Grand Canyon Herps - The Grand Canyon Association
Transcription
Grand Canyon Herps - The Grand Canyon Association
Grand Canyon Herps Identification Hints and Natural History Please feel free to ask questions during presentation, this can be interactive “CARP” = [email protected] Please send pictures of herps w/ date and location! UNIMODAL ACTIVITY BIMODAL ACTIVITY 24 TOO COOL JUST RIGHT TIME OF DAY TOO HOT 0 JAN MONTH DEC • • • • Changing Taxonomies Cnemidophorus tigris has been changed to Aspidoscelis tigris (WESTERN WHIPTAIL) Bufo woodhousei has become Anaxyrus woodhousei (WOODHOUSE’S TOAD, ROCKY MOUNTAIN TOAD) Bufo punctatus has become Anaxyrus punctatus (RED-SPOTTED TOAD) Crotalus viridis abyssus has become Crotalus oreganus abyssus (GRAND CANYON RATTLESNAKE) Grand Canyon region home to many herp species: Large geographic area w/ variation in elevation, aspect, influenced by several ecoregions, mild yet dynamic climate = heterogeneity among habitat types and many ecological niches So…let’s just TRY to use common names? RED-SPOTTED TOAD @ FORESTER SEPTEMBER 2003 • Amphibians and Reptiles of the Grand Canyon Region • AMPHIBIANS – – • Frogs and Toads • • • Leopard Frog • • Canyon Treefrog • • Arizona Toad • • Great Plains Toad • • • Woodhouse’s Toad • • Red-spotted Toad • • Spadefoot Toad (2 spp.) • Salamander • • Tiger Salamander • • • • POSSIBILITY? Milk Snake LIZARDS Side-blotched Lizard Tree Lizard Desert Spiny Lizard Plateau Lizard Sagebrush Lizard Collared Lizard (2 spp.) Leopard Lizard Zebra-tailed Lizard Common Lesser Earless Lizard Horned Lizard (2 spp.) Chuckwalla Whiptail Lizards (3 spp.) Western Banded Gecko Skinks (3 spp.) Gila Monster • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • SNAKES Glossy Snake Ring-necked Snake Night Snake Striped Whipsnake Coachwhip California Kingsnake Sonoran Mountain Kingsnake Long-nosed Snake Gopher Snake Patch-nosed Snake Ground Snake Black-headed Snake Terrestrial Gartersnake Lyre Snake Western Rattlesnake – – • • • • Grand Canyon Rattlesnake Great Basin Rattlesnake Speckled Rattlesnake Black-tailed Rattlesnake Western Diamond-backed Rattlesnake Mojave Rattlesnake • Names (current common and Latin) according to Brennan and Holycross (2006) Leopard Frog • To the best of our knowledge, based on extensive surveys throughout the Grand Canyon region, northern leopard frogs no longer occur anywhere below Glen Canyon Dam in the Colorado River and its tributaries. • The only leopard frogs that we know of in the Grand Canyon region are those in Surprise Canyon, which are most closely related to lowland leopard frogs (Rana yavapaiensis). There is a healthy population of these frogs higher up in the perennial parts of Surprise, but they are extremely isolated and strongly differentiated genetically. (Charles Drost, USGS) WOODHOUSE’S TOAD (Bufo woodhousei) Kidney-shaped paratoid gland Mid-dorsal stripe RED-SPOTTED TOAD (Bufo punctatus) 104R, April 2003 round paratoid gland Photo by Don Sias Great Plains Toad Symmetrical blotches Arizona Toad weak or absent cranial crests CANYON TREEFROG (Hyla arenicolor) 140L, April 2003 toe pads Photos by Don Sias TIGER SALAMANDER SPADEFOOT TOADS Great Basis Spadefoot, glandular boss Mexican Spadefoot, no boss Plains Spadefoot, bony boss SIDE-BLOTCHED LIZARD (Uta stansburiana) Cardenas Camp, April, 2003 MALE Adult male side-blotched lizard (“Uta”) Forester (122.8 L), APRIL 2003 TREE LIZARD (Urosaurus ornatus) HEAD BOBS AND PUSH-UPS What is that lizard doing? • DISPLAY ACTION PATTERN (DAP)…a type of FIXED/MODAL ACTION PATTERN species typical instinctive performed “perfectly” first time usually performed to completion once started COMMON SIDE-BLOTCHED LIZARD (Uta stansburiana ) TREE LIZARD (Urosaurus ornatus) Plateau Lizard Sagebrush Lizard Desert Spiny – Misidentified as collared lizard – Misidentified as horned lizard DESERT SPINY LIZARD ZEBRA-TAILED LIZARD COMMON LESSER EARLESS LIZARD DESERT HORNED LIZARD GREATER SHORT-HORNED LIZARD • Great Basin Collared Lizard • Eastern Collared Lizard LEOPARD LIZARD COMMOM CHUCKWALLA CHUCKWALLA (Sauromalus obesus) @ 27 R lunchstop, April 2003 •Herbivorous •Likes it HOT •“spooky” juvenile Adult MALE Below Bedrock August 2003 