced by the three environmental factors tested. Activity of Plethodon nettingi occurred within the highest and most restrictive relative humidity percent values of all study species, but followed P. cinereus and D. ochrophaeus in soil and air temperature ranges. Activity of Desmognathus ochrophaeus fell between P. cinereus and P. nettingifor relative humidity and air temperature ranges, and had the greatest difference between the low and high range values for soil temperature of all study species. There was an inverse relationship between the foraging activity of P. cinereus and the other study species for all phases of the moon. While activity of Pciner. eus peaked during the new moon and first half lunar phases, the activity of D. ochrophaeus and P. nettingi declined.

Subject(s)

Salamanders -- Ecology.

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