An experimental assessment of buffer width: Implications for salamander migratory behavior

• Published in: Biological conservation 2009-10, Vol.142 (10), p.2227-2239
• Main Authors: Veysey, Jessica S., Babbitt, Kimberly J., Cooper, Andrew
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: adult animals; Ambystoma; Ambystoma maculatum; Amphibia. Reptilia; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied ecology; Biological and medical sciences; breeding sites; Caudata; clearcutting; conservation buffers; Conservation, protection and management of environment and wildlife; Forest management; Fragmentation; Freshwater; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; highlands; Migration; migration behavior; Mixed effects; Parks, reserves, wildlife conservation. Endangered species: population survey and restocking; salamanders and newts; Vernal pool; Vertebrates: general zoology, morphology, phylogeny, systematics, cytogenetics, geographical distribution; wildlife habitats; wildlife management
• ISSN: 0006-3207; 1873-2917
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2009.04.024

Upland buffer zones are the primary proposed management tool for vernal-pool-breeding amphibians; however, experimental validation of the utility of buffers is lacking. We used clear cutting to experimentally manipulate upland buffer widths at 11 vernal pools in east-central Maine. Each pool was randomly assigned to one of three possible treatments: >1000-m buffer, 100-m buffer, or 30-m buffer. We radiotracked 40 adult spotted salamanders at these pools and modeled their migratory behavior with mixed-effects regression. Mean maximum distance salamanders moved from their breeding pool was 106.0 ± 15.4 m (range = 1.6–427.6 m). Salamanders were able to enter and cross clear cuts. We observed differences in migratory behavior between the 100-m buffer and reference treatments and between forest and clear-cut habitat; however, weather conditions and a salamander’s distance from the vernal pool strongly mediated the impact of buffer treatment on migration behavior. Our findings indicate that clear cuts are semi-permeable to adult spotted salamanders, but that degree of permeability and the effects of buffer treatment largely depend on weather conditions.