Population Biology of the Spotted Salamander,' Ambystoma maculatum', Inhabiting211 Penn State Erie Wetlands

摘要

The wetland systems on the campus of Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, are211u001eunder development pressure stemming from the construction of the East Side Access 211u001eHighway and from expansion of the college. Both wetland systems are important 211u001ebreeding habitat for the spotted salamander, Ambystoma maculatum, which has 211u001eextensive requirements for both wetland and terrestrial habitat during its life 211u001ehistory. Though this species is prevelent in many vernal wetland systems in 211u001ePennsylvania, very little is known about how changing landscapes resulting from 211u001edevelopment, road construction, and wetland mitigation affect this species. The 211u001egoals of this study were to: (1) describe the population biology of A. maculatum 211u001eon the Penn State Erie campus, (2) use this information to assess the possible 211u001eeffects of campus development and the construction of the East Side Access 211u001eHighway on the salamanders, and (3) recommend mitigation strategies that will 211u001eminimize harmful effects of road construction on the salamanders. Data were 211u001ecollected between 1995 and 1999, and the results reported in this document 211u001eaddress genetic variation and reproductive isolation of the populations, the 211u001eabundance and distribution of the reproductive adults, and the importance of the 211u001eupland habitat for the number and quality of migrating adults. From this study, 211u001ethe authors can conclude that the wetlands on the Behrend campus support a large, 211u001egenetically-homogeneous population of A. maculatum. However, sufficient 211u001evariability is present for the authors to conclude that some degree of 211u001ereproductive isolation exists between populations in different wetland complexes. 211u001eThe population is genetically distinct from others in the eastern United States. 211u001eThe authors also can conclude that the A. maculatum populations are dependent 211u001eupon the area and quality of the upland habitat surrounding the breeding 211u001ewetlands.