SUMMER MOVEMENTS OF THE COMMON FIVE-LINED SKINK (PLESTIODON FASCIATUS) IN THE NORTHERN PORTION OF ITS RANGE

摘要

Common Five-lined Skinks (Plestiodon [formerly Eumeces] fasciatus) are difficult to study due to their small size, secretive habits, and semi-fossorial natural history. Habitat selection and dispersal have been studied at several locations across the range of the species, but few details of movements are known. Our objectives were to use radio-telemetry to gain more insight into skink movements and to test the efficacy of small, lightweight transmitters that we externally attached. We fitted 31 skinks with transmitters that provided up to 16 consecutive days of dispersal information. Movements varied greatly among individuals with some staying close to initial capture sites while most moved tens to hundreds of meters over a short period of observation. We located most of the tracked individuals under cover of woody debris but found they were much more mobile than previous mark-recapture studies suggested. Our tracking supported the idea that traditional home ranges were not occupied, but instead most individuals made regular linear movements while returning to the same locations occasionally. Individuals spent on average just over 30% of their time underground, in grass tussocks, and inside standing trees near the end of the active season. This may partly explain why recapture rates are so low in traditional mark-recapture studies. We developed a correction factor that accounts for this observed bias in microhabitat use that may help in future monitoring efforts. Small, lightweight radio transmitters that we externally mounted worked well for studying Five-lined Skink movements and the method may be useful with other similar sized reptiles.