Tiger Whiptail Plateau Striped Whiptail Pai Striped Whiptail Gilbert’s Skink Many-lined Skink Western Skink GILA MONSTER Gila monster photographed by (superstud NPS Ranger) Brenton White (while running backward and fouling himself) “he wanted to bite a toe-burger out of my Chaco” Diamond Creek Road, 11 April, 2005 WESTERN BANDED GECKO Glossy Snake Striped Whipsnake Coachwhip COACHWHIP (RED RACER) (Masticophis flagellum) Lava Chuar scout July 2002 STRIPED WHIPSNAKE (Masticophis taeniatus) Above Fishtail April 2003 Photo by Don Sias Ring-necked Snake Thread Snake • Ring-necked Snake Ground Snake Long-nosed Snake Night Snake Patch-nosed Snake Terrestrial Gartersnake Lyre Snake California kingsnake (Lampropeltus getula ) Above Saddle Canyon (46.7 R) June 29, 2003 Milksnake Sonoran Mountain Kingsnake Photo by Larry Kamees Cannibalism in California kingsnakes Crystal Rapid scout, June 30 2002 Photo by Joe Vaughn Gopher Snake (Pituophis catenifer) Forester (122.8L) July 2003 Western Rattlesnake Collecting blood from subcaudal vein Photo by Mike Kearsley The Grand Canyon Pink Grand Canyon Rattlesnake is a subspecies of the western/prairie rattlesnake (Crotalus oreganus viridis …~7 6 subspecies) --endemic to Grand Canyon corridor (thru ~Tuckup National), and Little C. (…abyssus) GRAND CANYON PINK RATTLESNAKE IN TUBE AT LAVA CHUAR SITE 65.3 L Photo by Joe Vaughn SPECKLED RATTLESNAKE (juvenile, 186.5L, 14 April 2003) No face stripe Bands rather than blotches (180 mi. & below) Photo by Don Sias GC PINK VS SPECKLED Geographic ranges are “dynamic”….what is happening nowadays that may accelerate shifting of geographic ranges? Known Black-tailed Rattlesnake Locations –Lava Scout (find photo) –Redslide –Hualapai Acres –Parashant (science camp above) “CARP” = [email protected] Please send pictures of herps w/ –Indian Canyon date and location! The angle of this snakes eyestripe, its uniformly-colored blotches, and its relatively thin tail rings distinguish it from the similar looking Western Diamondbacked Rattlesnake. Mojave vs. Western Diamondbacked Rattlesnake Tailbanding COLLABORATORS Thomas Brennan, Geoff Carpenter, Charles Drost, Andy Holycross, Jeff Lovich, Trevor Persons, Robert Reed and Larry Stevens (not pictured). MONITORING BIOTA IN THREE HYDROLOGIC ZONES INDICATOR SPECIES? • • • • • • • “Usual Suspects” Side-blotched Lizard Tiger Whiptail Lizard Desert Spiny Lizard Tree Lizard Chuckwalla Collared Lizard Western Banded Gecko • • Desert Horned Lizard (Lee’s….222 and below) Zebra-tailed Lizard, Leopard Lizard (Peach Springs Wash) • Patch-nosed Snake • Grand Canyon Rattlesnake • Gophersnake • Kingsnake • Striped Whipsnake • • Coachwhip Black-tailed Rattlesnake • Speckled Rattlesnake Black-tailed Rattlesnake = “Mojave Green” • Babes Hole Spring Canyon was an easy and not terribly exciting technical descent, but the canyon was rather pleasant and the day wonderful as I was joined by my old friend and canyon partner John, and a first timer canyoneer and new friend, Steve. With a recent snow fall, the ground was saturated adding to the springs, resulting in a modest but steady flow through the entire canyon and crystal clear pools. A lethargic Bull Snake laid sprawled out on a rock in the narrows below a beautiful fluted rappel. It did not seem terribly interested or bothered as we moved all around trying to find the right angle to pull our rope that got temporarily stuck. Unlike our Bull Snake friend, a Mojave Green Rattlesnake was extremely irritated as we rock hopped past it. Hundreds of butterflies resembled multi-colored snow flurries and silver colored canyon frogs hopped abound Gopher Snake…..Black-tailed Rattlesnake “CARP” = [email protected] Please send pictures of herps w/ date and location! Pet Peeve = bogus sightings = misidentification Gecko? Why is correct identification important? – Natural Resources Management--Cannot effectively preserve biodiversity until we identify ecosystem components, how hey function and how they interact – ….why is important to id rapid/canyon correctly? Species identification can be difficult Dunes Sagebrush Lizard (Sceloporus arenicolus) Prairie Lizard (Sceloporus consobrinus) Misidentification affects credibility